At 11:05 PM -0500 3/18/1998, D B Doucette wrote:
> Only one post got close to what I think is a real (non-sarcastic) solution
> to the problem:  promotion.  While alumni stay-at-homes certainly should
> have supported their team and pushed them on to victory at the home arena,
> it seems as though others might have gone if they had only known "good
> seats" were available.
 
I can't say much about why BU people weren't there, but it seems that we
were able to get the word out to Merrimack people that yes, there were a
lot of seats available.  There was a pretty good contingent of Merrimack
fans on hand for the Saturday game and even more for the Sunday game, as
was also evident on tv.
 
It was noticed too.  At the end of the game Sunday at BU, the Merrimack
players went over and saluted the fans and got another healthy cheer.
 
This might not sound like such a big deal for fans of teams for whom this
is typical, but the Merrimack fans noticed and several have said they felt
it was the first time in a while that the team really connected with the
fans.
 
I thought it was almost magical.  This is the type of thing that can really
get people going -- it might have marked a turning point for the program.
 
And on Saturday and Sunday, up in the Valley where I live, it seemed that
all sorts of people who I never knew were even aware of Merrimack hockey
had been captivated by what was going on.  I was at a family gathering
Sunday afternoon and it was all anyone would talk about.  I was amazed as
people kept telling me how they had been watching on tv Saturday and either
planned to go to the game that night or were definitely going to be
watching on tv.  (some of whom said they were turning the sound down to
listen to Todd and me on the radio :-))
 
I think ticket sales for the Fleet are going pretty well at Merrimack, too.
It might not be your typical BU, Maine or UNH crowd in size, but for
Merrimack, it looks like it might be pretty good.
 
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                [log in to unmask]               *HMM* 11/13/93
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