Would Marquette Ever Add Hockey?

[Blackhat]

and drop men's tennis and golf.    Pretty exciting game when played at a high level.  


wrong board, my bad.

[Eye]

I'm all for it. And a baseball/softball combo while we're at it, too.

[AZWarrior]

Well then don't forget Curling.   

[Blackhat]

Marquette would have a relative niche and lets be honest men's tennis and golf has a terrible following at MU, hockey could only be better and we should have somewhat of a chance to recruit good talent.....better than men's tennis and golf which are warm weather sports.  

[wyzgy]

don't they have a club hockey team yet??  if they could take that(if it still exists) and raise it to the next level...get it toward financial independance, then i can't see why this wouldn't be a possibility

[MUBurrow]

this was actually something my Marquette fellas and I used to talk about all the time.  we eventually came to the conclusion that we would rather have a hockey team than a football team.  sounds ridiculous maybe, but hockey is such a fun cult - fan environment, it can't be matched.  college hockey games have the same core members of fans that go all of the time, and they usually fill their smaller arenas at most schools.  that combined with the cheaper infrastructure necessary to play, and I think an MU hockey team would be an incredible addition. plus, how great would those sweaters look?!?

[Blackhat]

Only downside is hockey season lines up with basketball.   Then again that's when people are up for indoor activities on a friday, saturday night when it's cold. 

[MUFC9295]

Legions of High School skaters would welcome a look as well.  Though NHL'ers with a college pedigree are in the minority.  Where would MU play to get a BIG 11-like atmosphere?

[GGGG]

Adding hockey would be a disaster.  Milwaukee is a bad hockey town.  It would be nothing than a niche sport with a small fan following and a big money drain.

[shiloh26]

Adding hockey would be a disaster.  Milwaukee is a bad hockey town.  It would be nothing than a niche sport with a small fan following and a big money drain.

I understand that hockey is going to be a less popular choice on these boards than football, but I don't see what the problem with it being a "niche" sport is.  Hockey does just fine on campuses smaller than ours, and ones that don't have the BC, a venue originally built for hockey (longer on the the east/west sides). 

MU's fanbase is small and devoted anyway.  Add that to the intensity with which hockey fans generally follow their team, and I think hockey could become successful much faster than a football team could. 

[GGGG]

I understand that hockey is going to be a less popular choice on these boards than football, but I don't see what the problem with it being a "niche" sport is.  Hockey does just fine on campuses smaller than ours, and ones that don't have the BC, a venue originally built for hockey (longer on the the east/west sides). 

MU's fanbase is small and devoted anyway.  Add that to the intensity with which hockey fans generally follow their team, and I think hockey could become successful much faster than a football team could. 

Hockey really would be bad.  The BC would be dead with a couple thousand fans at best in an arena that fits 15,000.  No apparent boosters.  No interest in the sport by the community at large.  NCAA hockey works at schools smaller than MU because it is *the* sport at those schools.  That will never be the case at MU.

Don't get me wrong...football would be terrible too.

[shiloh26]

Hockey really would be bad.  The BC would be dead with a couple thousand fans at best in an arena that fits 15,000.  No apparent boosters.  No interest in the sport by the community at large.  NCAA hockey works at schools smaller than MU because it is *the* sport at those schools.  That will never be the case at MU.

Don't get me wrong...football would be terrible too.

Point well taken.  Your last comment is the real point... they are both bad ideas, and neither will or should happen.  I enjoy being a basketball only school, as opposed to a basketball/football because students and alums put everything into one season.  It just works with a school our size.  I just like the idea of a hypothetical hockey team better, I think it fits better with the small, devoted fandom we have already.  Just my own little perspective on MU-ethos...

[Ari Gold]

I'm in favor of adding a hockey team. We already have a good portion of the facilities (Not sure about practicing at the BC)

Admittedly, outside of -barely- watching an Admirals game live, today was the first hockey game I've watched in awhile. but I'd probably try to take in a lot of MU hockey games. I think it'd be a fun (read:drunk) loud environment

Besides fans would get to sit closer to the players/game.

[GGGG]

I'm in favor of adding a hockey team. We already have a good portion of the facilities (Not sure about practicing at the BC)

If by "a good portion" you mean "none," you are correct.

