Just how much longer the Dallas Stars will play their home games at American Airlines Center remains to be seen. The franchise’s tiff with their co-inhabitants, the Dallas Mavericks, has spilled into public view to the point that regular folks who would generally be fans of both are taking sides. For now, the two green teams will continue to share the AAC and will, probably, continue to fight in the court of public opinion, if not eventually in the court of law, too.
As to why this writer personally thinks the Stars should do everything in their power to stay in downtown Dallas, James Mirtle at The Athletic had some thoughts. The long-time NHL writer published his rankings of the best arenas in the league this week and American Airlines Center cracked the top half. Justifiably.
In his four metrics - location, amenities, atmosphere, and affordability - the AAC rated just about right smack in the middle with an average ranking of 15.5 among the NHL’s 32 arenas. Its location ranking was 16th, the amenities 17th, its atmosphere 12th, and its affordability 17th. Based on fans’ responses, all of those fall more or less in line with expectations. It’s no surprise that atmosphere ranked highest, either.
A Stars Move to Plano Would Be Terrible
Mirtle noted, too, that when talking to fans about the potential move, that the ranking would almost certainly fall. It could crater, even. The City of Plano has been tempting the franchise with a possible move north near Willow Bend Mall. Anecdotally, fans seem against the idea.
For example, the arena that ranked 15th, one behind the American Airlines Center, was the St. Louis Blues’ Enterprise Center. It would have ranked ahead of Dallas’ home were it not for poor location metrics (24th). Enterprise Center is technically in downtown St. Louis, but those who have been there know it isn’t necessarily a good thing. It isn’t the cultural hub of the city nor party central. Outside of a few square blocks around Busch Stadium on Cardinals game days, downtown St. Louis lacks much of interest, even if it isn’t necessarily bad, exactly.
Plano, no offense to those who live there, is far less intriguing a locale than downtown Dallas. Sure, the Victory Park neighborhood also lacks a bit, but it’s easy to access, and there are numerous pre- and post-game, uh, festivities within walking distance. Not as many as several other NHL arenas, but a decent amount, anyway.
Playing Downtown Is Key for An NHL Team
In fact, all the teams that play outside of a downtown area scored low on location. Heck, the Arizona Coyotes were forced, basically, to move out of state and become a completely new franchise because of a poorly located arena. It’s hard to imagine the Stars ever leaving Texas, but a suburban arena would definitely sting the fun factor. And with a lack of easy access to Plano, who other than northern suburbanites really want to make the 45-minute (or greater) drive?
The two Western Conference teams ranked in the top five were the Nashville Predators (fourth) and the Vegas Golden Knights (second). Vegas’ ranking needs no explanation. It’s Vegas, and the arena is right off the strip. C’mon. And Bridgestone Arena is in the heart of a highly vibrant Broadway area of downtown Nashville. Basically, what we’re saying is, figure it out, Stars and Mavs.