Monday, March 27, 2017

UND leads NCAA in college hockey attendance



GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Nearly a quarter of a million fans passed through the gates of Ralph Engelstad Arena in 2016-17, marking the sixth consecutive season in which the University of North Dakota has led NCAA Division I men’s hockey in total home attendance. North Dakota also led the nation in per-game home attendance for the third straight year, averaging 11,505 fans over 21 home games.

UND was the only team in the nation to draw more than 200,000 fans in 2016-17, and the program’s average home attendance of 11,505 was at 99 percent capacity in the 11,634-seat Ralph Engelstad Arena. Thirteen of UND’s 21 home games were sellouts.

“We would like to thank all of our fans and ticket holders who attended North Dakota men's hockey this past season at Ralph Engelstad Arena,” said UND head coach Brad Berry. “You once again leading the nation in attendance not only shows the magnitude of your loyalty and passion, but has also given -- and will continue to give -- our hardworking student-athletes memories that they will keep for the rest of their lives. We are forever thankful to have the best fans in all of college hockey.” 

UND was the only team in North America outside of the National Hockey League to average more than 10,000 fans per game in 2016-17.

NCAA Total Attendance Leaders:
Rk.   School                      GP         Total
1.     North Dakota            21   241,603
2.     Wisconsin                  18     182,839
3.     Minnesota                 16     153,513
4.     Penn State                20     120,513
5.     Minnesota Duluth       19     113,493

NCAA Average Attendance Leaders:
Rk.   School                      GP     Average
1.     North Dakota            21     11,505
2.     Wisconsin                  18      10,158
3.     Minnesota                 16        9,595
4.     Colorado College        16        6,256
5.     Penn State                20        6,026

North American Average Attendance Leaders (non-NHL)*:
League   Team                          Average
NCAA     North Dakota              11,505
CHL        Edmonton Oil Kings          9,461
AHL        Hershey Bears                 9,205
ECHL       Fort Wayne Komets          7,591

* Source: HockeyDB.com

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