It?s become a topic being discussed almost as much as the prospects playing.
The 2013 Memorial Cup attendance has generated substantial debate.
Is it to the satisfaction of the organizers? Is it disappointing? Does it look worse than it is because of the size of the Credit Union Centre? Should the 15,100 seats all be filled, at least when the Saskatoon Blades are playing?
It?s been a circuitous discussion, with people coming down on both sides of the issue.
Before Tuesday?s game between the London Knights and Halifax Mooseheads, the four-game average attendance was 8,870. The London Knights-Blades? crowd of 10,203 was the biggest number.
Those numbers are tickets sold, including ticket packages. Some games have had fewer people actually sitting in the seat, which doesn?t do much to soften the perception that attendance hasn?t been as good as it should be.
The record for average attendance for a nine-game Memorial Cup was 13,496 in 2007 in Vancouver. The record for single-game attendance was established in Hamilton in 1990 when 17,383 attended a game. Vancouver set a record attendance of 14,091 for a round-robin game.
Saskatoon has faced some criticism for not coming closer to selling out their home team?s games.
Hometown attendance has been hurt because the Blades were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. The team didn?t play a competitive game for 51 days ? that hurt momentum.
But with the Blades defeating the Mooseheads, the No. 1 team in the country 5-2 Monday, a good indication of whether the fans have forgiven the Blades for their playoff ouster will come when Saskatoon plays Portland Wednesday in its final round-robin game.
?We understand how they feel,? Blades? forward Lukas Sutter said. ?It was on us to prove that we are for real and to get the city behind us. Now I think we have and the city will get behind us.?
Jack Brodsky is the co-chair of the host organizing committee and co-owner and governor of the Blades.
?We?re happy with were we are. I can?t be disappointed,? he said of the attendance numbers.
?But we?re far from done here. We have a ways to go in the tournament yet .?.?. ?
With all four teams still in the running all the games take on significant importance. There is still the tiebreaker, the semifinal and the final to come.
?Anytime you have 15,000 seats you?d like to have them all filled,? Brodsky said. ?But I?m pretty comfortable with where we are at with the attendance.?
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Highest average attendance--series
13,496 Vancouver - 2007 (9 games)
Highest attendance-one game
17,383 - Hamilton - May 13, 1990 (final)
16,281 - Vancouver - May 27, 2007 (final)
14,091 - Vancouver - May 23, 2007 (round robin)
Highest attendance-round robin
14,091 - Vancouver - May 23, 2007
Highest attendance-semifinal
13,372 - Vancouver - May 25, 2007
Highest attendance - final
17,383 - Hamilton - May 13, 1990
16,281 - Vancouver - May 27, 2007
13,460 - Vancouver - May 14, 1977
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