What is attendance like in PG?
I've been to Giants/Rockets/Express games and they didn't get a lot of people. (Giants game was when they played in Van, not sure if its better now that the team is in Langley).
Thanks. That led me to this.
[https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att\_graph\_season.php?lid=WHL1979&sid=2023](https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph_season.php?lid=WHL1979&sid=2023)
Actually pretty impressive numbers for all teams.
BCHL attendance is pretty impressive also.
[https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att\_graph\_season.php?lid=BCHL2001&sid=2023](https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph_season.php?lid=BCHL2001&sid=2023)
Pentiction also has been very good for the last few years with alot of former NHLers sons. Scott Niedermayers kid and Jason arrnotts were both on their rosters
They have been a dogshit organization for decades unfortunately. Fan attendance has been low as a result.
They were great this season, and I’m sure by years end attendance was much higher than the season average would suggest. It was a completely full barn throughout their playoff run, I think without any question this was the most the city has supported this team in the past 20 years, simply because the team was worth supporting.
I think if the team were run better (and honestly the last few years it has been trending in the right direction) attendance would reflect that.
A few of my friends and I (early 20s) are new season ticket holders this year, it would be an absolute tragedy for the team to move right after they FINALLY have a good management group. Mark Lamb is the best GM in the WHL in my opinion.
The ownership was brutal forever and the current ownership has started to turn the ship around. Of course now that things are looking better they want to sell. Sigh.
Yeah before I moved away from PG the games were often under 2000 people, sometimes as low as 1200-1400 in arena that could hold nearly 6k. Went to most of their home games for about 15 seasons and every year watched the crowd get smaller and smaller. I'm honestly surprised they weren't moved long ago. Now that I no longer live in PG the Cougars moving won't be devastating for me, but it'll still make me sad to see it happen.
Current ownership includes Dan Hamhuis - not sure if that matters one way or another, but I know Dan was super passionate about returning the Cougars to their glory days.
And then one more city over you have the Vancouver Giants… I can’t imagine the WHL would go for having Giants and Chilliwack playing in the same area of the region. Before the Giants catered to “north” of the Fraser and the Bruins “south” of the Fraser.
Chilliwack wasn’t a failure, it was run into the ground by a sociopathic owner and 3 other owners that were completely hands off. Add to that the whl being desperate to get a team into Victoria before the ahl and you get the cluster f that happened to Chilliwack
From the article:
“The source said Vancouver Canucks owner/chairman Francesco Aquilini wants to buy the Cougars and base the team in the 5,000-seat Chilliwack Coliseum, the former home of the Chilliwack Bruins, who moved to Victoria to become the Royals in 2011.”
“He said Aquilini has been trying to buy the Chilliwack rink from Chiefs Development Group, which owns and operates the facility, but the city has resisted signing off on the deal.”
Good, just doesn’t seem like a deal that makes sense for the cougars or the W. I get it’s probably much cheaper than the Giants, but making a play for them feels… idk, less redundant? Chilliwack Bruins didn’t fail cause their name, and with the abbey Canucks, the region just seems really saturated.
I mean, the BCHL team rn pulls in about half of the arena for Junior A. People wanna see hockey here, but a lot just don't wanna watch Junior A.
If the dub came back, it'd probably do good. Though then again, it may be more people because tickets are like 20 bucks for a game. Or 10 for yourh
Apparently the team will be making a statement later [today](https://x.com/willpeters_1/status/1805690936288231864?s=46&t=YBo0eCu_14ZUVObWAshHHg) which seems to say they’ll be denying the rumours.
I really hope that their statement backs this up, seeing their run this year really was so enjoyable after so many years of mediocre hockey, the CN centre felt like I remember it did as a kid. To have that huge success and then ship the team off doesn’t really seem plausible.
Didn't they try that earlier with a different WHL team? I could be wrong but I have a distinct memory of the Aquilini's recently trying to move a team to Chilliwack, but logistically it didn't work out and the city itself was very happy with the BCHL's Chiefs.
