There's no dot race at the Cedar Park Center, no miniature stuffed
animals parachuting from the catwalk, no giant, foam rubber bull
horns belching smoke during pregame player introductions.
There's not even a furry character to fire up the fans.
Here, San Antonio Rampage team mascot T-Bone would be a
celebrity, a bona fide star.
After a one-year absence, minor-league hockey has returned to
the greater Austin area in the form of the Texas Stars.
The first-year American Hockey League franchise has emerged
as one of the top stories in the league, occupying first place in
the West Division for much of the season.
But at the Stars' brand-new $55 million arena, the focus
appears to be more on selling the product on the ice than the
game-night experience for fans.
During Tuesday's 2-0 victory over the Rampage, the only extra
entertainment was typical of most minor league hockey games - a
fight between two players.
That's pretty tame stuff compared with the innovative nightly
fare at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.
But for the Texas Stars, it seems to be working. The Stars
rank ninth in the AHL out of 29 teams in average attendance at
5,040 per game. The Rampage, last in the West Division most of the
season, are 14th in attendance, averaging 4,294.
"They've done a good job of marketing their team," said Ryan
Snider, director of hockey business operations for the Rampage.
"But they're a little more traditional, and not quite as
outside-the-box as we are.
"Their advantage is their building. It's new; it's the
perfect size for minor-league sports. But we play in an NHL-caliber
arena. That gives us some advantages, too."
Among them is the vast marketing muscle of the Spurs, who own
the Rampage. Spurs Sports & Entertainment has years of
experience in creating a fan-friendly environment at Spurs, Silver
Stars and Rampage games.
The Texas Stars are new at this. But at least this time,
they've got a strong foundation.
Austin was home to the Ice Bats from 1996-2008, but the team
eventually faded into financial oblivion, playing at a family-fun
rink north of town in its final season.
The Texas Stars' prospects for survival are better. The team
is the top minor-league affiliate of the NHL's Dallas Stars, both
of which are owned by the Tom Hicks family.
The club is in its first year of a 25-year lease with the
city of Cedar Park, a burgeoning bedroom community about 20 miles
northwest of downtown Austin.
The city built the Cedar Park Center after two failed
attempts at winning public support, using $43 million in
voter-approved sales tax money. It seats about 6,800 for hockey, or
about half the capacity of the AT&T Center for a Rampage game.
Over the years, the Dallas Stars have struggled to find a
stable home for their top minor-league affiliate. They moved from
Kalamazoo, Mich., to Salt Lake City, then to Iowa, and they had
squabbles with ownership in each locale.
Texas Stars president Rick McLaughlin said having the team in
the same state as the parent club should be beneficial.
He said the organization is pleased with its first year,
although Tuesday wasn't one of the Stars' better crowds (3,862).
A few of those were Rampage fans. They weren't too impressed.
"With that traffic in Austin, you better get here early,"
Jimmy Cockrum warned.
"Everybody is real friendly here," Marsha Ocain said, "but
the food is terrible. And it costs $10 to park. It's only $5 at the
AT&T Center."
