The regular season is drawing to a close, which gives us an opportunity to analyze attendance figures from around the NHL in 2023-24.
Last season, the Vegas Golden Knights not only captured the Stanley Cup, but they also played to 103 percent capacity at T-Mobile Arena — the highest percentage in the league. Meanwhile, their opponent in the Stanley Cup Final — the Florida Panthers — finished the 2022-23 season playing to just 86.7 percent capacity, which ranked 29th.
This year, however, the Panthers are one of the teams that took the biggest leaps forward in terms of attendance. Florida has built off the momentum from a Presidents’ Trophy in 2022 and a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023 to re-establish South Florida as a hockey hotbed. On the other side of the equation, dwindling attendance for the Winnipeg Jets became a major storyline this season, with team owner Mark Chipman even speaking candidly on the topic.
Before we analyze the data from each NHL team from the 2023-24 season, there are a few notes to consider:
- Attendance figures for each team are courtesy of Hockey Reference and Hockey DB.
- Arena capacities listed below are credited to Hockey Reference — except in the instances where the official website for the hockey club or arena lists a different figure for capacity size.
- For the purposes of this analysis, the Arizona Coyotes will be omitted given that they played their home games at Mullett Arena, which only carries a seating capacity of 4,600. (The Coyotes are credited with selling out all 41 of their games, with a recorded attendance of 4,600 in each home game this season.)
Factoring in outdoor games and alternate venues
Unfortunately, attendance tracking on sites like Hockey Reference and Hockey DB does not account for games played at alternate sites. They simply pool all the “home” games together and create an average attendance for each team.
This season, the Kraken, Oilers, Devils and Islanders all hosted outdoor games that significantly boosted their average home attendance.
The Islanders, for example, will have an official attendance that averages more than 18,000 fans at home games this season. But when you remove their outdoor game from MetLife Stadium — which drew nearly 80,000 fans — their actual attendance number dips to 16,540 for home games at UBS Arena. So when looking for the true attendance numbers for these teams, you need to look at the second column below for an accurate measure of attendance inside their home venue this season.
Average home attendance this season
| Team | With Outdoor Game | Without Outdoor Game | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
|
17,887 |
17,151 |
-736 |
|
|
19,173 |
18,267 |
-906 |
|
|
17,598 |
16,280 |
-1,318 |
|
|
18,120 |
16,540 |
-1,580 |
The same is also true in the opposite direction for the three teams that played “home” games at the Avicii Arena in Stockholm this season, where the seating capacity is under 14,000 for hockey. That slightly diluted the home attendance for the Wild, Red Wings and the Senators. (Ottawa was credited with playing two “home” games at Avicii Arena.)
Attendance this season
| Team | With Sweden | Without Sweden | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
|
17,580 |
17,822 |
242 |
|
|
18,980 |
19,116 |
136 |
|
|
18,511 |
18,643 |
132 |
With that housekeeping out of the way, it’s time to analyze the attendance figures from around the league. We’ll start by breaking down the teams into three tiers, based on how full their arenas were during the 2023-24 regular season.
Tier One: Completely full buildings
| Team | Arena Capacity | Avg Attendance | Pct Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
|
17,854 |
18,643 |
104.4 |
|
|
17,500 |
18,139 |
103.7 |
|
|
17,113 |
17,306 |
101.1 |
|
|
18,680 |
18,798 |
100.6 |
|
|
18,007 |
18,102 |
100.5 |
|
|
17,850 |
17,850 |
100 |
|
|
18,532 |
18,532 |
100 |
|
|
17,151 |
17,151 |
100 |
|
|
19,092 |
19,092 |
100 |
|
|
21,105 |
21,099 |
99.9 |
|
|
18,006 |
17,983 |
99.9 |
|
|
18,096 |
18,084 |
99.9 |
|
|
18,819 |
18,789 |
99.8 |
|
|
18,910 |
18,824 |
99.5 |
|
|
18,347 |
18,267 |
99.5 |
|
|
18,118 |
17,940 |
99 |
This is an excellent sign for the health of a gate-driven league as 16 teams — exactly half of the NHL — have been playing to full venues that were at or above 99 percent capacity this season.
It’s no surprise to see four Original Six teams on this list in the Bruins, Canadiens, Maple Leafs and Rangers. The Golden Knights and Kraken continue to be smashing expansion success stories, while even a disappointing season on the ice didn’t stop fans in Minnesota and St. Louis from filling their respective arenas.
The Carolina Hurricanes remain one of the NHL’s best attendance stories over the past several seasons. Consider that in a three-year window from the 2016-17 season through the 2018-19 season, Carolina was averaging only 13,139 fans per game — playing to just 70 percent capacity at PNC Arena. But attendance has skyrocketed thanks to a stretch in which the Hurricanes have made the playoffs and been a legitimate Stanley Cup contender under Rod Brind’Amour’s guidance.
Tier Two: Strong showings
| Team | Arena Capacity | Avg Attendance | Pct Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
|
16,515 |
16,280 |
98.5 |
|
|
18,187 |
17,909 |
98.4 |
|
|
19,515 |
19,116 |
97.9 |
|
|
19,250 |
18,640 |
96.8 |
|
|
18,573 |
17,841 |
96.1 |
|
|
17,255 |
16,540 |
95.8 |
|
|
19,717 |
18,836 |
95.5 |
|
|
18,652 |
17,822 |
95.5 |
|
|
19,537 |
18,414 |
94.3 |
|
|
18,144 |
17,009 |
93.7 |
Maybe the most encouraging sign here is seeing a handful of markets — New Jersey, Florida, Ottawa and the New York Islanders — move up to this tier after years of being fodder for attendance-related jokes.
