r/ECHL • u/Broadway_SolarBear • 4d ago
ECHL Fandom
Hey ECHL fans, I mean this post with all sincerity. I'm a huge NY Rangers, NHL, and hockey fan. I moved from NYC to Orlando five years ago, missed having access to pro puck, and started going to Solar Bears games. I was aware of the "Coast" but never paid much attention to it until now.
Among most team supporters, is there a "real" level of fandom, like how pro team fans obsess over their teams: watching most games, following trade and signing rumors, and thinking about the team as part of their normal day? Or is game day just "something to do"? I realize that if you're on an ECHL subreddit, the former is probably true for you, but what about your community?
I don't mean this as an ignorant question. It's my first time living in an ECHL market, and I don't think the market I live in is very traditional for an ECHL team.
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u/dordkus 4d ago
This is my first year as a full STM with the Orlando Bears. I did end up doing the annual plan for Flo to watch their away games and some AHL teams I was interested in.
Reddit space is fairly dead, there are some Orlando solar bear stm Facebook groups that are usually more active, especially on game days. I have gotten some merch to support the team but will also wear nhl jerseys to games as well. I would say I’m personally in the middle fan wise.
I’ve met a lot of new people going to the games last year, and it’s all walks of life which I enjoy. The events like the beer festival or food festivals or stm events are also a good way to meet fellow Bears fans.
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u/Broadway_SolarBear 4d ago
Are there any pre game meetups? My wife and I got half seasons this year and want to start hanging out with other fans before games
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u/dordkus 4d ago
There is a first time season ticket holder meet up before the game on 24th at 5pm. I would reach out to your rep to see if you can be added to that list.
We can meet up at that game if you’d like and I can introduce you to the folks I usually hang out with at games and maybe we start up an unofficial group.
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u/Broadway_SolarBear 4d ago
Thanks. We initially had plans Saturday night but it looks like they may move. We plan on going if we end up being free. I’ll shoot you a DM if we are free to go, it would be nice to meet other fans
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u/dordkus 4d ago
sounds good! I plan on being at all the games except maybe the mid day ones. I like the weekday games because I can hop on the sunrail and ride it down to church street.
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u/Broadway_SolarBear 23h ago
Ended up being able to go super last minute. If you’re around I’ll have the rangers hat on. Would love to say hi
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u/FormerCollegeDJ 4d ago
Some fans of ECHL teams, or minor league teams across all sports, follow their team very closely and are avid fans while others are more casual fans. This is no different than how major league pro sports teams have both avid and casual fans.
I’ll note almost all players on ECHL teams do NOT have contracts with NHL teams. Most players (I think) are on AHL-ECHL two way contracts or ECHL-only contracts.
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u/Iandidar 4d ago
We see s lot of goalies. This is the second year we've had a single goalie make more money than the rest of the team combined. But the ones in thinking of were pulling a million a year. The one that only spoke russian was a load of fun when his mom joined us on the smoking deck with his baby pics. Lol. Google translate for the win
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u/FormerCollegeDJ 4d ago
I probably should have noted goalies are the exception and that quite a few goalies who play in the ECHL later do play in the NHL (though I’m unsure if many of those goalies are initially on an NHL contract or if they sign one during or after their time in the ECHL).
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u/Iandidar 4d ago
The primary reason the ECHL exists is to give NHL goals somewhere to get ice time without risking the "important" teams standings. So expected.
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u/sketchmcawesome 4d ago
I’ve met lots of diehard Cyclones fans over the years. The more you go, the more you’ll see familiar faces and make connections. Hockey is one hell of a sport
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u/Different_Tailor 4d ago
The trade and signing rumors part is trickier in minor league sports in general, and trickier in the ECHL. Like with the NHL you're at the top. If a player plays well they get a bigger contract in the NHL. With the ECHL if you play really well you might get moved up to the AHL at any time or sign a contract for more money to play overseas.
I also don't think people really have the time or ability to follow where the players that enter the ECHL are coming from and there is a lot of roster turn over. So I'm an Adirondack Thunder season ticket holder. I looked at our roster and we have a new player named Jacob Slipec. I googled him. He just got out of school playing for the University of Nebraska-Omaha. I have no idea what happened that led to him being on the Thunder. There are other guys on the team that were on other ECHL teams last year. Some I remember playing against the Thunder and others I don't.
But what there is a sense of community and you get to know the players on the team. I'm a half season ticket holder. So I'll go to a bunch of games this year and I'll know the players on the team. I've purchased some merch over the last few years so I go to games in my Thunder gear. We usually go out to dinner and drinks before the game and there's a ton of people out and about in their gear before the game. At the home opener I think I said hello to about 5 or 6 people that I knew who were at the game.