[Blackhat]

My old man took me to a couple "Badger Showdown" tournaments(UW versus no name teams) at the BC when I was 10 or 11 cause they were the only hockey show in town that meant something.   I remember them being a lot of fun and a great environment, "with the sieve chants, etc." much better than I was expecting.  

[Ari Gold]

If by "a good portion" you mean "none," you are correct.

we have an arena that seats fans. thats pretty fundamental to any game.

you ever notice how ever time the discussion about adding sports comes up you have to take over and sh*t on?
Is that what I get to look forward to when I become a grumpy old man?

[Coleman]

Well we do have a functional club hockey team, so there obviously are practice facilities being used somewhere.

Not sure what the availability of the BC would be, since its already used almost every night between the Bucks, MU, and Admirals. Might have to play in the old Mecca, if that is still able to be converted for hockey.

I think the bigger issue is attendance. Hockey would probably be a money drain unless we were able to get somewhere in the range of 10,000-12,000 per game. And I just don't see that happening in a town like Milwaukee, during a season that would directly compete with basketball.

Relative to football, hockey would be easier to get off the ground (less initial investment). But I think if we were going to seriously try to resurrect either sport, football would be a better choice because the season doesn't compete with basketball and we would be able to pull in more fans and make more cash (once the initial investments of a stadium, facilities, equipment, coaching, scholarships, etc. were fronted).

[bma725]

we have an arena that seats fans. thats pretty fundamental to any game.

We have nothing.  MU can't afford to rent the BC for hockey given the likelihood of an abysmal turnout.  That means they'd have to play at Wilson Park on the south side, and if you're going to play there....you might as well not play.

[Hards Alumni]

Adding hockey would be a disaster.  Milwaukee is a bad hockey town.  It would be nothing than a niche sport with a small fan following and a big money drain.

Except that Milwaukee has had the Admirals for how many years?  How many titles?

[GGGG]

we have an arena that seats fans. thats pretty fundamental to any game.

you ever notice how ever time the discussion about adding sports comes up you have to take over and sh*t on?
Is that what I get to look forward to when I become a grumpy old man?

No...we don't have an arena.  We rent one.

And I'm sorry if you think I'm grumpy, but I'm realistic when it comes to new sports.  I know the amount of investment it takes to be competitive at the division 1 level in any sport.  I know what a financial drain new sports can be unless you are competitive.  I also know Marquette's place in Milwaukee.  By and large, it is a UW town - and they moved the Badger hockey showdown back to Madison because of declining attendance for a two day event.  What makes you think that Marquette hockey would be sustainable?

I know that as a wide-eyed young lad you naively believe that a few hundred students who would show up for hockey games is a GREAT start to build a program...but that's why they play hockey at UW-Stevens Point.  Maybe you should go there instead.

[GGGG]

Except that Milwaukee has had the Admirals for how many years?  How many titles?

They've been around for awhile...and average 5,861 in a 15,000 seat arena.  Talk about dull.

http://theahl.com/stats/schedule.php?view=attendance

[Ari Gold]

No...we don't have an arena.  We rent one.

And I'm sorry if you think I'm grumpy, but I'm realistic when it comes to new sports.  I know the amount of investment it takes to be competitive at the division 1 level in any sport.  I know what a financial drain new sports can be unless you are competitive.  I also know Marquette's place in Milwaukee.  By and large, it is a UW town - and they moved the Badger hockey showdown back to Madison because of declining attendance for a two day event.  What makes you think that Marquette hockey would be sustainable?

I know that as a wide-eyed young lad you naively believe that a few hundred students who would show up for hockey games is a GREAT start to build a program...but that's why they play hockey at UW-Stevens Point.  Maybe you should go there instead.

suggesting I should go to UWSP because I want to entertain the idea of hockey makes a condescending pretty boy. realistic? you're a dick. is being a jackass on a basketball board really that fun.

if people want to sh*t on anyone else's ideas because you aren't getting laid anymore, and this is your only outlet of fun, at least admit it

[GGGG]

suggesting I should go to UWSP because I want to entertain the idea of hockey makes a condescending pretty boy. realistic? you're a dick. is being a jackass on a basketball board really that fun.

if people want to sh*t on anyone else's ideas because you aren't getting laid anymore, and this is your only outlet of fun, at least admit it

It would be nice if you could substantively refute any argument that I have brought forward.  Instead, in two replies to me, you've called me grumpy and suggest that I no longer have sex.

