Tucson has been a hockey town before

Tucson has been a hockey town before

The Arizona Coyotes ranked No. 29 of 30 NHL teams in home attendance this season, at 13,433 per game (or 78 percent capacity).

The Coyotes examined their ticket base, and while in Tucson last week, owner Anthony LeBlanc said “tens of thousands” of their ticket accounts were traced to Tucson zip codes.

That was one of the reasons the Coyotes bought the Springfield (Massachusetts) Falcons and moved the AHL franchise to the Tucson Community Center.

Pro hockey’s initial appearance in Tucson was in 1975. That’s when the Tucson Mavericks, a CHL affiliate of the WHA Phoenix Roadrunners, Houston Aeros, and San Diego Mariners, began play. Hockey was a coveted ticket in Tucson way back when, 41 years ago.

Hockey legend Gordie Howe, representing the Aeros, flew to Tucson and skated with members of the Tucson Youth Hockey League. That appearance drew 2,000 fans. Alas, the Mavericks went out of business at season’s end.

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The Tucson Icemen and Rustlers followed in the ‘70s, and both expired in less than a year.

At the conclusion of the ‘79 season, after the league had taken control of the Rustlers’ operations, it was announced there would be no admission charge for the final game of the season. Attendance: 6,000.

That was a long time ago, when Tucson was half the size it is today.

Howe is now 88. In the four decades since he skated at the TCC, Tucson has grown so much that it at last seems capable of supporting professional hockey.

Of the 38 home games the Tucson team will play at the TCC in 2016-17, I’d guess at least 20 will draw 6,000. It might be my best prediction in years.