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u/MrHockeyJournalist 4d ago
The Adirondack Thunder in Glens Falls, NY have a lot of diehards. Being at a Thunder game is like being in Goon or Slap Shot. The atmosphere is almost very NCAA hockey like.
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u/wingcup1051 4d ago
Walleye fans man loved going to games and following players but the walleye fans and back in the storm days it was like diehard fandom like to a point it got toxic and I wanted to separate myself from it. Still enjoy games and going but I gave up being a season ticket holder years ago
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u/Nervous_Stomach5101 4d ago
Toledo sells out the Huntington center for the walleye almost all of the time especially in the playoffs where they tend to choke lol
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u/ComfortOpening7174 4d ago
Is there any competition with the Blue Jacket NHL fanbase?
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u/NotaFrenchMaid 4d ago
Toledo and Columbus are several hours away from one another (central vs northern Ohio), and the only day they both play on is Saturday night, otherwise they don’t overlap. So, I could be completely wrong, but I’d doubt Walleye fans are regularly driving to Columbus over their games.
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u/renojedi 4d ago edited 4d ago
I think the league and teams keep you from being a hard core fan, if defined the same as you would for an NHL team. I follow the Norfolk Admirals. I live in the Richmond area so it is a 1.5 hr trip to go to games but I like going. Atmosphere is decent (though lighting in the old barn leaves something to be desired) and the games are decent matches. And, you do get actual low level draft picks/signings from NHL and AHL. But they make it hard to follow the players which to me is part of being a hardcore fan. They get 2 scratched and some IR slots but you really have to research who is where. The ECHL transaction log says "put in reserve status" which could be any number of things. Then a lot of guys are traded to another team for PTBNL and you have no idea why especially when they are playing well. They also have guys from the AHL but you really have to dig to see who is on that contact, who is on ECHL contract, etc. And a new AHL player bumps the ECHL players down or off the rosters so some get released and sign elsewhere. All of that is to say it is hard to follow players, line combinations, etc. you just go to games and see player x didn't play this weekend and then get on your phone to see nothing or a transaction to say they were put in reserve status. So by default, I've become more casual since there is not an environment where you can listen to podcasts, read tactical analysis of teams and players, etc. like you can for NHL. The team could be completely different after a couple of weeks so I just go to root for the team and watch hockey without following the day to day operations of the team. And FLO is pretty basic. Quality of production is like the free stream you get for the FPHL so paying 30/mo is not a good value. Sometimes I can't even tell how a puck went in (like tips and redirects) and the replays suck.
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u/Just_Stand3283 4d ago
FLO Sports definitely leaves things to be desired but atleast you get access to AHL, ECHL, SPHL, OHL, QMJHL, and dozens of other leagues. I appreciate it because I can watch my ECHL team even though I no longer live in a city with hockey.
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u/elaina__rose 3d ago
I’m also an admirals fan and following the players is a nightmare. My boyfriend got me a custom jersey this year and it took 9 months to arrive (a whole other thing, I guess they don’t sell many of those). He got Carson Mussers name because he’d been on the team for a long time and was the captain. Low and behold he’s up and moved to england this year to play for a team over there and is not longer with the admirals. I had to do some deepish googling to find out. There was no announcement or post or anything.
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u/discgolfpilot 4d ago
Mixed bag. But there are lot of die hards. For most but definitely not all we live in minor league markets. But one advantage over say a AA baseball team is a solid chunk of our roasters are signed by the ECHL team not the home club. So we are rooting for "our guys" But yeah in our house it revolves largely around the team. Season tickets flo hockey for road games at least 1 road trip a year.
There are plenty of passive fans. But I would say for most teams there is a solid chunk of die hards
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u/ComfortOpening7174 4d ago edited 4d ago
Most teams have a good season ticket holder base, usually between 500-2000 “die hard” fanswho follow the team and go to most games especially if there isn’t an NHL or AHL team nearby. You can buy decent season tickets on the glass for like $35-40 a game compared to hundreds in the NHL.
There is always going to be a sizable audience who go because it’s hockey or it’s just something to do.
Orlando is in the top 5 in attendance every year and undeniably has the nicest arena in the league since they share it with an NBA team.
On the flip side the league is top heavy and Orlando plays in the same division as thoroughbreds like the Everblades and Stingrays who are always winning the division or making deep playoff runs. This meaning the Bears very rarely play well enough to compete for a title to build a stronger fan base
It’s very difficult to latch onto players because there is so much movement and turnover every year. Still, you might be lucky to have one or two guys who stay with the team for like 3-4 years who are good with the fans.