And I'm supposed to take you seriously???

[SaintPaulWarrior]

Might have to play in the old Mecca, if that is still able to be converted for hockey.

I think the bigger issue is attendance. Hockey would probably be a money drain unless we were able to get somewhere in the range of 10,000-12,000 per game. And I just don't see that happening in a town like Milwaukee,

Admirals played at the MECCA before the BC.

So you are saying we would have to be the second or third ranked school in attendance to compete?

http://www.uscho.com/stats/attendance.php

[MU_Iceman]

Admirals played at the MECCA before the BC.

So you are saying we would have to be the second or third ranked school in attendance to compete?

http://www.uscho.com/stats/attendance.php

MU does have club hockey...it's a competitive program and has been around for decades (with the exception of a brief hiatus in the early 2000's)

You don't need a large arena to develop hockey into a money-making sport at the D1 level.  A couple thousand fans is plenty.  It's too bad MU didn't consider adding a program 10 years ago, because the AL would have been the perfect size and location for a multi-sport venue that included an Ice Rink.

That said, MU will never add a sport that would detract winter attention from basketball...and as a former hockey player myself, I can understand and respect that...

It'd still be pretty awesome, though, if they did...

[JWags85]

Admirals played at the MECCA before the BC.

So you are saying we would have to be the second or third ranked school in attendance to compete?

http://www.uscho.com/stats/attendance.php

No, take a look at the average size of places that they play in.  We would most be like Ohio State in crowd size relative to rink capacity.  Marquette would not have a good program for awhile, and like it or not, that would be what it takes to get a substantial crowd.  So in the meantime, playing at the BC or the Cell, in a largely empty arena is HORRIBLE.  Ohio State games are miserable cause there is nobody there, and they don't have a terrible program in an Ohio State obsessed town. 

I love hockey, went to college at a school with a top 5 program the last 5 years and it was more fun than basketball and football combined, but short of Marquette finding/building a rink with 4-5K in seating, this is never feasible.  They would be better off adding men's and women's lacrosse which I think would be awesome.

[LON]

It would be nice if you could substantively refute any argument that I have brought forward.  Instead, in two replies to me, you've called me grumpy and suggest that I no longer have sex.

And I'm supposed to take you seriously???

So you do have the sex, then?

[SaintPaulWarrior]

No, take a look at the average size of places that they play in.  We would most be like Ohio State in crowd size relative to rink capacity.  Marquette would not have a good program for awhile, and like it or not, that would be what it takes to get a substantial crowd.  So in the meantime, playing at the BC or the Cell, in a largely empty arena is HORRIBLE.  Ohio State games are miserable cause there is nobody there, and they don't have a terrible program in an Ohio State obsessed town. 

I love hockey, went to college at a school with a top 5 program the last 5 years and it was more fun than basketball and football combined, but short of Marquette finding/building a rink with 4-5K in seating, this is never feasible.  They would be better off adding men's and women's lacrosse which I think would be awesome.

I completely agree with all of the above...I thought you were saying that we would need 10 - 12,000 in attendance to compete.

[GGGG]

So you do have the sex, then?

I have sat here with a blank screen for several minutes and cannot come up with a clever response...so I'm just going to say "yes."

[Benny B]

In the grand scheme... I believe hockey is second only to football in costs.  Ice time alone can run a program nearly $100,000/year.  That's probably enough to cover the entire budget for two smaller sports like X-Country and Golf.

[MUBurrow]

yeah, its just a bummer that i cant get drunk and blow an afternoon watching X country.

maybe, if MU also opened up a brewery...

[PBRme]

24 schollies @ 40K = 960K
Equipment and Facilities = 250K
Coaches = 250K
Travel = 400K

Say roughly $2 million

Even if you could draw 10,000 at $10/head you'd need 20 games to breakeven.

That said put me down for 4 season seats at the glass

[LON]

I have sat here with a blank screen for several minutes and cannot come up with a clever response...so I'm just going to say "yes."

Just easin' the tension, baby.