College Hockey:
Future Frozen Four to the Music City?

USCHO Staff Report • Nov. 24, 2010

According to a report in the Nashville Post yesterday, the Nashville Predators and Bridgestone Arena are planning to make a bid to host a future Frozen Four in the city.

During Tuesday’s meeting of the Sports Authority, Predators president Sean Henry said two games in January at the arena between Alabama-Huntsville and Merrimack could prime the area for a run at bidding for the Frozen Four.

The Frozen Four sites are set through the 2014 event and the NCAA is not accepting bids at this time to host future events.

“(Bridgestone Arena) is notorious for being accommodating,” Predators senior vice president Michelle Kennedy said to the Post. “We aren’t that much of a secret. The NCAA is a very small place.”

The arena has hosted the NCAA women’s basketball Final Four and SEC men’s and women’s basketball tournaments in the past.

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Jon
I know when I think hockey, I think Nashville. The NCAA needs to keep the Frozen Four in major hockey markets; Minneapolis, Denver, Detroit, Boston, New York. No one is going to travel to Nashville to watch college hockey and the interest in Nashville will be limited since they don’t have a college team to follow. I understand they want to expand the fan base, but general interest in college hockey just isn’t there. The fans come from those that support a certain school, so find new ways to draw fans in to the major markets and keep your fan base happy.
- Scott
  Jon, I agree that they should stick to hockey rich markets, but remember St. Louis and Washington, DC don’t have college hockey teams either and they just had frozen 4′s there.
http://www.buhockeyblog.blogspot.com Matt Dresens
I agree, keep it in the northern part of the country. That is where the fans are. Everyone knows that the NCAA could care less about hockey. They just want the money. Have it in New York. BU and Cornell sold out MSG last year (this weekend i think it was). That’s 18,000 people to watch a college hockey, regular season game. Fans would easily make the tip to the big apple to see the crowing of a national champion. Ya think they could get that many in Nashville? The Preds have a tough time sell’n out any way. What makes them believe that because its the frozen four that the place will be full?
So please keep hockey’s national championship in places where fans want to go. That place is not Nashville Tennessee!
Scott
Why don’t they try a place like ND? Awesome arena and prime hockey area in Grand Forks. It would definetly be a sell out.
- Sterlippo1
  no doubt but it but it would be a home game for The Sioux
- Jon
  UND’s arena only hold 11,600. I believe the NCAA requires 14,000 seats. As much as I love the Ralph and think GF would be great hosts, the city itself doesn’t draw enough interest. It doesn’t matter if it is a home game for the Sioux. The X in St. Paul is a home game for the Gophers. Plus the Gophers or the Sioux would have to make it to the Frozen Four to even make that possible.
  - Scott
    Didn’t realize there was minimum seating requirement. Good to know. UND did host it 1983, but I’m sure there were different rules and hockey wasn’t as big of a deal. How about Chicago? They’ve never hosted it and as Buddy the Elf would say “that’s shocking”. They did host the ACHA D1 hockey championship in 2010 so that may put them out for awhile (joking there was only a few hundred people there)
  - Sterlippo
    yeah, how could i forget wisconsin in 2006? it was a home game for them basically
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Mlang8
Remember Anaheim in 1999? Disaster
Gambs
Here are the last 15 or so FF final game attendances. Tampa/St. Pete should be interesting.
1996 Cincinnati Riverfront Coliseum 11,041
1997 Milwaukee Bradley Center 17,212
1998 Boston FleetCenter 17,989
1999 Anaheim, Calif. Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim 12,582
2000 Providence, R.I. Providence Civic Center 11,484
2001 Albany, N.Y. Pepsi Arena 13,252
2002 St. Paul, Minn. Xcel Energy Center 19,316
2003 Buffalo, N.Y. HSBC Arena 18,535
2004 Boston FleetCenter% 18,036
2005 Columbus, Ohio Schottenstein Center 17,116
2006 Milwaukee Bradley Center 17,637
2007 St. Louis Scottrade Center 18,857
2008 Denver Pepsi Center 18,543
2009 Washington Verizon Center 18,427
2010 Detroit Ford Field 37,592
2011 St. Paul Xcel Center
2012 Tampa St. Pete Times Center
2013 Pittsburgh Consol Energy Center
2014 Philadelphia Wachovia Center
- MCW
  Having been to all of the above past venues, I’d say anyone dissing Nashville as a possible future venue has never been there. Bridgestone Arena is right on the main drag, and there are plenty of places to eat, drink, and be merry. If you don’t like the live music in one bar, walk next door to the next. Whether you fly in or drive and leave your car parked at the hotel, there isn’t a friendlier downtown to party in. It’s a long day’s drive from Milwaukee or Chicago, piece of cake for WCHA fans. If you make a wrong turn when leaving the arena, you’re not immediately risking life & limb, either (my personal guess as to why you don’t see NewYork or Chicago on the above list, in addition, of course, to the absence of a strong D-1 program near MSG or the UC). I’d love to see the FF in Nashville, it’d be a great time.
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PatrickjDawes
I am an Upstate NY hockey guy who has lived in Nashville and I just want to point out that Nashville is a pretty good Hockey City they have enough interest to keep team on 4 ice sheets that are all within about 10 miles of each other and the Preds draw better then a third of the NHL I plus people will travel too Nashville because there are a lot of other things to do in the city when the games are not going on remember you are there for three days and will only watch about 10 hours of hockey that leaves alot of time for other things which Nashville has alot of all conveniently located in the area where the rink is with easy access to two more rinks down town where the teams could practice.
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Waterlover
I’ve been telling my wife and friends for years that Nashville would be a FANTASTIC place for the Frozen Four. NHL ice downtown at the end of the entertainment district with no less then 50 establishments w/in 5 blocks, plenty to see and do beyond the establishments as well as an easy city to get to and get around in. Book it! I’m ready.
MR2Tony
Gotta give a shout to my hometown of Omaha. With the 17,500-seat Qwest Center and a resurging downtown, it’s already the home of the College World Series, NCAA Womens Volleyball Championship and played host to the Olympic Swim Trials in 2008. I’d say it’s got the chops. And the people of Omaha love college hockey. I guarantee sellouts.
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