HC “Sakhalinskiye Sharks” became the leader in attendance in the MHL

In 2022, HC Sakhalinskiye Sharks became the best in terms of the percentage of attendance and the dynamics of the growth in the number of fans in the Youth Hockey League. This was reported in the press service of the hockey club.

The JHL presented data on team attendance in the first part of the 2022/2023 season – from September to December. The Sakhalin Sharks were among the leaders in the ranking of the most visited teams in the MHL.

For three months of the home season, the Arena City ice complex hosted 17 matches of the island team. These games were attended by 17693 fans (1041 on average per match).

In terms of the total number of fans, this result is the second in the MHL – only the Moscow club Krylya Sovetov is higher, having gathered 24,751 spectators at its 18 home games (1,375 on average per match).

The Sakhalin Sharks lead by a huge margin in terms of the percentage of attendance at home matches – in the first three months, Arena City was filled to 86.73% of its capacity (1200 people). Whereas the following teams in the rating do not even reach 30% of the arena capacity. In the top three of the rating, in addition to Sharks, there are SKA-1946 (28.6%) and Dynamo-Shinnik (26.39%).

The island team is also the leader in the MHL in terms of audience growth dynamics – compared to the same period in the 2021/2022 season, the island team gathers in the stands, on average, 655 more spectators. This is the best indicator among all teams, including newcomers to the League.

It should be noted that the attendance of the Sakhalin Sharks during the New Year holidays only increased – four home games in January gathered a full house in the stands of Arena City. And in the New Year’s derby on January 3 with the Amur Tigers, attendance exceeded the arena’s capacity. Due to the lack of free seats, some of the fans were forced to watch the game standing up.

All home games of the Sakhalin Sharks team are held at the Arena City ice complex. The games are free to visit. During matches, prize draws, player autograph sessions and various themed events are held.

In February, the island team will play six matches on its site: on February 1 and 2 against SKA-Varyags, on February 5 and 6 against SKA-Karelia, on February 21 against Almaz and on February 23 against Loko.