On Tuesday night, Kansas City hockey fans wanted to make the New York Islanders feel at home. So they stayed home. Or prehaps they went to watch Royals' ace Zach Greinke shut down the Red Sox.
According to a report in The Kansas City Star, a "small but enthusiastic" crowd of 9,792 watched the Los Angeles Kings crown the Isles, 4-2, at the Sprint Center, which seats 17,752 for hockey. Other published reports indicated the actual number was approximately 2,000 less than the announced total, despite the fact that free and extremely low priced tickets ($10) were available in the days leading up to the game.
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E.J. Hradek
Senior Writer, ESPN The MagazineABOUT THIS BLOG
E.J. Hradek
E.J. Hradek is a senior writer at ESPN The Magazine, joining the staff prior to its launch in 1998. He began covering hockey as a writer/editor for Hockey Illustrated in 1989. The following year, he beat the Stars to Dallas (by three years), taking over as the editor of Beckett Hockey Monthly. When the Stars finally did arrive in Big D, he hosted a weekly hockey radio show and tried (unsuccessfully) to convert ESPN's Skip Bayless to the greatest game on ice.
In 1996, Hradek left Dallas, but not the Stars. Relocating back to the New York area, he became a part-time pro scout for the club, seeing more than 100 NHL/AHL games for each of the next two seasons. The scouting gig was a great learning experience, offering a different view of the game.
Hradek grew up in Tuckahoe, N.Y., about a 40-minute train ride from New York City. Despite the proximity to the Rangers, Hradek embraced the Islanders when the expansion franchise debuted in 1972. Eight years later, he was part of the sellout crowd at the Nassau Coliseum that witnessed the Islanders' first Stanley Cup championship.
