The Lightning will get generational fans too, over time. The Original Six teams have always had passionate fans because those franchises predated those fans. Maybe they will change their minds about their teams the way they changed their minds about their earlier residence. The better policy is to welcome everyone to watch one of the best teams in hockey and gleefully send the opposing fans home after a good time and a bad loss. A lot of those fans are either new to the state or new to the team or both. But when the home teams are good, they draw. It’s almost become a pastime to post photos of gaping swaths of empty seats from stadiums around the state. The entire state of Florida has some insecurity about its fan bases, at least in pro sports. Third, is this the best way to draw new fans? What if a young fan wears his Bolts jersey to a playoff game with his Canadiens-loving father and then watches his dad get accosted for wearing a Guy Lafleur jersey? It’s the kind of thing that can repel more people than it lures. The Thunder Alley outside the arena is one of the better gathering spots in all of sports - offering a pleasant vibe and weather that cannot be found in Boston or Philadelphia in winter. Second, while other Tampa teams have issues with opposing fans taking over the home turf - Packers backers at Raymond James Stadium and Yankees fans at the Trop - the Bolts have a loud and supportive environment. So, it’s not like there’s no home ice advantage. ![]() ![]() First of all, the Lightning are superb at home: the team’s 30 wins at Amalie Arena is tops in the league. (So perhaps Kate Upton had a legal case when she was told by the Yankees to ditch her Tigers cap?)īeyond the legality question, this sends the wrong kind of message about the franchise and the Tampa area. They are trying to prevent that and control the crowd but a little too extremely.” “It reminds me of the Marlins guy who sat front and center at the Giants game. ![]() “I think there may be legitimate concerns of suppression of speech,” he said. The Predators tried a “Keep the red out” policy that forced buyers of tickets to Blackhawks games to also buy a ticket to a different game.īut Florida-based attorney John Phillips has some concerns about the jersey policy, seeing that the building is publicly owned. The case was thrown out, as the Seahawks claimed they had no obligation to provide access to all fans from all areas. Now, the Lightning is not the first team to do regional “zip code restricting.” The Seahawks tried to cordon off ticket-buyers by geography and got sued by a fan from California. Tampa Bay has the best home record in the NHL at 30-8-1. “They like those clubs to remain for Lightning fans.” “We want to let our season ticket members drive what happens in those clubs,” Wickett said. But the logo restriction in the private areas stems from fan feedback, and the team is responding. He said fans from out-of-state can call the team directly to get help with playoff tickets. “Of course we’re going to sell them tickets,” Wickett insisted. The team has already gotten calls from out-of-state fans who fear being frozen out. ![]() “ We’re not going to apologize for trying to create a home environment for our season ticket members and our team,” said Lightning VP of communications Bill Wickett. So if, say, you grew up in the same city as Steven Stamkos in Canada and you want to see him play in the postseason in Tampa, you may not be able to buy tickets. Orders by residents outside the selected area will be canceled without notice and refunds given.” “Residency will be based on credit card billing address. "Sales to this event will be restricted to residents of Florida,” reads the same statement. Then again, if you happen to hail from out of state, you may not be able to get into the building at all. So if you wear GM Steve Yzerman’s Red Wings jersey into those premium spots, well, the puck police might pull you over and ask you to pull off your sweater. Fans wearing visiting team logos will be asked to remove them while in the Chase Club and Lexus Lounge areas." "Chase Club and Lexus Lounge ticket holders,” reads a statement on the team’s Ticketmaster site, "please note that for all 2015 NHL Playoff Games at Amalie Arena, only Tampa Bay Lightning team logos will be permitted in these areas.
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