NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, Texas — With the backdrop of plunging stock prices, bailouts and government intervention in the U.S. banking system, it’s hockey season in North Texas and the Central Hockey League’s Texas Brahmas are feeling little pain.
The Brahmas are successfully promoting “Hometown Hockey,” affordable family entertainment in a suburban setting. With a 40-22-2 record last season, the team reached the CHL playoffs for the first time since the 2000-01 season and made it to the Northern Conference Finals, coming only one game and one goal short of the championship series. That left fans hungry for another championship run.
“I think the Brahmas can do it this year and I want to be there to watch it unfold,” season-ticket holder Art Lembke said. “For the money, I’d rather go to a Brahmas game than any other sporting event in the Metroplex.”
According to the Brahmas General Manager Mike Barack, ticket sales have increased 10-15 percent from a year ago. Barack, who recently became a minority owner of the club, believes the entertainment value the Brahmas provide far outweighs the effects of the national economy.
“If anything, it’s getting better, not worse,” Barack said. “One of the things, even in an economic downturn, is that people will usually continue their entertainment spending, especially on something like the Brahmas with less expensive tickets and right in the neighborhood for a lot of people. I think it’s a slam-dunk in terms of entertainment value.”
As far as the local sports economy goes, Barack points out the new billion-dollar Dallas Cowboys stadium, regular sellouts by the Dallas Stars and the Dallas Mavericks and the success of newer minor-league baseball franchises like the Frisco Roughriders and the Grand Prairie AirHogs.
“I think that we’re in a great, growing area in North Texas and the Northeast Tarrant County area,” Barack said. “I see people jumping on board more than anything.”
The Brahmas, who sat out the 2006-07 season in order to relocate, benefited greatly by moving from downtown Fort Worth’s Convention Center to the NYTEX Sports Center in suburban North Richland Hills. NYTEX became a minority owner of the team and the Brahmas became their primary tenant. The financial savings have been enormous.
In Fort Worth, the Brahmas paid to lease its venue and did not receive funds from parking and concessions. They also had to pay rent for office space and locker rooms and had to compete for weekend dates with conventions, Disney on Ice, the circus and other events that the City of Fort Worth gave priority to.
The partnership with NYTEX has significantly reduced operating costs and allows the team to capture revenue from five sources – ticket sales, parking, merchandise sales, concessions and sponsorships. The Brahmas also receive the highest priority when it comes to scheduling. The largest expenses faced by the Brahmas are player and front office salaries, team equipment, team travel, and in-season medical insurance for players.
A component of the team’s budget that has been hurt by the economy is the cost of travel by bus due to the rise in the cost of diesel fuel. Although the price of gasoline has fallen recently, the price of diesel is dropping at a much slower rate. But Barack takes it in stride.
“It just adds to the travel costs,” Barack said. “If it’s not one thing, it always seems that there’s going to be something. If not fuel costs, it’s another cost going up in terms of whether it’s the hotel or the bus or whatever. That will add a little bit to our travel costs for sure but it’s just part of doing business as a professional sports team.”
Contact the author at robert.keith@prohockeynews.com
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