Chapter 4: An (sorta) hockey town

When I started school in Port Huron the Port Huron Bordercats were in what was to be their final season. Originally the Detroit Falcons, they moved to Port Huron in 1996. In 1994 I had the pleasure of having dinner with a couple of the players. Both players were Canadian. I learned more about Quebec that night than I had before or since then. One of them even played the Ren and Stimpy game I had for Game Gear. How many of you out there can say that you’ve had a professional hockey player play your Game Gear? Yeah, I know most of you probably don’t even have Game Gears, so take that.

But I digress.

There is some entity, or Nixon may put it as “Beast,” that seems to think that hockey is a viable industry in Port Huron. For the life of me I cannot understand how this is the case. In all the years I’ve visited Port Huron I haven’t attended a single game from any of the teams. Its not that I haven’t wanted to go but I’ve never really felt the urge to go.

By the beginning of my second year of school there the Bordercats were gone and the Beacons came in. They lasted until 2005 when the Flags made their return. They ended last year and now the Icehawks are in for their requisite few years on the ice of McMorran.

In the span of a couple years the amount of teams to come through the McMorran arena is so baffling to me I cannot come up with a great simile for it as I type. The ghosts of these teams still haunt the downtown area. There at least was an engraved stone outside of McMorran featuring the Bordercats logo that might still be there. Up the street is the building that the Beacons occupied. It is still for sale and has been for sale since the Beacons called it quits nearly 3 years ago.

Economic factors always seem to be the trouble. From what I recall the Beacons wanted a cut of the concession sales; something that was totally unheard of. Not surprising that they left. And I guess it isn’t too surprising that the arena by the Horizon Outlet Mall still isn’t finished to this day. That thing was partially done when I started school and I think the most work done on it since then has been the addition of a couple nails.

You can’t force a past time on a populace. Detroit didn’t start becoming Hockeytown until some time after the 1996 season when the Wings broke the record for the most wins in a season. Even though we didn’t get the Stanley Cup that year the fever started and has hardly slowed down since then.

Port Huron hockey on the other hand is something that is trying to force a fever instead of letting the heat develop on its own. A name change doesn’t bring people to the seats. Success does.

This is not to decry the talents of those that are playing. They are good at what they do. But the arena they play in is much too large for the crowds they pull in. No amount of promotional material is going to help out.

After a few years though somebody has to take the hint. Teams come and go and the attendance doesn’t increase. If people aren’t coming to games then it is time to realize that hockey just isn’t meant for Port Huron. But the McMorran arena has to have an attraction there in order to bring in some money. The days of major bands playing there have been long gone. I remember looking through the archives of the Erie Square Gazette and seeing a front page article about KISS playing there just as their massively popular album Alive! came out. I’ve also heard tales of Rush and Aerosmith playing there in the same time period. But the arena is too small to attract big names like that anymore.

If Port Huron really, really wants to be a hockey town, I suggest the following. Neither of these ideas are easy but it may be the only hope. One is a move to a smaller arena. It will be much more economically viable. Plus, the Icehawks are going to have to win a championship.

Again, these are not easy tasks. Then again, maybe the only reason hockey is at McMorran is for revenue.

But maybe another way for McMorran to increase business is to actively pursue musical acts. I don’t think artists that have the ability to sell out the Palace of Auburn Hills in ten minutes will play McMorran; not unless such a band was on a tour specifically visiting small venues. Artists playing the Fillmore in Detroit or other such medium-sized venues would have people coming around. Even hosting major Canadian rock acts would probably work. With stations like 106.3 around playing a mix of American and Canadian acts some promotion could be done I’m sure. I know Larry the Cable Guy played there a few years ago and that did some good business. McMorran should continue to try and pull acts of that popularity in.

Larry the Cable Guy can’t perform there all the time. But musical acts of considerable popularity are touring venues the size of McMorran all the time. Over time McMorran could have the ability to become a top notch concert venue that could easily compete with similar Metro Detroit venues. This way McMorran won’t just be gaining revenue but a reputation as well.

If anything, Port Huron is more of a musical town anyway. There is always some band playing somewhere in town on any given night. They might not be able to fill McMorran up but the presence of music in Port Huron is much more palpable than hockey is. You can’t point to an ant and say that it is a rhinoceros. Likewise, those in charge cannot call Port Huron a hockey town when it clearly isn’t.

The options are on the table, folks.