i would like to see the OKC Oilers or the OKC Outlaws please never the Blazers

The reply about the Tulsa Oilers tells a good reason not to use that name. Outlaws? WAY to hick!

i remember those days of the blazers back then. 13k was crazy at a hockey game, and when they won the titles, those were sold out games at the Myriad were pretty cool, even if it was a beer league.

I'm not too worried about what they call the team, I'll support them either way. Got my season tickets last week and can't wait till October.

...As for the Blazers name, it's really amazing how many people that have a limited understanding of the hockey history in OKC that immediately identify the 'Blazers' trademark with subpar quality hockey.

Unfortunate, actually.

Agreed. I'm glad I learned about that history through a couple of friends. Makes me appreciate it.

Bernie Parent - 2 Stanley Cups/2 Vezina Trophies/2 Conn Smythe - Hall of Fame
Gerry Cheevers - 2 Stanley Cups - Hall of Fame
Jean Pronovost - 391 NHL goals
Terry Crisp - 3 Stanley Cups (2 as a player, 1 as a coach)
Wayne Cashman - over a 1000 games with the Boston Bruins - 2 Cups
Glen Sather - 4 Stanley Cups as a head coach
JP Parise - 13 NHL seasons
Joe Watson - 2 Stanley Cups - longtime Philly Flyer
Ted Irvine
Ross Lonsberry - 2 Stanley Cups
Dallas Smith - 2 Stanley Cups and long-time defensive mate of Bobby Orr
Bill Goldsworthy - many years with the Minnesota North Stars
Doug Favell - 12 NHL seasons
Harry Sinden - longtime Boston GM - coached Boston to 1970 Stanley Cup
Derek Sanderson - 2 Stanley Cups - NHL Rookie of the Year
Jim Lorentz - 11 NHL seasons
Barry Wilkens - scored first goal in Vancouver Canucks history
Nick Beverley - 500 + NHL games
Ace Bailey - 2 Stanley Cups
Barry Gibbs - 11 NHL seasons
Bill Lesuk
Jimmy Harrison
Ivan Boldirev - 1000+ NHL games
Gregg Sheppard - three 30 goal seasons with Boston
Gary Doak - longtime Boston Bruin - 1 Stanley Cup
Reggie Leach - Popular Flyer - 1 Cup - scored 61 goals in 1976
Rick MacLeish - another popular Flyer - 2 Stanley Cups
Curt Ridley - former Vancouver keeper
Pat Boutette - 700+ NHL games on some very crappy teams
Mike Palmateer - a living legend in Toronto
Jack Valiquette
Tiger Williams - all-time NHL penalty minutes leader with 3,966 minutes
Blaine Stoughton - had four 43+ goal seasons (56 goals in 1980) with Hartford
And the list goes on....

No disrespect to Joe Burton and Craig Johnson....but to me...this is the legend of Oklahoma City Blazers hockey. Some very talented players have worn the 'BLAZERS' sweater.

You know, I can understand a lot of people wanting the Blazers name because it's what they know. However, I remember when the OKC Hockey team was called The OKC Stars.

People don't like change but change is what is happening. People hated it when the OKC 89rs changed to The Redhawks but now they're used to it.

To name this team The Blazers would be a monumental mistake IMO. Why? Because it's too easy for the general public to associate them with the old team. If that happens, people are very likely to say, "Meh...been there, done that" without even realizing that this is a new team that should bring a much different style of hockey to OKC. It will be faster and more intense as these guys are right below "The Show".

Now you diehard Blazer fans don't get all grumpy. I'm do not mean this to be a slight against the Blazers nor their play. But being the AHL it's going to be A LOT different than the Blazers. Therefore it needs a totally new name....not the Stars, not the Blazers, certainly not the Oilers or the Thunder.

What would my name be? How about the Chesapeake Drillers!!! lol...yes I'm kidding.

I have no ideas about the name but it really should be something unique.

You know, I can understand a lot of people wanting the Blazers name because it's what they know. However, I remember when the OKC Hockey team was called The OKC Stars.

People don't like change but change is what is happening. People hated it when the OKC 89rs changed to The Redhawks but now they're used to it.

To name this team The Blazers would be a monumental mistake IMO. Why? Because it's too easy for the general public to associate them with the old team. If that happens, people are very likely to say, "Meh...been there, done that" without even realizing that this is a new team that should bring a much different style of hockey to OKC. It will be faster and more intense as these guys are right below "The Show".

Now you diehard Blazer fans don't get all grumpy. I'm do not mean this to be a slight against the Blazers nor their play. But being the AHL it's going to be A LOT different than the Blazers. Therefore it needs a totally new name....not the Stars, not the Blazers, certainly not the Oilers or the Thunder.

What would my name be? How about the Chesapeake Drillers!!! lol...yes I'm kidding.

I have no ideas about the name but it really should be something unique.

To answer your concerns only takes three and a half words. It's called tradition.