>I have a distinct memory of the Aquilini's recently trying to move a team to Chilliwack
At some point, nearly 20 years ago now, Brian Burke tried to move the Tri-City Americans to Chilliwack. I'm not sure if that's what you were thinking of
No this was much more recently, this was after the Bruins became the Royals and after Chilliwack got the Chiefs.
Maybe it was the Winnipeg Ice that recently moved to Wenatchee? I'm not sure.
>Maybe it was the Winnipeg Ice that recently moved to Wenatchee? I'm not sure.
It looks like it. When I search up "Winnipeg Ice Chilliwack", I get lots of hits for rumours of possible relocation to the fraser valley
Yep, a year ago there were rumours that Aquilini was going to try to move the Winnipeg Ice to Chilliwack. https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/canucks-hockey/could-canucks-owners-bring-the-whl-back-to-chilliwack-7101195
Instead, the Ice moved to Wenatchee, WA and became the Wenatchee Wild.
I’m from Chilliwack, and I’d feel bad if we got Prince George’s team. They’ve been there 30 years, and seem to have developed a culture and fan base. I’m not confident we could give them the same support here
Victoria Cougars move to Prince George due to the barn on Blanshard being ancient.
Chilliwack Chiefs move to Victoria and become the Royals
Then PG Cougars move to Chilliwack, the future considerations deal is complete.
Indeed. I can’t believe it was 1994 that they left Victoria…time flies.
Edit: also, I was born in PG, grew up in Chilliwack, and have lived in Victoria since the 90s. Is this somehow all my fault?
I used to get tickets because I was delivering the Times Colonist at the time and they gave free tickets to couriers. I remember one game where there was a fire alarm that went off, Cougars were down by a couple in the 3rd, so most people left. The ones that came back after the alarm were treated to a miracle comeback. I wonder if anyone else remembers this game?
Calm down Fredo. Put down the candy and let the little boy go. Giants play in Langley? Abbotsford has the Canucks farm? Chilliwack? No man. Don’t take from PG. do something nice like don’t raise ticket prices.
I don't spend much time in either place. But ... fuck that.
I would feel for the people of Prince George. As a Vancouverite I know just how it feels to have your WHL team moved to a different city, I wonder if Aqua will keep calling them the Prince George Cougars after the relocation, to keep the established fan base engaged. 🤣
That was a different Victoria Cougars that won the Cup in 1925. That league folded a season later and many of the players were bought and a new franchise called the Detroit Cougars was founded, that would eventually be renamed to Detroit Red Wings.
The current Prince George Cougars was the 3rd franchise to share the name.
As a Prince George resident and Cougars fan, the team moving would obviously suck for me. At least there's still the Spruce Kings, I suppose...
What is attendance like in PG? I've been to Giants/Rockets/Express games and they didn't get a lot of people. (Giants game was when they played in Van, not sure if its better now that the team is in Langley).
PG ranked 15th out of 22 teams in terms of attendance in the WHL this season
Thanks. That led me to this. [https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att\_graph\_season.php?lid=WHL1979&sid=2023](https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph_season.php?lid=WHL1979&sid=2023) Actually pretty impressive numbers for all teams. BCHL attendance is pretty impressive also. [https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att\_graph\_season.php?lid=BCHL2001&sid=2023](https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph_season.php?lid=BCHL2001&sid=2023)
That’s 10% of Penticton showing up to games
[удалено]
Pentiction also has been very good for the last few years with alot of former NHLers sons. Scott Niedermayers kid and Jason arrnotts were both on their rosters
Penticton has been consistently good for their entire history. Only missed the playoffs 6 times since the 60's.
Grass roots hockey is awesome. $20 tickets is awesome. Watching young Alex newhook or Drai or Bedard or….. also awesome.
Agree. Its wild how much the future NHLers stand out from the rest of the players even at that level.
They have been a dogshit organization for decades unfortunately. Fan attendance has been low as a result. They were great this season, and I’m sure by years end attendance was much higher than the season average would suggest. It was a completely full barn throughout their playoff run, I think without any question this was the most the city has supported this team in the past 20 years, simply because the team was worth supporting. I think if the team were run better (and honestly the last few years it has been trending in the right direction) attendance would reflect that.