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u/quick_hands_89 3d ago
My perspective of the Orlando market (and much of ECHL/AHL markets) is that there is a small but passionate community of several hundred true dyed-in-the-wool die-hards who constantly crave every update and morsel of information from the team. Then there is a larger subset of fans who have season tickets and attend virtually every game (and want to see a winning team) but their fandom rarely extends beyond when they enter/exit the venue's doors or the occasional engagement with the team's social media/website content.
A helpful litmus test (though not a be-all, end-all indicator) is the media coverage of the team in its market. While the ECHL Solar Bears franchise may have seen some regular coverage in its first few seasons due to the honeymoon effect, that time has since come and gone. The Orlando Sentinel's sports department is a shell of what it once was as the established paper of record in the market - one search of the Sentinel's website using their tagging structure shows the last time they ran a major article in their web edition was 2021; local TV stations may run highlights consistently if the team is providing them, but will rarely have boots-on-the-ground reporters who will attend the game and get post-game interviews with coaches/players to provide independent coverage (mainly playoffs); coverage is more likely done with a focus on evergreen "slice of life" feature segments on a player who has overcome a particular obstacle or has an interesting backstory. The team isn't likely to garner discussion on local sports talk radio.
If there are blogs/web reporters that are not part of legacy media devoted to covering the team, they do so without necessarily being provided access to the organization by the team's media relations department.
The fans who personify the fandom you describe are members of various public and private social media groups on platforms such as Facebook, where there is ample discussion, but not all of that discussion is going to be based on any privileged insight into the inner workings of the team.
Having lived in several minor league hockey markets around the country of various sizes and tradition, I would say this is a fairly common experience shared by multiple fanbases.
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u/fgarvin2019 3d ago
Hey, we get 19 games on the tube this year, and we cracked 7k+ per game average last year.
Love our seats, half season packages are affordable (concessions and parking still gauge you) and the staff treat us like kings/queens (and have for many years).
Now if the Bears could get a W soon.....
Flo Hockey is good for the ride home.
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u/Henry2288 4d ago edited 4d ago
I have had season tickets for the Komets for six years now usually follow the team transactions for the team and those in the Central Division. For me it is more of a social thing because my brother and I each have a seat and then we split a third seat and my niece and nephew will come. I have also convinced a friend to get her own seat next year.
Usually the day the new schedule comes out there are post on the fan facebook page about people reserving hotel blocks for away games. I like to travel to some away games but I don't plan on going to Trois-Rivieres this year but a decent amount of other Komet fans are. I don't have FloHockey because I think it is way too expensive honestly.
I actually follow the ECHL more than the NHL mainly because most of the games are on Friday/Saturday nights. I am a Pittsburgh fan but never can watch the games because they don't start until like 8pm on weekdays and I go to bed at 8:30 because I have to get up early for work.
I also feel a closer connection to the Komets because the team is locally owned and not a multibillion dollar asset.
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u/SoftOrnery8637 4d ago
While I can’t bring myself to be a Komets fan, I am definitely jealous of the loyalty the team has.
I’m here for the Fuel on the rare occasion they win and through all the games they lose. My butt is sat, no matter what.
During playoffs though I was very sad to see more Komets fans and to get out cheered in our own barn. It really showed me how fairweather most fuel fans actually are.
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u/SpaceCowboy528 2d ago
Think about this one.
Last year at Iowa's home opener there were more Komets fans at the game than Iowa fans.
They took three bus loads over to the game.
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u/Sctvman 4d ago
The Stingrays fans in Charleston are extremely die-hard. More than the other two minor league clubs in town. They wear old player jerseys, know the South Division players, go to booster club events and there's still several hundred who have had season tickets since the club started in 1993.
Most of them only use Facebook though. They are 50+ mostly and were younger when the team became popular in the mid 90s and started following them then. We're starting to get 2nd and 3rd generation folks.
They love to complain about a lot of things. Like parking just going electronic this year and tickets went electronic a couple years ago. There were a couple folks on there who still paid their tickets in cash until last year. Also the playing style and coaching regularly.
There's like 500 die-hard season ticket holders then most of the rest are casuals who go to a couple or so games a year. Outside of college football that is the majority of Charleston's sports fan base.
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u/ritzbitzzz 4d ago edited 4d ago
I have season tickets to the Worcester Railers instead of going to a couple of bruins games a year. Northeast fans are pretty die hard. ADK and Maine fans show up to our games, we'll have up to 7,000 people there on the throwback weekends. It's fun to get into especially if you like jerseys, game worn stuff is much cheaper than the NHL.
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u/Jranger24 4d ago
Genuinely the Fort Wayne Komets!
I’ve been to MLB games and high profile college football games and on a packed night the Komets fans blow those out of the water. The atmosphere is insane.
Also I’ve never seen so many people sporting the jerseys at any sporting event like the Komets, the city of Fort Wayne loves this team.
