GIRLS FREE ADMISSION TO THE X: an idea?

[mnhcp]

Here's another article about where girls hockey could be headed.

http://www.mngirlshockeyhub.com/news_ar ... _id=115187

Think about it, eventually colleges could also drop Womans Hockey.

It gets back to the basics, recruiting and getting girls interested in the game at a YOUNG AGE.

So why not for the Girls State Tournament. Free if accompanied by an adult. But better yet, each paying parent can bring up to 3 girls. The X is empty anyways and they can make it up in concessions.

Here is an example, my daughter has gone to the Girls State Tournament wanting to bring a friend who doesn't play hockey. Trust me, that girl doesn't really want to pay for a game she doesn't understand or play that much. However, I could have gotten 5 girls to go to the game if it were free and I'd have been happy to pay for my ticket, parking, treats and I know those 5 girls would also be buying treats. Maybe just 1 will go home and ask mom/dad if she can play hockey.

Starting this year, FREE.

[goalzilla]

Great idea ! However, there is too much common sense in your thought process so Im sure it will never fly.....Im sure they can take such a simple idea with many potential positive results and turn it into a beauacratic cluster! Again, great idea. fill the "X" with prospects and anyone in general to make it a better game atmosphere. My daughter played there and yeah they experianced the glitz and glamour but there was more excitement at the sectional games played at Aldrich. They have to turn the lights on anyway so why not take advantage of pull-through revenue - concessions, parking, etc.

[Hieronymus]

I completely agree and this should extend all the way down to the local games. Allow three or four kids in with each paying adult. Chances are many of those kids wouldn't have attended anyway and they'll get revenue from the parent that does attend in addition (as already stated) money from concessions, etc.

[Bandy]

Agree, great idea! I'd say "kids are free" -- not just girls. Lots of folks would go as families, and it would be a little odd to have to pay for a 10-year-old boy, but not a girl.

I see some real strength in girls hockey--seems like a positive trend over the past 15 years. I think the boys' numbers have been fairly stable, but not growing.

Four things working against growth in girls hockey, and youth hockey, are: (1) cost, (2) the perception that it's too rough or dangerous (think Jack & Jenna -- there's good reason for this perception), (3) time commitment (overscheduling young kids), (4) poor coverage in the media (specifically for the women's game; we deify overpaid professional athletes, but the media hardly notices Olympians skating at Ridder).

Against those realities, the girls game really has grown, and I see much better numbers at U8 & U10 than existed a decade ago.

[ron123]

Excellent idea. Who needs to know about this that can do something about it? Maybe the State High School League? It makes too much sense-so is unlikely to get a look,but wouldn't hurt to try.

[royals dad]

I have been watching the girls game for the last few years because I have daughters that play and I have come to enjoy watching games. My daughters and I go to some games to see kids we know or teams we want to see play. We have not missed going to at least one tourney game a year all the way back to seeing North St Paul at Ritter. The sport still has a perception problem though and even it is free people do not show up. Take the Hockey Day in Minnesota game for example. Minnetonka had a full student section and Pagel was full to the rafters for the Duluth vs Tonka boys game. The girls came out right after for warm ups, by the time the girls game started the Tonka student section was down to 5 kids and there were little more then parents in the arena. No one had to pay more and they were already at the arena, this is to see the defending state champs play a conference rival but they still cleared out. Not even staying for the first period, very sad note for the state of the sport. Then Fox doesn't even run the game until after midnight so the girls were not even played on TV until the day after hockey day.

Is girls HS hockey faster than boys, no but are the boys as fast as the gophers, or the gophers as fast as the wild. The majority of the population (even women) does not view women's sports as entertainment unless there are skimpy costumes or dancing to music. I think even if you give away tickets your not going to have a huge impact on the number of fans. We saw two years ago a team that had a full student section for a day game (with students getting out of school) and then when the team advanced to the championship they were down to 30 students. Everyone of those students danced and cheered for a very entertaining close game but if they didn't get a free pass to skip school they skipped the next game for something else on a Saturday night.

If there is any game that could bridge that gender gap I think it would be hockey, seems to me most hockey people could sit and watch a pee-wee B practice and enjoy it. Somehow we need to find a way to get those people to start showing up to girls games to watch as entertainment. It certainly is not the expense that keeps them away.

[jcp-18]

Here is another idea that may increase the attendance at the Girls State High School Tournament. Don't schedule the girls youth district playoffs for the exact same weekend as the MSHSL state tournament! I feel bad for parents who have daughters who make the state tournament and are unable to make these games because they need to get their younger girls to district playoffs or vice versa. It would seem to me that the girls youth players and parents would be a huge target market for the girls high school tournament, yet this double booking happens every year.

[Larry Blackstone]

Delete

[Nordic]

This suggestion may actually be gaining some serious traction.

Contact your high school A.D. asap!

They'll forward all input to the MSHSL.

[royals dad]

Again I dont know that the money is really the issue. I think you would be better to get the ADs pushing to have a NCAA BB type 64 team tournament in 4 regions. That could end at the X with a bunch of the top ten teams and better games. Maybe you could even get rid of the 2 class system in the process. Look at the karch overall top 10 and think about the 1st round match ups you could have. That would bring people in, maybe even turn a profit. Who wants to go see blowouts, you could make the girls tourney more interesting than the boys.

In truth Roseville vs Hill and Tonka vs BSM (much rather see it be Hopkins) should happen at the X and not in sections. Make that happen and you will get the lower bowl at the X full and everyone will be happy.

[ghshockeyfan]

I really like this idea!!! Someone needs to push it through!!!