Pittsburgh & Toronto Have The Best Fans

Even though I already knew this by believing this in my heart, I am glad that the recent tabulations and adjunct accounting only confirms that the Penguin fans are the best fans in the NHL. Forbes Magazine, the leading business trade publication in North America, has recently finished a study to determine just how valuable the fan bases are to their respective teams.

Usually, when two or more hockey fans get together, the discussion breaks down to the narrow-minded levels of just how bad the fans are collectively and who's fan base supports their team the best. And normally, attempts at disgracing one another is only supported with subjective anecdotes; in other cases sheer ignorance. But Forbes has been able to rectify this by quantifying the passion that the fans bring to their teams in a formula based on ticket sales, merchandise revenue, and television ratings.

But even the early responses to the Forbes magazine has only infuriated the anti-Pittsburgh fans by spewing their hate and jealousy, I think this study was done in a fair way. However, I do think that Forbes had to set aside some more of the Pittsburgh aspects that kept Penguins fans atop of this list. Penguins fans voraciously defended their team when the news of a possible move threatened to rip the heart and soul. They staged protests, wrote their government officials, and got involved with the processes that brought a new arena to the city. I have not heard, seen, or reported on any similar activities made by fans who landed at the bottom of the Forbes list.

I am also glad to see that the Toronto Maple Leafs fans have deservedly taken the second place in the list. Of course, with the hard data that Forbes looked at, they still had to set aside some of the things that I think make the Leafs fans merit their exalted position. As I continue to explain to other hockey fans in Toronto to consider myself a "friend to Leafs Nation," it has been a treat to view all of their fans as they have uniquely cornered a spot of the vast internet. Leafspace.com is a grand networking website that is unique to the NHL as I do not know of any other NHL team that sponsors their own website devoted to hockey fan video feedback. Several fans have already made themselves stars and could vault themselves into jobs in the Toronto media in the future.

Even as they still continue to fill the Air Canada Centre to capacity with the ticket prices arguably unbalanced regarding the return of value as demonstrated in the starting Leafs season record. I guess I can relate to them mostly because of the lack of commitment my local professional baseball team has shown. Their loyalty to the team from year to year is evident that they are some great fans deserving the number 2 spot..

Also notable to this list are the other 5 Canadian teams finishing in the top half of the study and the franchises that a lot of Canadian fans like to slander as the worst – really have been proven to be the worst. Way to let me down southern US fans!