The news that Comcast-Spectacor, faced with the pending demolition of the Spectrum, is selling the Phantoms to a Pittsburgh outfit was portrayed in today’s Inquirer as a hit to the Flyers:
Having the two teams next to each other made it easy for general manager Paul Holmgren to scout the minor-league players and reduce travel expenses. The proximity also made it convenient to send players back and forth between the clubs.
Left unsaid is that Phantoms games were a wallet-friendly way to introduce kids to ice hockey. The new owners will decide where to relocate the franchise, but with no viable space in the immediate Philadelphia metro area, the Flyers are losing a great resource in building a younger, newer fan base. How else are 10-year-olds supposed to find out that between the fisticuffs, there's a surprisingly graceful game played by tremendously skilled athletes happening?
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