Can the Madison Capitols replicate the Madison Mallards’ success?
If they can even achieve half, then that would be a “win,” according to Tom Garrity, who heads the Capitols’ ownership group. Garrity, a Wisconsin native, is joined by several former hockey players, including ex-Badger and Madison native Ryan Suter, in bringing USHL hockey back to Madison.
For those unfamiliar, the Capitols are in the Eastern conference of the 17-team USHL, which is the top junior hockey league (players are 16-20 years-old) in the country. Since players maintain their amateur status, they are eligible to play in NCAA hockey.
According to Wikipedia, Madison has previously seen the Blues (1973-74) and an earlier incarnation of the Capitols (1985-95) represent the city in the USHL. As a kid, I enjoyed attending the games of the fight-prone Madison Monsters (1995-99), who played in the UHL.
On Saturday, the Caps made their home debut at Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Fans were treated to giveways (rally towels), in-arena promotions (trivia) and both indoor and outdoor fireworks. A kids area had a bouncy castle and a place to shoot pucks.
Similar to the Mallards, the Caps are promoting group outings, with all-you-can-eat packages in the North Nest, the South Nest, the Rinkside Suite and luxury suites.
Garrity said that the Capitols aren’t trying to compete against the Badgers, and after attending a game, I saw how the fan experience is different: no crazy cheers from the audience (meaning, no student section), no pep band and the welcome sight of beer (Miller, Bud, PBR and Leinie’s products were available).
I’ll be back for more games this season, but I hope to see the following improvements:
- Speed up the Will Call lines. In addition to many ticket snafus, especially for season-ticket and package holders, only one person was handling Will Call tickets. The staff should create separate lines for Season/Package, A-F, G-L, M-R and S-Z.
- Add beer-only stands. The concessions lines were long all game, mostly due to people wanting to buy beer.
- Add more food stands. Gigi’s Cupcakes, Rocky Rococo and Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream were represented, but more food vendors, especially on the upper level, would have been nice.
- Fix the audio. It was hard to hear the music, and the in-arena promotions also were hard to hear with the mic level too low.
Most games take place on Fridays and Saturdays, with the occasional blip on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. Tickets cost $13-$43.50, and parking is $7.
Tags: Madison Capitols
