Is it going to be worse at the Barclay's Center?
That's almost impossible, and going back to Charles Wang's comments when he was trying to win a referendum to stay in Nassau that forty percent of his season ticket holders did not come from Nassau/Suffolk only reinforces this view. (the audio from his interviews in 2011/12 does not lie)
I love our fans who claim they are out now, will never attend a game at Barclay's, it's not my team anymore, and will do everything to boycott them home. (after they boycotted them away since 1989)
For myself I must have encountered most of those Nassau/Suffolk 7,000 full/part time season holders on social media, and I have a question for them?
Bring them home to the Nassau Coliseum for what? To keep playing in front of empty seats because they finally started showing up for half of one season at best like in 2002 with alumni there for practically every weekend game?
I posted my entries on empty seats despite playoff teams
7/2/14 & have done similar entries
7/3/13 and many other times in the archives.
5/31/11: Why Are We Here Now? Blame Yourselves.
7/30/13: New York Must Get Out Of 30th In Attendance Or Lose Team Forever
Below is the ticketmaster map on game days in October, November last season, despite winning, trades for top players, and having John Tavares in an MVP season, no it does not include stub-hub.
That's been the map most games since 1989 unless it's opening night, a playoff game or another teams fan base comes in big numbers, including Quebec.
Our fans are louder at Msg and Newark as opposed to the Nassau Coliseum when we play those teams.
The Ranger fans were out in big numbers for 2/3 Coliseum games (not snow storm game) same with Habs fans for their final Coliseum game, & Devils/Bruins/Flyers/pick a teams fans at one point or another since 1989.
And we all know the announced attendance vs true turnout is far different.
No, the Islanders are not Billy Joel, they do not sell out in five minutes, the Islanders website had tickets to release for final Coliseum games/playoff games on game day, they were available for a full year like the outdoor game.
I got of tired/disappointed posting the early season maps below, plus getting some twitter responses with the same excuses or complaining with a few personal attacks. Like I wrote above, I must have interacted with most of the season ticket base from Long Island.
One final time, if you love this team, show up, support the New York Islanders like other fan bases who have never won a thing do. (Columbus/Nashville)
Nassau Coliseum/Barclay's Center, who cares? New York is New York.
Is someone going to claim the obstructed views at the Coliseum was the excuse early last year or every year even after 2013 playoffs?
On game day around 1pm, the rest of the available tickets are made available, the Ottawa game was an announced 13,888.
30th in avg attendance over the last six years, and most years since 1989. Even Phoenix/Arizona had more fans in the seats during that time which their media pointed out this weekend.
Our fans/Islanders website under Barclay's control seem to want to re-brand themselves, despite it being made clear the name/logo is not changing via Mr Wang.
Referring to this franchise as Brooklyn is nothing but an insult to a franchise that has had one name since 1972.
New York Islanders.
I have read Mr Yormark's articles on his background back before joining the Nets in 2005, how a blogger introduced him to Brooklyn (who rips Atlantic Yards/Ratner non-stop & does it with supporting documented professional media information properly) and the countless millions Mr Yormark has made in corporate advertising deals for his clients over the years.
Mr Yormark believes in what he does.
I know Yormark's history marketing the Nets in New Jersey since he was hired in 2005, telling fans take bags off their heads (with images) reversible jersey's for opposing players/free tax return offers.
He works for a man who loves Brooklyn with hometown roots, so no doubt he markets as his bosses tell him.
Despite the Nets numbers, he's done a poor job on a historic level, as I have written before here no one tells millions of customers this is not a New York team, and alienates millions of potential fans.
What makes me some kind of expert when the Nets had over 10,000 season seats sold when they began at the Barclay Center, they had virtually no fans since they left the Coliseum/ABA beyond the two years they went to the NBA finals?
Never claimed to be, however I can read/see Mr Yormark's professional counterparts (experts) market their New York/New Jersey teams exactly the opposite of the Nets.
I have never heard one cheer for the Nets at Msg for a team if branded correctly would have 10,000 on their season ticket waiting list (with the existing 10,000 season tickets) and a few hundred million more in advertising revenue with a media covering them like the Knicks, and Msg half filled with cheering New York Nets fans.
Instead the Nets playoffs were less popular than the Islanders in the NYC media which is almost impossible given the sports demographics, and the Net getting the eighth seed was met with scorn/ridicule from the Knicks media salesman which is all you need to know about how bad Mr Yormark's strategy is with a Chicago firm (Tom O'Grady/Gameplan Creative) doing the Islanders PR.
A former Nets player (Kerry Kittles) from NJ era said what I have about about not using NY branding for the team during the playoffs
NY Post 4/25/15:
“It really is under the radar,” a former Net who knew the frustration of
being ignored, Kerry Kittles, said of the series. “I don’t know that
they ever marketed the team the right way. They marketed ‘Brooklyn. ”
From the same story.
Check out Friday’s New York papers. One paper had 18 sports stories
displayed on its website, another put up 17. Not one story was about the
Nets. In one tabloid, the Nets placed 12th, in another 13th, in terms
of topic and placement.
NY Times: In April 2006 Kittles praised Yormark, and seemed to understand the eventual Brooklyn branding.
The Post did not send the Knicks beatwriter, Marc Berman, to the Nets playoffs, he sent him back to his former beat covering the Islanders in the 1990's. (his family were 30 year season ticket holders by his past comments as beatwriter)
Bottom line this is the last call, our fans show up for 41 games or at some point you will lose this teams branding, the new majority owners owe us/and this teams history nothing.
Brett Yormark wants 10,000 Islander season ticket holders, if he has to follow his blueprint with the Nets to get there he will unless our fans convince him otherwise because it worked for him, even if it was wrong.
For me, this is any other season, New York is New York whether it be Barclay's or Coliseum, same as Devils/Caps fans did to far less fanfare.
For some Ranger media this is like Trottier coaching their team, they will never accept it, and do everything to convince you this is not a New York team while they tell you the NJ football teams represent Manhattan.
Those were some of the same people who kept writing how much the Rangers need to play the New York Islanders in the playoffs for this sport to get any real attention in this town when they are not telling you how dead Msg is for playoff games?
Yes, they are hypothetical and James Dolan's Ranger salesman Steve Zipay is hardly shy, this is our home paper that dropped blogs, chats, and columns. We have a beatwriter in Arthur Staple who does impromptu twitter chats on planes, who interviews fan bloggers who will ignore Newsday's coverage issues because they are selling themselves, and Staple helps them.
Mr Staple does not like questions about why our team only has features on our players from other teams beatwriters when they go on the road, and why he so badly outworked vs his counterparts in every social media platform?
But that's been written about often, perhaps again?
I found many more of these for those wondering, most of them were posted by others.
Reality is this not a major hockey market, too many other sports that are far more popular here during the NHL regular season.
New York Islander Fans can now change everything and save their iconic brand, past Wang's departure.
