Football Town vs. Hockey Town

[Mike Oxhurtz]

In my lifetime, I would like to see 1 Bills Superbowl victory & 1 Sabres Stanley Cup victory. Both are equally important.

[apuszczalowski]

The main point of this article is true. The Bills are the "bigger team" in Buffalo, but thats not to say Buffalo isn't also a hockey town or that the Sabres are a lower tier. He just used moronic logic to prove his point. Of course the bills will sell more season tickets, it costs less and they can sell more, the Sabres can't sell more then like 20,000 season tickets, its impossible.

 

The reason I agree that the Bills are the "Bigger team" is just because the NFL is a bigger league, its at the top of the sports heap, with Hockey barely making it into the top 5 sports (depending on if you consider somethings sports though, Golf and nascar I'm looking at you). The NFL is just a bigger draw right now. Look at it this way, the Sabres needed a cup runs to get fans worked up and back to selling out the arena's. But as the Cup fever died down, so did the interest as they failed to make the playoffs. I would be surprised to see them have a waiting list for season tickets this year (they will sell alot, but I don't think they will sell out every game). The Bills on the other hand continue to sell out the majority of their games and are really doing well selling season tickets after almost a decade of no playoffs, and the worry of moving to Toronto.

 

ills fans still come out and support the team every year,even when they are losing, where as the Sabres seem to have a drop off in "Sabre Fever" whenever they aren't making a cup run

 

but with this being a Sabres board, I would expect everyone here to be pissed about it because they are obviously Sabres and hockey fans if they are posting here. I wouldn't say that Buffalo is a bigger hockey town then some other teams in the league, just look at some of the Canadian teams like Calgary, or Montreal, although it can be debated since the next closest "Pro Sports" team they have is a CFL team

[BetweenThePipes00]

The main point of this article is true. The Bills are the "bigger team" in Buffalo, but thats not to say Buffalo isn't also a hockey town or that the Sabres are a lower tier. He just used moronic logic to prove his point. Of course the bills will sell more season tickets, it costs less and they can sell more, the Sabres can't sell more then like 20,000 season tickets, its impossible.

 

The reason I agree that the Bills are the "Bigger team" is just because the NFL is a bigger league, its at the top of the sports heap, with Hockey barely making it into the top 5 sports (depending on if you consider somethings sports though, Golf and nascar I'm looking at you). The NFL is just a bigger draw right now. Look at it this way, the Sabres needed a cup runs to get fans worked up and back to selling out the arena's. But as the Cup fever died down, so did the interest as they failed to make the playoffs. I would be surprised to see them have a waiting list for season tickets this year (they will sell alot, but I don't think they will sell out every game). The Bills on the other hand continue to sell out the majority of their games and are really doing well selling season tickets after almost a decade of no playoffs, and the worry of moving to Toronto.

 

ills fans still come out and support the team every year,even when they are losing, where as the Sabres seem to have a drop off in "Sabre Fever" whenever they aren't making a cup run

 

but with this being a Sabres board, I would expect everyone here to be pissed about it because they are obviously Sabres and hockey fans if they are posting here. I wouldn't say that Buffalo is a bigger hockey town then some other teams in the league, just look at some of the Canadian teams like Calgary, or Montreal, although it can be debated since the next closest "Pro Sports" team they have is a CFL team

True, so I guess it depends how you define it ... I still say that while the Bills and NFL are HUGE in Buffalo, in terms of the passion and support it is about average for the NFL. Most everyone loves and supports their NFL team, save for Jacksonville and a couple others. And where there is no NFL team, people still love it. However, compared to the average American city, Buffalo is FAR above average in its passion for its hockey team and hockey in general.

 

now that I think about it, that's a good test: Take that sentence and fill in the blanks: ______ is FAR above average in its passion for its _____ team and _____ in general. Which way does it make more sense, with football or hockey? You can do it for any city. For Buffalo, I say hockey fits better than football. But again, that's my definition.

[apuszczalowski]

True, so I guess it depends how you define it ... I still say that while the Bills and NFL are HUGE in Buffalo, in terms of the passion and support it is about average for the NFL. Most everyone loves and supports their NFL team, save for Jacksonville and a couple others. And where there is no NFL team, people still love it. However, compared to the average American city, Buffalo is FAR above average in its passion for its hockey team and hockey in general.

 

now that I think about it, that's a good test: Take that sentence and fill in the blanks: ______ is FAR above average in its passion for its _____ team and _____ in general. Which way does it make more sense, with football or hockey? You can do it for any city. For Buffalo, I say hockey fits better than football. But again, that's my definition.