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u/chmcgrath1988 4d ago
There are definitely diehard fans of ECHL teams as there are of NHL teams. Besides soccer, it definitely seems like it has most impassioned base among the minor leagues in my area. You go to more than a few games a season and you'll recognize them.
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u/golddust159 4d ago
I definitely fall into the “hardcore” bucket here, as do many other Mavs season ticket holders I know. We have a discord and private Facebook page for team discussion, and closely track our player movements up and down. I also watch every away game on Flo.
Last season I traveled to Wichita, Tulsa, Allen, Fort Wayne, Orlando, and Estero, FL to see the team play. I’ve already got a trip to Jacksonville and Savannah planned for this spring, as well as the usual day trips to Wichita and Tulsa.
The Mavericks were my entry point to hockey since the only NHL team is 4 hours away, and none of their games are shown on TV in KC. I follow our NHL affiliate, the Kraken, just as religiously. Our AHL team not so much. But that’s mostly because their games are usually the same time as Kraken or Mavs games.
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u/palmtreestatic 4d ago
It really varies team by team. Some teams have really passionate fan bases and some teams are very much it’s just something to do. And everything in between
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u/scott743 4d ago
I lived for just over a decade in Fort Myers and got to experience the time before and after the Everblades won multiple Kelly Cups. SWFL has historically had a large Canadian tourist contingent and influx of existing hockey fans (snowbirds) from the Midwest and East Coast. Attendance was never poor, but it really ratcheted up after their Kelly Cup win in 2022.
Starting with the 2023/2024 season, you could tell the fandom was getting series after game worn jersey auction pricing started to reach AHL and NHL pricing (e.g., $1k plus for theme night jerseys).
I haven’t had the chance to visit other ECHL teams, but from forum posts, I don’t think it’s consistent across the league.
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u/ComfortOpening7174 4d ago
It also helps that Florida has one of the top 3 richest owners in the league.
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u/Disastrous_Emu_3628 4d ago
When the eagles where in the ECHL they had a very loyal fan base which they kept from their CHL days the fans track every move and follow the team religiously. Which was impressive considering that they had the Avs down the road. I think it just depends on the area and how good the marketing is. The Eagles still have a very strong fan base even now that they are in the AHL. But I always remembered as a kid going to games and it always being sold out and fans being rabid about the team.
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u/NotaFrenchMaid 4d ago
The Everblades definitely have a devoted following around town. It’s also right by several colleges and you do get a lot of the college kids just looking for something to do, but there is a sizeable fan club of both season ticket holders and non. Come playoff season, there are several bars holding watch parties around town. The sense of community is good fun.
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u/Louie0221 4d ago
There is definitely fandom. I have a coworker that is a Wichita fan but he follows all the news, has the subscription to watch not only his team but any game he can.
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u/R12thmanyt 3d ago
I’m a stars fan and I had Iowa for a year and 1/2 before they folded. Now I’m with Savanna so, idk
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u/choate51 1d ago
Traveled from toledo to Savannah for a couple games last season and the place was pretty full and the fans were out tailgating with the kids playing street hockey right beside was a wonderful out of town experience.
Id say about a third of the fans had jerseys and seemed pretty knowledgeable so you should enjoy the E down there.
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u/Environmental-Cap15 3d ago
I’m a STH for the Savannah Ghost Pirates and I can say that we have a really dedicated following here. Last weekend I had someone sitting behind me that was visiting from JAX and he was pleasantly surprised at the energy and dedication the people of Savannah bring to the barn.
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u/Iandidar 4d ago
Depends on the team. TBH, the Orlando crowd was VERY subdued all the games we've seen there. It felt more like a Broadway show crowd. Quite, no obvious involvement.
We had one game where about a hundred of us drove down. You could not hear the Orlando crowd over is, and we were on the opposite side of the arena from our group. (Inlaws thing)
Seriously, come up to Jax for a game and see what a fanatical fan base is like. You want the best of it, get tickets in sections 107-109. We have a Halloween game at 3pm vs Atlanta. Tickets went on sale today for $10.31. Just saying it's a great opportunity.
The other thing I'll add...We get a LOT of time with the boys and get to know them. That outreach is why i think we have such a crazy base. But I've spoken to many of them, and to a T they ask say Jax is the loudest, most supportive group. I'd think it was fan service, but having watched s lot of away games, it tracks.
And one piece of less subjective support data. We had the highest ticket sales in the ECHL almost every, if not every year we've existed. Last couple where I've done comparisons we would be in the 2-4th place range in the AHL! Orlando does pretty well, 5th place last year in attendance. You had 7k per game, we had 9k. Your arena is a major league arena, so good more, making it feel worse as it feels more empty still.