I STILL do not like the names RedHawks and Stars. One reason other than tradition is Stars would be associated with the most scumbag city on the planet... Dallas. And, yes. I remember them. Just about all they amounted to was a renamed Blazers. Funny. It backfired and folded. What was the next team named? You guessed it. Blazers. Why? Tradition!

To answer your concerns only takes three and a half words. It's called tradition.

I STILL do not like the names RedHawks and Stars. One reason other than tradition is Stars would be associated with the most scumbag city on the planet... Dallas. And, yes. I remember them. Just about all they amounted to was a renamed Blazers. Funny. It backfired and folded. What was the next team named? You guessed it. Blazers. Why? Tradition!
Tradition is the very thing that the new team should avoid if it wants to appeal to long time citizens and get them re-interested in hockey. It's a new team, new and better league and it deserves a new name.

They have to compete with the new and exciting NBA team. The last thing that they can afford is to be seen by many as the old Blazer team. They need to bring in new fans that will help make them profitable. That's less likely to happen with a rigid adherence to tradition.

If we name them The Blazers, the only tradition with this new team and the other hockey teams is the name....that's all. It's perfectly OK for hockey teams in OKC to be named something different....especially when it will be a very different type of team.

There is no value in tradition in this instance. Now if this was the old Blazer's team that had moved up to a new hockey division, I would be all for keeping the old name. However, this is not the case with this team.

It's ok to embrace change....don't be scared man.

Tradition is the very thing that the new team should avoid if it wants to appeal to long time citizens and get them re-interested in hockey. It's a new team, new and better league and it deserves a new name.

They have to compete with the new and exciting NBA team. The last thing that they can afford is to be seen by many as the old Blazer team. They need to bring in new fans that will help make them profitable. That's less likely to happen with a rigid adherence to tradition.

If we name them The Blazers, the only tradition with this new team and the other hockey teams is the name....that's all. It's perfectly OK for hockey teams in OKC to be named something different....especially when it will be a very different type of team.

There is no value in tradition in this instance. Now if this was the old Blazer's team that had moved up to a new hockey division, I would be all for keeping the old name. However, this is not the case with this team.

It's ok to embrace change....don't be scared man.

Change is fine, however, we are discussing TRADITION! Stronger than change. BTW. I am not scared. The fact you accuse me of it makes no sense.

Change is fine, however, we are discussing TRADITION! Stronger than change. BTW. I am not scared. The fact you accuse me of it makes no sense.
I discussed the lack of tradition and how you try to mis-apply this to the new team throughout my last post....yet you ignored it all.

I accused you of being scared as a silly jibe....something that I thought would be obvious given the bulk of my previous post.

Both of you guys bring up valid arguments.

As you can see, I'm a traditionalist. I was raised on both the old-school and new age era of Blazers hockey. I'd love to see the name return.

However, I'm not so sure the casual, 'know little about the sport' fan will be able to tell the difference. If a new name makes the difference in a 1000 or so fans, I say go for it.

As for drawing new fans, we could have named them the Ice Okies back in 1992 and we still would have drawn 12,000+ fans. OKC took to the sport.

Let's hope they take to it again in....with the Thunder right across the street.

I consider myself a traditionalist too, and that's why I liked the idea of keeping the name "Blazers". But, I think Jethrol makes a very good point. If you're a big sports fan of any sort, you know the difference between CHL and AHL, you know what happened to the Blazers, and you know the AHL will bring a very different sort of hockey to OKC. But, to the casual observer, especially one not versed in sports, they may not know what happened, or the difference. A new team will catch people's attention, and it may well lead to an increase in attendance, as they may actually read stories to see what it's all about, rather than skipping over stories because they don't even realize OKC went a year without hockey. So, I think a new name is probably a good idea.

Ladies and Gentlemen,may I present to you, your 2010-2011 Oklahoma City Blazers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!just sounds right!

Don't all traditions have to start somewhere? Why not start a new one?

Don't all traditions have to start somewhere? Why not start a new one?

You people just don't get it. You need to take a course in common sense.:poke:

Don't all traditions have to start somewhere? Why not start a new one?

Or we could go all the way back to the pre-60's Blazers OKC Warriors name.

But let me ask this......in regards to the average, know-nothing, walk up fan....does it really make a huge difference in drawing fans? If a person doesn't particularly like hockey, it won't matter. You can stick the 83-84 Edmonton Oilers out there and some will still think the sport sucks.

Question....did it really make any difference when the Oklahoma Wranglers became the Oklahoma YardDawgs? Good Lord, no. It's still arena football, as far as I'm concerned. From one level to the next, who can tell? The name and league change did not draw me as a non-fan.

Question....if the NBA had chosen the name Oklahoma City Cavalry rather than the Thunder, would that have led you to believe the product was substandard?

But let me ask this......in regards to the average, know-nothing, walk up fan....does it really make a huge difference in drawing fans? If a person doesn't particularly like hockey, it won't matter. You can stick the 83-84 Edmonton Oilers out there and some will still think the sport sucks.