I don't know If I fully agree with that. When the Sabres are winning, then yeah, they fit cause it spreads like a fever, (i bought playoff tickets to the 1st 2 rounds of the playoffs against the Flyers and the Sens the day of the games no problem and bought other tickets during the season that year Day of. Once they made that cup run, tickets were almost impossible to get for the playoffs and the regular season from the box office. Late last season though, once they were basically eliminated from playoff contention, it was easy to get tickets

 

The Bills are in a decade long drought and the fans are still selling out almost every game (with the exception of a couple of late season games and ones around christmas day) but theres always a buzz about the team.

 

Buffalo is crazy about both their sports teams though, but I think that the buzz around town is always with the Bills first unless the Sabres are winning, but alot of that has to do with the NFL being much more popular then the NHL in the US

[BetweenThePipes00]

It's not just about the Bills and Sabres ... it's FOOTBALL town or HOCKEY town ... other than the Bills, people could care less about football. I think on a grassroots level hockey is bigger than football in Buffalo.

Also, with the regionalization of the Bills of late, comparing sellouts and such is apples to oranges ... they are always talking about how a decent percentage of bills ticket holders are from Rochester ... those people are not driving back and forth 41 times, but 8 times on a weekend they will do it.

 

Whatever the case, I grew up in Buffalo and lived for many years in Pittsburgh and Western Pa., and I can tell you first-hand that Buffalo is a hockey town and Pittsburgh is a football town. It's not even close. Is Buffalo a BILLS TOWN? No doubt. But it's not a true football town any more than Pittsburgh is a hockey town just because they cheered hard for the Pens last month.

[Hawerchuk]

It might kill people to hear this, but I would love a Stanley Cup Championship for this city above anything else. A SB Championship would be awesome too, but I love hockey first and foremost.

[shrader]

Buffalo?s football passion is multileveled. The University at Buffalo is drawing larger crowds as its program matures. College hockey, meanwhile, remains a niche sport here despite the ever-increasing number of local players advancing to the NHL.

This has got to be the best part of the article. There's a reason why we have NHL players coming out of buffalo and not playing in buffalo. Cuz they suck. If your a good hockey player from Buffalo your going to BC, Minnesota, etc. "I think I'll play in buffalo and expect to get drafted high!" Yea right Bob.

 

Actually, the elite end up in canada for the most part. Hell, our best talent very rarely is even in the area for their high school days. But that wasn't the point he was making there. He was saying that even though local players are advancing, its not drawing any additional attention to college hockey. The lack of a serious team in the area is the real problem there. Sure, Niagara has made some decent runs, but they're insignificant in the college hockey picture. People in the area don't flock to college hockey because the serious competition is too far away and gets no coverage, short of the frozen four.

 

 

And because I feel like nitpicking, I can't think of any locals that have played for Minnesota. In fact (random fact I discovered this year and now have to throw out there because its pretty impressive), every single player for Minnesota this season was from Minnesota. Their teams are always VERY Minnesota-heavy.

[ROC Sabres]

Actually, the elite end up in canada for the most part. Hell, our best talent very rarely is even in the area for their high school days. But that wasn't the point he was making there. He was saying that even though local players are advancing, its not drawing any additional attention to college hockey. The lack of a serious team in the area is the real problem there. Sure, Niagara has made some decent runs, but they're insignificant in the college hockey picture. People in the area don't flock to college hockey because the serious competition is too far away and gets no coverage, short of the frozen four.

And because I feel like nitpicking, I can't think of any locals that have played for Minnesota. In fact (random fact I discovered this year and now have to throw out there because its pretty impressive), every single player for Minnesota this season was from Minnesota. Their teams are always VERY Minnesota-heavy.

I was just stating that people that play college hockey play at schools that are big hockey school and not UB or Buff state. But yea your right, a lot of them do go to Canada.

[Knightrider]

taro - please leave those patents behind and take over a columnist's post at one of the region's major papers.

 

I don't mean to speak for Taro, but I doubt the job pays enough.

[thesportsbuff]

eh, i live and die by the sabres. believe it or not, whether im in a good or bad mood on a day can depend on how the sabres did the night before. i'm still a big bills fan, but I don't feel as... connected? maybe it's because I was never any good at football :P

[bottlecap]

I wrote deCeseare telling him that the News has missed the boat by not allowing

comments on their website. He wrote me back saying that he's been trying to

get them to allow comments for at least a year.

 

The Snooz are cheapskates and stupid too. News Flash: You're supposed to interact

with your audience on the internet. That's the nature of the beast.

[deluca67]

Here is the test he is probably forgetting:

 

How many Sabres can you name vs. Buffalo Bills?

 

As a percentage of each entire team - how does the average Buffalonian do?

Not including the ones facing possible charges?

