Fansided

Boston Bruins and their fans belong in Fandom250

By Chad Zimmermann |
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 23: The bruins salute their fans after Game 6 of a first round NHL playoff series between the Boston Bruins and the Ottawa Senators on April 23, 2017, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Senators defeated the Bruins 3-2 (OT). (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 23: The bruins salute their fans after Game 6 of a first round NHL playoff series between the Boston Bruins and the Ottawa Senators on April 23, 2017, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Senators defeated the Bruins 3-2 (OT). (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

FanSided released it’s 2017 version of it’s Fandom250, the ranking of the top 250 fan bases in sports, entertainment, and lifestyle.  The Boston Bruins fans, for some reason, were left out.

As a proud member of Boston Bruins nation, I am extremely upset to have to write this article.  In fact, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read the FanSided post for the first time.  I assumed that there had to have been some sort of mistake.

BOSTON, MA – NOVEMBER 11: A young Boston Bruins fan bangs on the glass trying to rally her team in the 3rd period. During the Boston Bruins game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on November 11, 2017 at TD Bank Garden in Boston, MA. (Photo by Michael Tureski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – NOVEMBER 11: A young Boston Bruins fan bangs on the glass trying to rally her team in the 3rd period. During the Boston Bruins game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on November 11, 2017 at TD Bank Garden in Boston, MA. (Photo by Michael Tureski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

FanSided, when compiling it’s Fandom250, left the Boston Bruins out of the top 250.  Yes, you read that correctly.  Out of all of the possible fandoms out there in sports, entertainment, and lifestyle, the Boston Bruins faithful apparently aren’t in the top 250.  Last year, the Bruins came in at #7 of NHL teams, and #207 overall.  What the heck happened?

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, at #201 on the list this year, is apparently worthy enough of recognition on his own.  This is something that I’m sure puts a knot in the stomach of every NHL fan that doesn’t don a Penguins sweater.

I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed…

Part of my disappointment comes from the fact that the NHL was so poorly represented on the list.  Only eight NHL teams made the list of the top 250.  MLB had 11 teams, NBA had 12 teams, and the NFL had 16 teams.  So of the four major sports leagues in North America, the NHL had the least fan bases recognized.

I get that the NHL isn’t quite as popular as the other major sports, but I guarantee that hockey fans are as dedicated, if not more, than fans of the other leagues.  What other sports fans willingly go into freezing arenas to watch EVERY game of the season, not just the occasional December NFL game?

I’m also disappointed when I look at some of the eight teams that made the list when Boston didn’t.  The eight teams that made the list were, in order:  Detroit Red Wings (#238), New York Rangers (#224), Nashville Predators (#198), Edmonton Oilers (#175), Montreal Canadiens (#120), Chicago Blackhawks (#77), Toronto Maple Leafs (#68), and Pittsburgh Penguins (#14).  Yep, Boston was the only Original Six team left off.  Talking about cutting deep.

Let me show you why they’re wrong with numbers

So let’s talk attendance at NHL games.  Because NHL seasons straddle the new year, we have to look at both last season and this season.  Last season in 2016-2017, Boston tied for 12th in home attendance at 100%, tied with Detroit and ahead of Edmonton (98.4%).  Personally, I find it odd that so many teams are able to report over 100% attendance at their games.  Seems odd that Chicago was able to accommodate 110.3% attendance at their home games over the course of the season.  Possibly someone cooking the books?  But as a popular meme says, “that’s none of my business.”

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In road attendance numbers, the Bruins ranked 8th at 96.8%, ahead of Montreal (95.7%), Toronto (95%), and Nashville (94%).  That leads me to believe that Bruins fans travel better than the fans of those teams, especially given that Montreal and Toronto are in the same division and thus play a similar schedule to Boston.

So, overall, in 2016-2017, Boston had a total attendance number of 98.3%, higher than Montreal (98.1%) and Nashville (97%).  Stands to reason that last season, Bruins fans were more interest in seeing their team play than the other organizations.

The same sort of pattern has carried over into this season as well.  In 2017-2018, the Bruins are once again tied with 100% attendance at home this season, tied with Detroit but ahead of the Rangers (98.8%) and Edmonton (98.4%).  In away attendance, the Bruins are 11th with 96.2%, more than Nashville (96.1%) and WELL more than Detroit (92.3%).  Overall, the Bruins are 8th at 98.3%, higher than Nashville (98.2%), Detroit (96.6%, and New York (96.3%).

I mean, come on.  We all saw that Bruins at Red Wings game the other night.  A little bit of snow comes down, and the lower bowl of the Little Caesar’s Arena was darn near empty.  You think that sort of thing would happen at the TD Garden?  I don’t think so.

And the best thing about the Bruins is that they do everything they do without a superstar on the roster. They have no Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Auston Matthews, P.K. Subban, and the like.  They play a team game on the basis of a foundation of solid core players.

BOSTON – JUNE 18: Confetti flies over a joyful crowd Saturday during the Boston Bruins Stanley Cup parade in Boston. The parade began at the TD Garden and ended at Copley Square. (Photo by Jessey Dearing for The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
BOSTON – JUNE 18: Confetti flies over a joyful crowd Saturday during the Boston Bruins Stanley Cup parade in Boston. The parade began at the TD Garden and ended at Copley Square. (Photo by Jessey Dearing for The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /

Plus, other than Pittsburgh and Chicago, none of the other six teams have won a Stanley Cup more recently than the Bruins did in 2010-2011.  Just saying, success has to count for something, too.  And I’m not naive enough to believe that only attendance at games matters.  But I think that is one of the truest signs of devotion.  Attending games, even when your team is struggling, is the sign of a true fan.

Let me show you why their wrong with common sense

Have you see the other sort of teams or subjects that made the list over the Bruins, a team so popular they were selected to play in the 2019 NHL Winter Classic against the Chicago Blackhawks?  If you haven’t read the list after I told you the Bruins weren’t on it, let me give you a sample.  East Mississippi Community College…ummm, why? (#247); Frozen…yes, the movie that came out in 2013 (#179); and Jenna Marbles…I don’t know who the hell that is (#58).

Every other New England major sports team made it on the list (Celtics – #63; Patriots – #45; Red Sox – #39).  But the biggest, and I mean the biggest kicker is the following selection:  THE CLEVELAND BROWNS MADE IT at #144 on the list.  The team that’s fans resort to wearing bags on their heads.  The fans that had a team literally up and moved to Baltimore to get away from them.  A team that is 0-13 this season, with no hope for a turnaround in the future.

Next: Bruins should avoid trade market

There is absolutely no reason the Bruins should have been left off the list.  The NHL was completely dissed in only having eight teams picked.  And, the Bruins and their fans were slapped in the fave by not being one of those eight teams.  I don’t expect FanSided to make the same mistake in 2018.

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