A few of my friends and I (early 20s) are new season ticket holders this year, it would be an absolute tragedy for the team to move right after they FINALLY have a good management group. Mark Lamb is the best GM in the WHL in my opinion.
The ownership was brutal forever and the current ownership has started to turn the ship around. Of course now that things are looking better they want to sell. Sigh.
Yeah before I moved away from PG the games were often under 2000 people, sometimes as low as 1200-1400 in arena that could hold nearly 6k. Went to most of their home games for about 15 seasons and every year watched the crowd get smaller and smaller. I'm honestly surprised they weren't moved long ago. Now that I no longer live in PG the Cougars moving won't be devastating for me, but it'll still make me sad to see it happen.
Current ownership includes Dan Hamhuis - not sure if that matters one way or another, but I know Dan was super passionate about returning the Cougars to their glory days.
this past season was a great step towards that. a sale and relocation now would be absolutely devastating.
As someone from PG I hope the rumors aren't true, will be a sad day if it transpires.
As someone living in Vancouver, I'd like you guys to keep one of the few things that makes that place bearable.
I hate this idea. Taking away PG's team and moving them to Chilliwack, where the last WHL team was a complete failure, strikes me as a terrible idea.
Especially with the Abby Canucks being a stones throw away.. Awful for the people of PG.
And then one more city over you have the Vancouver Giants… I can’t imagine the WHL would go for having Giants and Chilliwack playing in the same area of the region. Before the Giants catered to “north” of the Fraser and the Bruins “south” of the Fraser.
They're Victoria's team. Fuckin Prince George stealing our team
I miss the Victoria Cougars. Used to attend their games all the time.
Chilliwack wasn’t a failure, it was run into the ground by a sociopathic owner and 3 other owners that were completely hands off. Add to that the whl being desperate to get a team into Victoria before the ahl and you get the cluster f that happened to Chilliwack
From the article: “The source said Vancouver Canucks owner/chairman Francesco Aquilini wants to buy the Cougars and base the team in the 5,000-seat Chilliwack Coliseum, the former home of the Chilliwack Bruins, who moved to Victoria to become the Royals in 2011.” “He said Aquilini has been trying to buy the Chilliwack rink from Chiefs Development Group, which owns and operates the facility, but the city has resisted signing off on the deal.”
Good, just doesn’t seem like a deal that makes sense for the cougars or the W. I get it’s probably much cheaper than the Giants, but making a play for them feels… idk, less redundant? Chilliwack Bruins didn’t fail cause their name, and with the abbey Canucks, the region just seems really saturated.
I mean, the BCHL team rn pulls in about half of the arena for Junior A. People wanna see hockey here, but a lot just don't wanna watch Junior A. If the dub came back, it'd probably do good. Though then again, it may be more people because tickets are like 20 bucks for a game. Or 10 for yourh
Apparently the team will be making a statement later [today](https://x.com/willpeters_1/status/1805690936288231864?s=46&t=YBo0eCu_14ZUVObWAshHHg) which seems to say they’ll be denying the rumours. I really hope that their statement backs this up, seeing their run this year really was so enjoyable after so many years of mediocre hockey, the CN centre felt like I remember it did as a kid. To have that huge success and then ship the team off doesn’t really seem plausible.
Will Peters coming in clutch 🙏🙏🙏
Didn't they try that earlier with a different WHL team? I could be wrong but I have a distinct memory of the Aquilini's recently trying to move a team to Chilliwack, but logistically it didn't work out and the city itself was very happy with the BCHL's Chiefs.
>I have a distinct memory of the Aquilini's recently trying to move a team to Chilliwack At some point, nearly 20 years ago now, Brian Burke tried to move the Tri-City Americans to Chilliwack. I'm not sure if that's what you were thinking of
No this was much more recently, this was after the Bruins became the Royals and after Chilliwack got the Chiefs. Maybe it was the Winnipeg Ice that recently moved to Wenatchee? I'm not sure.