[Guest Sloth]

eh, i live and die by the sabres. believe it or not, whether im in a good or bad mood on a day can depend on how the sabres did the night before. i'm still a big bills fan, but I don't feel as... connected? maybe it's because I was never any good at football :P

 

You're not the only that feels that way. The day after the Sabres lose a game completely blows. I just have a high amount of passion for this team. I like the Bills a lot, but my mood is not affected by how they play. I'll admit I used to feel that way about the Bills. I miss the Kelly, Thomas, Brrrrrrruuucccccceee, and Reed days. :cry: I don't have a favorite college team, so when the Bills leave Buffalo I won't watch football as much.

[Eleven]

Much more of a hockey fan myself, but I think the population difference between this board and TBD may be somewhat telling.

[R_Dudley]

..... Point is, Buffalo loves the Bills because they are Buffalo's team, and people love Buffalo. But that doesn't make it a football town. High school football in Buffalo is an afterthought compared to most of the country. At a grassroots level, I think Buffalo is MUCH more of a hockey town ... all those college hockey players and pros coming out of Buffalo proves this ... there are many more NHLers from the area than NFLers, and there are many more jobs in the NFL.

 

Pittsburgh is a football town ... the Steelers are #1 in the hearts of fans, their high school football team is #2 and then the Pens and Pirates fall in behind ... I am not saying that to rip them, it's just how it is, they LOVE football in Western Pa. ... In Buffalo, we love the Bills and love football about as much as your average American city, which is a lot, granted. BUt Buffalo's love for hockey, the Sabres and otherwise, is FAR above average.

 

Spot on, being that I live and work in Pgh I can attest that exactly what your saying about PGH being Football first is true right down to the High school coverage and overall how people treat the sports here....... :ph34r:

 

Hockey has always been for me my most favorite sport , example in this years Stanley Cup final Malone takes a puck to the face and re-breaks his nose for xth time and is back out on the ice next period and on the bench between periods with cotton batting stuck up his nostrils... :chris:

 

What other sport does a guy break his nose or take 15 stiches or lose two teeth and finish the game let alone play in the next one... Gimee hockey... :beer:

[Guest Sloth]

According to the poll, Buffalo is a hockey town! Sabres won 49% to 41%!!!

The writer should've written the article from a different perspective. Who do the Buffalonians like more, the Sabres or the Bills? In general, hockey is Buffalo's main sport. I know that has been said a number of times on this thread, but it is so true. In my opinion, the only high school football game that means anything is the TNT game. Tonawanda and North Tonawanda have the longest runnning high school football rivalry in the nation. I remember when ESPN did a special on this. Eat that Texas! :beer:

[SwampD]

According to the poll, Buffalo is a hockey town! Sabres won 49% to 41%!!!

The writer should've written the article from a different perspective. Who do the Buffalonians like more, the Sabres or the Bills? In general, hockey is Buffalo's main sport. I know that has been said a number of times on this thread, but it is so true. In my opinion, the only high school football game that means anything is the TNT game. Tonawanda and North Tonawanda have the longest runnning high school football rivalry in the nation. I remember when ESPN did a special on this. Eat that Texas! :beer:

Go Jacks!

[Guest Sloth]

My Dad went to North Tonawanda and my Mom went to Tonawanda. Talk about crossing the lines! ha ha

[That Aud Smell]

I don't mean to speak for Taro, but I doubt the job pays enough.

:lol:

;)

 

Spot on, being that I live and work in Pgh I can attest that exactly what your saying about PGH being Football first is true right down to the High school coverage and overall how people treat the sports here

 

Gimee hockey... :beer:

i agree. if the choice had to be made, i'd take the cup over the lombardi.

 

on the subject of pittsburgh: we made a weekend roadie for game 3, to do some pre-game stuff with the arena crowd, watch the game outside the arena for a bit, then on down to the southside to watch the rest. (thanks again to the folks 'round here who gave us the tips on local joints.) the thing that we couldn't get over was this: the majority of people were out to support their penguins while wearing steeler jerseys. you won't see that on game night in buffalo. (i'm not saying no one will wear a bills jersey to a sabres game - but it's the odd nut who does.)

[BetweenThePipes00]

on the subject of pittsburgh: we made a weekend roadie for game 3, to do some pre-game stuff with the arena crowd, watch the game outside the arena for a bit, then on down to the southside to watch the rest. (thanks again to the folks 'round here who gave us the tips on local joints.) the thing that we couldn't get over was this: the majority of people were out to support their penguins while wearing steeler jerseys. you won't see that on game night in buffalo. (i'm not saying no one will wear a bills jersey to a sabres game - but it's the odd nut who does.)

Yeah it's really weird ... the Pittsburgh version of "Let's Go Buffalo!" seems to be "Here we go Steelers, here we go!" ... I mean, I have heard them do that chant at Penguins and Pirates games ... not so much in place of "Let's Go Pens!" or whatever, but just when they got bored or something ...