Question....did it really make any difference when the Oklahoma Wranglers became the Oklahoma YardDawgs? Good Lord, no. It's still arena football, as far as I'm concerned. From one level to the next, who can tell? The name and league change did not draw me as a non-fan.

Question....if the NBA had chosen the name Oklahoma City Cavalry rather than the Thunder, would that have led you to believe the product was substandard?
Your point is valid, that most of the time names don't often make or break a team that's entering a new market. However, some names can be very detrimental to the success of a team's popularity.

If there was a previous team that wasn't popular or even hated then choosing that name for a new team would be a bad idea. If you're trying to re-energize hockey fans, IMO a new name is critical. Now I'm not saying that The Blazers were not popular or even hated....I'm simply making a point about naming.

For the know nothing fan the name is virtually meaningless. However even know nothing fans usually have heard of The Blazers because they were here for so long. It would be very easy for them to assume that it's the same kind of hockey and therefore dismiss even going to a game.

Does anybody know what the ticket prices will be or do I need a lesson in common sense to ask this? *LOL*

Season ticket prices are here - OKC AHL Ticket Prices (http://www.okchockey.com/showthread.php?5-OKC-AHL-Ticket-Prices)

I believe reg season tickets will be 20%-30% more.

Thanks... appreciated

I meant regular single game tickets will be 20-30% more...

It's monday...

For a comparison here are the prices for the Texas Stars which started up in the AHL this year here in the Austin area.

Full season tickets range from $500-1,600, the savings over single game tickets range from $88-500: Texas Stars Hockey - Full Season Packages (http://www.texasstarshockey.com/tickets/season/fullseason/)

Single game tickets range from $9-50: Texas Stars Hockey - Single Game Tickets (http://www.texasstarshockey.com/tickets/single/)

The parent club Dallas Stars single game tickets range from $14-139, season tickets range from $499.00-6,171.60.

But let me ask this......in regards to the average, know-nothing, walk up fan....does it really make a huge difference in drawing fans? If a person doesn't particularly like hockey, it won't matter. You can stick the 83-84 Edmonton Oilers out there and some will still think the sport sucks.

Question....did it really make any difference when the Oklahoma Wranglers became the Oklahoma YardDawgs? Good Lord, no. It's still arena football, as far as I'm concerned. From one level to the next, who can tell? The name and league change did not draw me as a non-fan.

Question....if the NBA had chosen the name Oklahoma City Cavalry rather than the Thunder, would that have led you to believe the product was substandard?

The wranglers didnt become the yarddawgs again those are two different teams

So, whats your take on the AHL in OKC. Do you think hockey in okc will draw maximum crowds or leave some seats empty. Im sure it will be successful here.

Im not a basketball fan at all, and the thunder have been a success so far, theres always a sports franchise that may move in time. Being born and raised in Los Angeles, it has shocked me that there still is no NFL team there after 15 yrs, however there is Big talk of the Jags or Bills possibly relocate there.

So even though the thunder have been successful to this point, I hope the city embraces the AHL with large audiances and support, just as it has so far for the thunder.

emw, OKC has always supported hockey well. this last year was the first time we didn't have a team in about 20 years, and it was only because we were transitioning leagues.

I think that it will be successful, that I wouldn't be a surprise if they move to the Ford Center in the near future, also I hope that some of the games will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma.

I am eager to find out what the schedule looks like. Im sure were gonna have lotta games against the Houston Aeros, Texas Stars, and San Antonio Rampage among others.

It has gone over pretty well here and the Austin Ice Bats never drew much of a crowd. The Cedar Park Center is pretty nice from what I have heard, it holds around 6,800 for hockey. They are in the AHL Western Conference Final this season against Hamilton.

Are you referring to the Texas Stars, yes I have been following the AHL playoffs and Im hoping to see the stars get to the finals, down 2 to 1 as of today in the series. I know they are gonna be a formidable rival in the coming seasons for the Barons.

BTW, when will the season schedules be released, im assuming some time over the summer.

I'm planning on going to a few games, and I didn't go to Blazers' games. I know other people who are planning to do the same who didn't go to Blazers' games, so I suspect that if the Blazers fans don't stay home in protest the team will do well. I like hockey live, but am a much bigger basketball fan, so it will never be more than an occasional thing for me.

Are you referring to the Texas Stars, yes I have been following the AHL playoffs and Im hoping to see the stars get to the finals, down 2 to 1 as of today in the series. I know they are gonna be a formidable rival in the coming seasons for the Barons.

BTW, when will the season schedules be released, im assuming some time over the summer.
Yep, the Texas Stars...they won the game last night in OT. They have even had some pretty good coverage on the local sports down here. The parent club even sent one of the young phenoms (Jamie Benn (http://stars.nhl.com/club/player.htm?id=8473994)) down here for the playoffs after the NHL season was over and he has done well.