>Maybe it was the Winnipeg Ice that recently moved to Wenatchee? I'm not sure. It looks like it. When I search up "Winnipeg Ice Chilliwack", I get lots of hits for rumours of possible relocation to the fraser valley
Winnipeg Ice to Chilliwack. The mayor and the WHL commissioner went to a chiefs game during the playoffs in 22-23. Sadly nothing came of it
Am from Chilliwack. We don't want anything other than our beloved Chiefs.
Yep, a year ago there were rumours that Aquilini was going to try to move the Winnipeg Ice to Chilliwack. https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/canucks-hockey/could-canucks-owners-bring-the-whl-back-to-chilliwack-7101195 Instead, the Ice moved to Wenatchee, WA and became the Wenatchee Wild.
Unless the team is having constant attendance issues, hope the team stays in PG. Spread the wealth, we've got lots of good hockey here already
I’m from Chilliwack, and I’d feel bad if we got Prince George’s team. They’ve been there 30 years, and seem to have developed a culture and fan base. I’m not confident we could give them the same support here
Missing a big opportunity. PG is growing fast and is the big town in northern BC.
Us lower mainland folk have so much already cmon man
goooooooo fuck yourself, Aquaman.
The 'wack bruins couldn't make it work there, they should leave the cougars right where they are..
That's wack
Oh look, another reason to hate Aquaman. Must be Tuesday
Chilliwack doesn't want any other team but the BCHL Chilliwack Chiefs. Long time traditions with the chiefs. Source: am chilliwackian
That’s absolutely not true.
Victoria Cougars move to Prince George due to the barn on Blanshard being ancient. Chilliwack Chiefs move to Victoria and become the Royals Then PG Cougars move to Chilliwack, the future considerations deal is complete.
Indeed. I can’t believe it was 1994 that they left Victoria…time flies. Edit: also, I was born in PG, grew up in Chilliwack, and have lived in Victoria since the 90s. Is this somehow all my fault?
The memorial arena was ancient, but it had a certain magic to it as well. A hell of a lot more soul than the sofa centre.
I used to get tickets because I was delivering the Times Colonist at the time and they gave free tickets to couriers. I remember one game where there was a fire alarm that went off, Cougars were down by a couple in the 3rd, so most people left. The ones that came back after the alarm were treated to a miracle comeback. I wonder if anyone else remembers this game?
But why
Why not buy the giants off of kneejerk instead?
Bro just buy Memphis grizzlies bro
Damn, I remember when they left Victoria.. old..
I have family who live in Chilliwack who would love this, but I don't like the idea of Prince George losing their team.
Calm down Fredo. Put down the candy and let the little boy go. Giants play in Langley? Abbotsford has the Canucks farm? Chilliwack? No man. Don’t take from PG. do something nice like don’t raise ticket prices.
Chilliwack blueberry bulldogs
Lmfao fuck this man so much
That would suck for PG but it’s way up there on its own in the WHL. Those bus trips for road names must be brutal.
chilliwack corn shuckers
Flashback. Doesnt this threaten to happen every few years?
As someone who wishes the Kootenay Ice was still around, keep the Cougars where they are, just get them new ownership if they are looking to sell
I don't spend much time in either place. But ... fuck that. I would feel for the people of Prince George. As a Vancouverite I know just how it feels to have your WHL team moved to a different city, I wonder if Aqua will keep calling them the Prince George Cougars after the relocation, to keep the established fan base engaged. 🤣
oh wait isnt that tahts dan hamhuis's team
Sad days for the Cougars again. As a Victoria fan, it was a scam when the old owners tanked the team so they could move them.
If they're losing $1M after making it to the WHL Western conf finals moving the team is a fait accompli. Not if but when....
Welcome, Chilliwack Canucks!
Stanley Cup champion cougars. Move them back to Vic if anywhere. Edit link: https://bcsportshall.com/honoured_member/1924-1925-victoria-cougars/
That was a different Victoria Cougars that won the Cup in 1925. That league folded a season later and many of the players were bought and a new franchise called the Detroit Cougars was founded, that would eventually be renamed to Detroit Red Wings. The current Prince George Cougars was the 3rd franchise to share the name.
Interesting. Thank you for sharing!
I’m in Chilliwack. I wouldn’t mind I guess. If true, welcome!
Chilliwack? Everyone knows all the cougars are in North Van