The Devils sold out more than half of their home games at Prudential Center and had only one crowd under 15,000 all season. The Islanders also recorded 27 sold-out games at UBS Arena in 2023-24, including their last nine home games to close out the regular season.
The Panthers routinely filled Amerant Bank Arena this season, with their lowest home attendance coming in at 16,142 for an October game against the San Jose Sharks. That would have passed as an impressive home crowd in the past for the Panthers.
Meanwhile, the Senators sold out 19 home games at Canadian Tire Centre this season and will post their best average home attendance in eight years.
Tier Three: Room for growth
| Team | Arena Capacity | Avg Attendance | Pct Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Anaheim Ducks |
17,174 |
15,687 |
91.3 |
|
Calgary Flames |
19,289 |
17,490 |
90.1 |
|
Winnipeg Jets |
15,325 |
13,447 |
89.6 |
|
Buffalo Sabres |
19,070 |
15,981 |
83.8 |
|
San Jose Sharks |
17,435 |
13,559 |
77.8 |
The Jets’ attendance issues have been well-documented and highlighted throughout this season. But the Flames suddenly find themselves in this tier, with Calgary posting its lowest average home attendance in the salary-cap era.
Sabres fans continue to speak loudly with their wallets. In missing the playoffs for a 13th consecutive year, the Sabres averaged fewer than 16,000 fans per home game for a second consecutive season at Key Bank Arena — the first time that has happened since 2004. After an atrocious start to the season, the Sharks found themselves hosting 13 games this season with an announced attendance of under 11,000 at SAP Center.
Year-over-year average attendance
| Team | This Season | Last Season | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
|
18,640 |
16,682 |
1,958 |
|
|
18,836 |
17,167 |
1,669 |
|
|
16,280 |
15,207 |
1,073 |
|
|
17,822 |
16,757 |
1,065 |
|
|
17,940 |
17,067 |
873 |
|
|
18,414 |
17,635 |
779 |
|
|
15,687 |
14,953 |
734 |
|
|
18,267 |
17,838 |
429 |
|
|
15,981 |
15,567 |
414 |
|
|
19,116 |
18,819 |
297 |
|
|
18,798 |
18,590 |
208 |
|
|
18,643 |
18,454 |
189 |
|
|
18,532 |
18,371 |
161 |
|
|
17,009 |
16,860 |
149 |
|
|
17,983 |
17,859 |
124 |
|
|
18,824 |
18,702 |
122 |
|
|
18,137 |
18,024 |
113 |
|
|
18,102 |
17,991 |
111 |
|
|
17,909 |
17,816 |
93 |
|
|
18,789 |
18,753 |
36 |
|
|
21,099 |
21,078 |
21 |
|
|
18,084 |
18,075 |
9 |
|
|
17,850 |
17,850 |
0 |
|
|
17,151 |
17,151 |
0 |
|
|
19,092 |
19,092 |
0 |
|
|
17,306 |
17,344 |
-38 |
|
|
16,540 |
16,912 |
-372 |
|
|
13,559 |
13,988 |
-429 |
|
|
17,490 |
17,956 |
-466 |
|
|
13,447 |
14,045 |
-598 |
|
|
17,841 |
18,573 |
-742 |
One of the big takeaways when looking at the overall picture is that stability seems to rule the day, with 20 NHL teams reporting an attendance figure that was within 500 fans of their number from last season. And even when looking at the teams that suffered a decline, it was minimal at best — with no team experiencing a loss of 1,000 fans per game this season compared to last year.
Biggest risers
Florida Panthers: +1,958 fans per game
This year’s Panthers are cashing in on last season’s magic carpet ride that landed Florida in the Stanley Cup Final. That came on the heels of a Presidents’ Trophy season in 2021-22 and it’s easy to see that Florida’s box office numbers directly correlate to the performance on the ice. This has been a drastic improvement for the Panthers, who only averaged 13,262 per game as recently as the 2018-19 season.
Chicago Blackhawks: +1,669 fans per game
We can go ahead and chalk this up to the Connor Bedard effect. Chicago took a giant leap forward in ticket sales this season — even announcing it had sold roughly $2.5 million in tickets in the 90 minutes after the Blackhawks landed Bedard in last May’s draft lottery.
New Jersey Devils: +1,073 fans per game
The Devils were one of the most exciting and surprising teams in the league last season and they certainly seemed to carry that momentum into ticket sales this year. New Jersey topped 16,000 fans per home game for the first time since 2012-13, which was the season after they reached the Stanley Cup Final.
Biggest declines
Washington Capitals: -750 fans per game
There is definitely no reason for concern or panic here. After all, the Capitals played to roughly 96 percent capacity this season. And in a season in which leaguewide attendance was relatively stable, somebody had to be the biggest dropper. This season is the first time Washington has finished with fewer than 18,000 fans per home game since the 2007-08 season, which was the dawn of the Alex Ovechkin era.
Winnipeg Jets: -598 fans per game
Winnipeg reported a 27 percent decrease in season ticket sales over the last three years, from 13,000 to under 9,500 in 2023-24. Murat Ates’ piece in late February does an excellent job digging into the reasons why the attendance has dropped off — and it’s not a singular issue plaguing the franchise. The hope is that a long and successful playoff run this spring can recapture the magic in a city that had a home sellout streak that lasted eight years from 2011 to 2019.
Calgary Flames: -466 per game
Attendance has gradually sagged for the Flames, dipping to its lowest level of the salary-cap era this season. It’s been an era of transition with the team and this season, Calgary once again said goodbye to a handful of players like Elias Lindholm, Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov. The good news for Flames fans is that a refresh is on the horizon, with a new arena that will replace the badly outdated Scotiabank Saddledome by 2027.
(Photo of fans at the United Center in April 2024: Bill Smith / NHLI via Getty Images)
