The Flyers start their season with 3 games against the likely two best teams in the Eastern Conference, the Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes. How did these two teams get to the top of the hockey world? Probably by having almost no pressure from their local markets weighing down their decisions. As we just saw with the Phillies, a city caring too much has the potential to negatively affect things. No worries of that happening to these two teams. Here is a very unscientific ranking of the sporting interests of the two markets. (This is not a judgment on fanhood)
Florida Panthers
I just happen to live in Miami and can give a first-hand look at the fan interests down here. When the Panthers were wrapping up their second straight Stanley Cup win last year, you saw a few more Panthers shirts and hats around. Before and after the month of June though, that disappeared. If you see a red shirt or hat, the first instinct is that a random school is in town for college football or there might just be a Phillies fan to say hello to. A Panthers logo is frankly more surprising. Let’s get down to the ranking:
- Miami Hurricanes Football – When I first moved here, I tried to acquaint myself with my classmates by bringing up the Dolphins. No takers. I realized in short order that college football was king. Specifically, it’s all about the U. Miami is one of the few major metro areas in the whole country with a big-time college football program (LA being the other that I can think of). Most people are fans of a college because they (or family) went there, that’s not even close to true with UM. It is THE team for the city of Miami. They are as big down here as the Eagles are up there proportionately.
- Miami Heat – Don’t let the bad rich fans fool you (you know, the ones who left the Finals game early back in 2013 only to miss the furious comeback), fans down here love the Heat. They just can’t afford the jacked-up tickets to go to the games. What’s not to love? Despite basketball not being the top sport, this is an organization that always competes and gives the fans something to be proud of (the complete opposite of the baseball team). Who wouldn’t want to be a fan of the Heat?
- Miami Dolphins – The average Philadelphian would not understand Miami Dolphin fans. It is almost like they are a fan of the sport generally rather than the team but aqua and orange is the uniform. Maybe it’s because the Dolphins haven’t given anyone anything to cheer about in generations or maybe it’s just a trickle-down fan thing from Hurricanes football, but they just don’t have any passion for the team. You’ll see the hats and the shirts, but no one is getting into arguments about the Dolphins and they certainly don’t spark any type of conversation. Its more of a sigh and roll of the eyes.
- Florida Gators/Florida State Seminoles Football – If you went to the school, you care about the school. The Big 3 college football rivalry is the only argument. Imagine what would happen with Eagles/Giants/Cowboys if the city of Dallas was located in South Jersey. That’s what it’s like here. Granted, all the Hurricanes fans hate these two fanbases, but enough have relocated down to Miami where you are more likely to see a UF/FSU hat walking around than not.
- Inter Miami Soccer – Yes, it is probably the Messi Effect rather than a long-term diehard fan base, but the pink colors and the celebrity have been exponentially growing here the last 3 years. Throw in South American culture, a new stadium, and an increasing level of soccer popularity in general, and Miami seems here to stay in the US Soccer community.
- Florida Panthers – It is just an odd market for hockey. They do very well in attendance with an easy to get to stadium right in a walkable mall area, but there is no buzz about the team. I suppose the answer is that it is more a Fort Lauderdale team than a Miami team, but isn’t that saying something in itself? Miami is the biggest city in Florida and they are almost avoiding the market. Everyone likes a winner, but this team is so successful and so fun and so compelling, but they can’t even sniff the spotlight. Almost anywhere else in the country and this team would be a HUGE deal. Philadelphia wishes it had this hockey team. But damn, imagine if we did?
- Miami Marlins – I’m keeping the list going because the failure of the Marlins to be relevant in Miami should be impossible. Baseball is the #1 sport in Miami, hands down. The Latin community lives and breathes baseball and would like nothing more than a baseball team to fawn over. For 25 years, the Marlins have made this impossible. Not only do they have a history of cheap ownership that ships off talent to avoid paying them, but it’s the little things too. For years, the ballpark was located outside the city right at the center of the I-95 work commute during rush hour. Of course, all summer it rains in Miami for about 15 minutes between 5 and 6 which usually made your seat wet when you got there. To alleviate this, they built a domed stadium within the Miami city limits. Instead of putting this in an easily accessible location either downtown or near a highway, they chose Little Havana. Except there was no room in the housing of Little Havana to put it there. The solution? Tearing down the beloved Orange Bowl, the dilapidated cathedral for University of Miami Football and the pride of the city. To finance the stadium, they cooked their books in order for the city to pay for more of the construction costs. Oh yeah, they also hired a Castro Sympathizer in Ozzie Guillen to manage the team at one point. What the hell is wrong with them?
Carolina Hurricanes
I have a friend who lives in Chapel Hill which is about 20 miles from where the Carolina Hurricanes play in Raleigh. His whole area cares about two things: loving the Tar Heels and hating the Blue Devils. Funny thing happened though, he tells me that the Raleigh area has done a solid job of teaching the area about hockey over the last 30 years. They give out jerseys and hockey sticks while actively promoting the sport first rather than the team. That’s some serious grassroots shit for a sports team. That investment has yielded now a second and third generation of hockey fans in an otherwise basketball infested area. While Charlotte might have the Panthers and NASCAR, it is 160 miles from the Raleigh Durham area. The Hurricanes have done a solid job of infiltrating Tobacco Road. Throw in a growing transplant community and they are all finding something to latch on to.
- North Carolina Tar Heels Basketball – Much like the Hurricanes in Miami, the only thing that really matters to everyone in the area is what goes on in the Dean Dome. Carolina Blue is everything and everywhere.
- Duke Blue Devils Basketball – …with one exception, the Royal Blue of Duke. This is a basketball civil war and Duke is located deep within hostile territory. It would be like the Giants playing football in Camden (no offense to Durham). The hatred for them seethes from literally everyone unless they went there. Duke is the bad guy and they get all the heat. It might be more appropriate to say that hating Duke is the second biggest sports rooting interest.
- NC State Football – There are a lot of colleges in the area. While basketball might be king, NC State football is a monster in a way that UNC and Duke football can’t compare. They are a national presence that regularly puts out NFL talent including Phillip Rivers, Mario Williams, and our Roman Gabriel. Their stadium regularly sells out their 50k+ capacity. With 30k+ kids enrolled, NC State is pumping out more and more fans every year.
- Carolina Hurricanes – In terms of pro sports, the Carolina Hurricanes have replaced the minor league Durham Bulls as the ticket of choice in town. This is why MLB is looking at the area. There is simply nothing else to compete other than the local colleges. Charlotte is not close in the very wide state. Otherwise, it’s Washington 280 miles north and Atlanta 400 miles southwest. This is an up and coming tech market that simply needs things to do. Why not hockey? That’s basically what’s happening. While Miami is drowning in sports, Carolina is thirsty as all hell. It will also NEVER be front page news as long as Carolina basketball is around. That’s perfect.
Philly Front Office 
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