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Blackhawks' popularity spikes, but there's a long way to go

Hawks' popularity spikes, but a long way to go

By Teddy Greenstein | Tribune reporter

10:34 PM CST, February 2, 2009

Patrick Kane returned from Toronto in June to anything but a hero's welcome.

Kane walked through O'Hare Airport's C Concourse with a replica Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL's top rookie. The City of Big Shoulders, consumed with pennant races, Derrick Rose and Brian Urlacher's salary drive, feted Kane with one giant shrug.

"Not one person turned their head," recalled Jay Blunk, Blackhawks senior vice president. "As we waited for the luggage, I said to him, 'If we do our job right, you won't be able to walk through this airport in another year.' "

Or less.

Last month Kane, flanked by teammates Jonathan Toews and Brian Campbell, walked through the same concourse after returning from the NHL All-Star Game in Montreal.

This time, Blunk noticed, people got whiplash when Kane passed them on the walkway. Several pointed at Kane, who was wearing a black stocking cap, and others snagged signatures at baggage claim.

"It wasn't the Beatles," Blunk said, "but it was a huge contrast."

Turning toward Hawks President John McDonough, Blunk added: "John signed a few autographs."

"How sad is that?" McDonough responded.

That self-deprecation is genuine. Ask McDonough what's left to accomplish after transforming the Hawks from irrelevance to the NHL's attendance leader and his answer is surprisingly simple: everything.

"The car is just backing out of the garage," he said. "We haven't even hit the street yet."

By many measures, he's right:

•Although TV ratings on Comcast SportsNet have improved 83 percent over last season, the Hawks are averaging just 38,500 viewers per game. The Bulls, in a dismal season, are drawing about 70,000 sets of eyes per game. The Cubs averaged 175,000 last year, and the Sox drew 77,000.

• ESPN the Magazine's most recent "fan satisfaction" rankings (released in April) listed the Hawks 88th out of 122 pro teams, a 30-spot rise from 2007. The White Sox ranked 58th, the Bears 81st, the Cubs 95th and the Bulls 97th.

•In the latest report from Scarborough Research, a mere 16 percent of Chicagoans identified themselves as Hawks fans. That is double the 8 percent in 2007 but lags miles behind the Bears (63), Cubs (56), Sox (44) and Bulls (36).

"In many ways this is a 75-year-old expansion franchise," said McDonough, who was hired away from the Cubs for his marketing savvy. "Fans have never seen a home game from their living rooms. If you're between 6 and 20 years old, a college student or a young hockey player, this is like a new X Game you've have never seen before."

The Hawks are 23-for-23 in home sellouts. And they packed Wrigley Field for the Winter Classic, dominating the Chicago sports landscape in the process. What now?

"Win," McDonough said. "We want to make the playoffs. That's next."

That's ultimately how ownership will be judged. Did fans salute Tribune Co. for hiring Harry Caray or introducing Beanie Babies or preserving Wrigley Field or pioneering a fan convention or trotting out celebrities (and wannabes) to sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game"?

Nope. Most only cared that the Cubs never reached the World Series.

"I love what [coach] Joel Quenneville said the other day at his press conference: 'I'm tired of hearing how good we are.' That resonates loudly with me," McDonough said.

"We haven't achieved anything yet."

tgreenstein@tribune.com