Forget global warming, there's a new ice age beginning in Prince George.
Hockey fans longing for a return of the glory days of the Prince George Cougars franchise, when lineups for tickets stretched around the block and sellouts were the rule rather than the exception, had to be encouraged with the buzz created by Tuesday's public introduction of the new Cougars ownership group at CN Centre.
The crowd estimated at 1,500 didn't just come for a free lunch, they came to hear how the new owners plan to resurrect interest in what was once the Western Hockey League's model franchise. If the crowd response was any indication, the team's future is in good hands.
"The Prince George Cougars are here to stay," said Cougars new president Greg Pocock, managing partner of EDGEPRO Sports & Entertainment Ltd., who walked on stage to a standing ovation. "We did not buy the Cougars to sell it or move it or do anything but work our asses off to make it a success."
Pocock, 53, says having the leaders of prominent local businesses with strong ties to the community as ownership partners is key in restoring the franchise to its glory days of the late-1990s, when Cougars fans were known as the best in the WHL and their sea-of-white support was featured in a MasterCard commercial.
"It's critical, and that's why we brought this group together, because they have access to a different group of people and our engagement levels are going to go up from there," said Pocock.
"There was definitely a disengagement with the community [in recent years under Rick Brodsky's ownership] and we want to reengage and reconnect with the community and build the trust."
Pocock's first hire was Andy Beesley, who resigned as the city's associate director of recreation and culture on May 2 to become the Cougars vice-president of business operations. The two have a history of working together on Prince George minor hockey rep teams -- Pocock as coach and Beesley as team manager.
"With Andy we can set a course and I know things are going to be done promptly and properly and effectively," said Pocock. "It makes my life a lot easier knowing there's someone else with similar drive and ambitions [who] knows what the goals are and is able to execute."
Beesley told the crowd it won't be business as usual with the Cougars. The new ownership plans to totally revamp how it markets the team to try to shake the franchise out of its current funk after three consecutive seasons with the league's worst attendance.
"Just because there's new ownership we're not assuming we'll sell one more ticket just because of that -- we have to create value for our fans and we have to create exciting packages and work very hard to earn their trust to come back into the building again," said Beesley.
"We're not making this up as we go along. The ownership group has invested a considerable amount of money into research and finding credible and successful models we can use for advice and guidance."
The Cougars will be offering different types of ticket packages that will cater to those who don't want to commit for a full season. Beesley said the club will keep the price of an adult season ticket unchanged from last season, slightly less than $500 each. Seats can be reserved at the CN Centre box office, by phone or online for a $75 deposit and monthly payment plans are available.
Beesley, 56, the 2013 Citizen of the Year in Prince George, has a background as a singer and actor, having played the lead role in Jesus Christ Superstar several years ago and more recently in Les Miserables. He plans to draw on his background in music and theatre to make Cougars games more entertaining for the fans. Conversely, he wants the noise generated by the crowd to be like providing the Prince George players a fifth line whose energy inspires them to score an extra goal every game.
"We really are building a new ice age," said Beesley. "We've had an ice age in Prince George in the 90s when the building was filled and you came to the games and the hair on the back of your neck stood up and even on weeknight games grown adults were standing on their chairs, dancing in the aisles. We had the best fans in the league, no question about it, and we need to find a way to fill the building and make it the place to be and let people experience that again.
"We're turning a corner with this community with the 2015 Games here. People are feeling good about our city and we want people to speak highly of the Cougars and see them as one of the top attractions in the city."
The Cougars now have direct ties to the NHL with defencemen Dan Hamhuis of the Vancouver Canucks and Eric Brewer of the Tampa Bay Lightning as part owners and Pocock said the team is already reaping the benefits. During the NHL playoffs, the Lightning's upper management spent time with the new owners and offered advice and ideas based on what the Lightning did to market the team and rekindle fan support in Florida.
Pocock thanked WHL commissioner Ron Robison for making the trip to Prince George after he presented the Ed Chynoweth Cup to the Edmonton Oil Kings after they beat the Winterhawks Monday night in Portland to win the WHL championship. Robison left right after the game and drove six hours to Vancouver, where he boarded a private jet Pocock had arranged to fly Hamhuis and his wife Sarah to Prince George.
"Hopefully the next time we see [Robison] at CN Centre he'll be doing something different from what he did last night in Portland," Pocock told the crowd. "The difference is he'll be presenting the cup to the home team."
Moving the team to another city had become a real threat when attendance at Cougars home games plunged and the losses mounted for Brodsky. Knowing how strong the franchise once was, Robison said the league didn't want to lose Prince George.
"What I sense in today's announcement is there's some real genuine enthusiasm and I think that's going to translate into this building getting back to where it needs to be, which is near to full every night," said Robison. "It has a reputation as being one of the best junior hockey markets in the country and like everybody else we want see it come back to where it was in the mid-to-late-90s and we think it can with this ownership group.
"No one ever lost confidence in the market, it's been a disconnect with the fans and we need to get them back and supporting them again and they will do whatever it takes to make that happen."
