The SHL typically debuts on a Saturday, something the league is also seeking.
However, the SHL starts on Thursday.
– The goal is to always start on Saturday, says Gisela Ahlgren-Blom, deputy sports director at the SHL.
There’s a risk there won’t be sold-out arenas everywhere for tonight’s SHL premiere. Timra, Leksand and Karlstad are three examples where there may be smaller gaps between audiences.
One explanation given for not selling everywhere is the choice of the first showing day.
The SHL usually starts on a Saturday and this is also the preference of the league and the clubs. Thursday is a more difficult day to sell tickets, not least because there are fewer absent supporters and families with children.
One person who has been openly critical of the choice of premiere day is Sportbladet hockey profiler Thomas Ross, who on the newly started TV show/podcast Hockeymorgon doesn’t have much to spare for everything to kick off a weekday evening.
-One thing is very unfortunate, why does the SHL start on Thursday? The SHL will start on Saturday. It should be a popular, sunny festival with outdoor seating. The league should not start on Thursday evenings. I think it might be difficult to sell tickets in some places.
Even more difficult is achieving an Olympic year
Why did it become like this?
Deputy sporting director Gisela Ahlgren-Bloom, who is also in charge of the fixture schedule, clearly wants the first round to be on Saturday.
– But this year it didn’t work out because we have to book 52 rounds, qualifiers, finals and arena reservations. We also have the international calendar with national teams, the CHL etc. have to be taken into account,” she says.
Ahlgren-Bloom tells us that there are slightly different challenges in different seasons and that the schedule is more difficult to put together in the Olympic year, which will be next season.
– Next year, the Olympic qualifiers will be earlier than usual, but we will still be able to start (the SHL premiere) on Saturday. There are many factors to take into consideration, but in the initial planning going forward, the first show will be on Saturday. “We are working with the clubs on these issues,” says Gisela Ahlgren-Bloom.