When Tom Dundon first explored a purchase of Raleigh’s only professional sports team, its balance sheet was dripping with red ink. It was widely reported in 2017 that the National Hockey League team was servicing over $200 million in debt.
If you ask around today you’re likely to be told that a lot of it had to do with wasteful spending and a lack of interest in the local market. In the last full season before Dundon, a Dallas billionaire purchased the team; the Hurricanes only attracted 11,776 fans per game on average. It was the second year in a row they ranked last in the league by attendance.
Carolina had hovered around the bottom third in the league for attendance since they played in Hartford but this was different. Not only was it their first time finishing in last since moving to Raleigh. It showed a pattern that had taken hold years earlier. Since losing in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2009 the Hurricanes attracted fewer and fewer fans as the calendar ticked up.
Enter Tom Dundon – In January of 2018, Dundon buys into the Hurricanes at a $420 million valuation.
Early on Dundon admitted that Carolina needed to do more for their fans. Yes, the team needs to be better to get fans in the door. “Losing is no good,” Dundon said in an interview in 2018. “You feel guilty right? The fans, they pay, they come, and more people have been coming. – You’re disappointed you didn’t create the environment. You realize that if you win they’re more likely to come back.” But once they were in the door Dundon admitted PNC left a lot to be desired. High prices, long lines, and a needed facelift to PNC Arena were at the top of the list. To get an idea of what needed to be ironed out in Raleigh, Tom Dundon along with other members of his hockey club traveled around the league to experience how other NHL arenas created a show for their fans.
“If they think they’re going to miss out on a win. Or miss out on seeing a team get better and build. If we can get the fans and the players to build a relationship through social media, having more content available on the video boards [at PNC Arena], or getting an autograph and going to practice. There are so many touchpoints. We have twenty-three players here for six, seven, and eight months a year. I don’t think we have given them exposure to the players,” Dundon said.
Last night’s game against the Detroit Red Wings was the final regular season game of the year. It also marked the organization’s fifth year under Dundon’s leadership. PNC Arena installed a 25-foot LED scoreboard in 2019 for $4.2 million. It expanded its food and beverage offerings, including the team’s official beer ‘Storm Brew’. Plans are also being finalized for hundreds of millions of dollars in arena renovations and expansion.
18,680 fans were in attendance at PNC for Carolina’s 4-1 victory over the Red Wings, which marked the franchise’s 30th sellout of the season. Almost doubling their previous season record. “We have gone from being ranked in the bottom few teams in the league in number of season members and overall attendance, to now being in the top ten,” Senior Vice President, Ticket and Premium Sales Sara Daniel said.
In January the team reportedly had 22,000 season ticket members. Hurricanes General Manager Don Waddell has been open about the possibility of starting a waiting list for new season ticket members in the upcoming seasons. “That 2017-18 season signified major progress for us and led to the true turning point of it all during the 2018-19 season,” said Mike Forman who serves as the team’s Chief Marketing Officer.
“Ever since [Dundon] took over, things have started to turn around for the better. There are definitely things to be said about spending and making Rod the head coach,” said team captain Jordan Staal. “They’ve done a good job of bringing in the right people. We’ve played well and we’ve been able to keep guys, too.”
Only one game this season attracted less than eighteen thousand to PNC Arena. Halloween night against the Washington Capitals brought 16,211 fans to the twenty-three-year-old multipurpose arena. Less than four months later 56,961 fans cheered on the Hurricanes during their first outdoor game at Carter-Finley Stadium. If you include the Stadium Series game Carolina finished the regular season second in the NHL by attendance. Only Montreal with its 21,000-seat arena attracted more.
During the turnaround season in 2018-19, legendary and controversial Canadian broadcaster Don Cherry called the team a “Bunk of Jerks” for celebrating on the ice after home wins. ‘Storm Surges’, a brainchild of head coach Rod Brind’Amour and former caption Justin Williams created a fear of missing out mentality for Hurricanes games in Raleigh. Hurricanes fans and the organization itself wore Cherry’s insult as a badge of honor.
Near the end of his 2018 interview with ABC11, Raleigh’s local ABC station, Dundon was asked to envision his team five years down the road. “Ideally more people want to come to games than can get in. That there’s a scarcity value and that people feel like it’s a privilege to get to come to watch a really good team,” Dundon responded. “It’s up to us to create that environment. We can’t expect it if we don’t give them a good reason for that to happen.”
Looking back I would say that Dundon and his team have achieved that goal. On the ice, Carolina is on track to win their third division title in as many years. Brind’Amour’s group is recognized around the league as a Stanley Cup contender. And off the ice, the organization continues to push boundaries to expand the Hurricanes brand. Forbes now values the franchise at $640 million. Almost a thirty percent increase in value from what Dundon paid to buy into the team five years ago.
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