Rick Willianen: Edmonton fans key to Blackhawks turn-around

The Chicago Blackhawks used to be one of the worst teams in the NHL.  In fact, in the early 2000’s the team was so poorly ranked that tickets to games had to be given away just to get an audience in the United Centre. However, a lot has changed in just a short decade.

In 2005, the Blackhawks didn’t even break the 100 point mark and had almost double the amount of losses compared to wins. That year, the team scored the number three spot in the hockey draft; they chose Jonathan Toews and their luck began to change.  A season later, the Blackhawks were slightly better on the ice and finished with 71 points, up from their 65 points in the previous season. The Blackhawks had the fifth-worst record; but, the lottery balls bounced in their favor yet again, and they ended up with the number one overall pick. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20150621/sports/150629923/

The Blackhawks chose Patrick Kane and solidified their new identity.

By 2008, The Blackhawks had beaten the odds.  They topped 100 points and made it to the conference finals where they lost to Detroit. But, the fuse had been lit and the 2009-10 season marked the largest turnaround in Blackhawks’ franchise history. The team that just four years before was one of the lowest ranking teams in the league, won the coveted Stanley Cup and ushered in the new era of Blackhawks.

Forbes Magazine hailed the victory as “The Greatest Sports-Business Turnaround Ever” and praised the team and the owners for breathing new life into the once fledgling franchise.  Fans loved the quick about-face the team made and rewarded them with sold-out tickets in the 2009-10 season and in fact every season since then.  Since 2009, the Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup two more times and are currently the reigning NHL team, a feat that was unfathomable just a decade ago. http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/18/chicago-blackhawks-hockey-business-sports-nhl.html

As any hockey aficionado will tell you, fans are the lifeblood to an organization. They boost player morale in long slumps and cheer on goals during winning stretches. “The fans are just as important as the players and the owners. It would be impossible to have a multi-billion dollar industry without unconditional representation from all three sectors,” Brian Costello of Hockey News wrote in 2013. “The players provide the entertainment, the owners the infrastructure and ways and means, and the fans foot the bill for the entire project.” http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/hockey-fans-important-just-not-influential/

Rick Willianen of Edmonton (https://ca.linkedin.com/in/rickwillianen) loves both the game of hockey and Chicago Blackhawks, even when the Blackhawks left much to be desired. Willianen often travels to Chicago (https://about.me/rickwillianen) to watch Blackhawks games and has noticed a visible difference. “Before all the franchise success, it was unheard of to see people wearing Blackhawks jerseys,” Rick Willianen says. “Now before I leave O’Hare Airport I see countless jerseys.”

He also remembers a time sitting in a half empty United Center and morale was quite low. “It was a shame, as a Canadian it broke my heart to see so little attendance at a National hockey league game,” Rick Willianen adds.

Willianen notes the rivalry when Chicago visits Edmonton in recent years.  The Oilers have elevated their game when playing the champions.  Many fans will remember the Sam Gagner night in Edmonton, where he got 8 points against Chicago.  However, the Blackhawks continue to end up on the winning side more often than not.

With one of the best records in the league, the Blackhawks are poised to take the Stanley Cup again when the new season starts in less than one month.