Per From the Rink:
There were approximately 5,000 fans in attendance, below the 6,899 official attendance figure given by the team that includes unused season tickets.
Coyotes officials had told The Globe and Mail’s Eric Duhatschek last week that they expected somewhere in close to a half full building after selling out the home opener, but 5,000 falls well, well short of that mark. Last night’s game was a Thursday night affair against the Blues, not the biggest draw by any means (but also not the worst), and it came with the Coyotes playing surprisingly well to this point.
It’s a good thing they haven’t gone oh-fer like the Leafs.
The sale of the team, meanwhile, is still bogged down in legal proceedings, as owner Jerry Moyes continues to fight the league, but the Ice Edge group is waiting to buy, as always. My guess is Jerry Reinsdorf might make an appearance at some point, too.
It’ll be interesting to see how (if?) ticket sales rebound if it becomes a certainty the team is staying in Glendale beyond this season. Because, right now, the Coyotes are headed for some of the worst attendance totals we’ve seen in decades.
