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January 20, 2004
The Hockey News
By Jason Kay
Joe Fan has spoken. As has Jim Fan, Jeoff Fan, Laurent Fan and Eric Fan, among others.
In black and white, and apparently read all over, we slotted Joe Fan in the century spot in our annual People of Power & Influence special issue (THN Dec.30). It's a good thing we didn't rank Joe "100 with a bullet" because the ammo would have been turned against us.
Many letter-writers couldn't fathom how the fans rated a "lowly 100th." Here's a sampling of what you had to say:
From Jeff Lennox of Brockville, Ont.: "I am Joe Fan. As Joe Fan, my importance tot his great game is so far above that of Gary Bettman, Bob Goodenow (and everyone else on your list) that we shouldn't even be discussed in the same week."
From Jim Kolson of Winnipeg: "Last year not ranked, this year No. 100, even though the previous 99 selections all depend upon Joe. I'm thinking Joe and Jolene Fan should be No. 1."
From Eric Seamans of Milton, Mass.: "Shouldn't the fans get a better rating than (100th), considering they're consuming all the tickets, merchandise, concessions and keeping what's left of a national and local TV rating?"
From Laurent Therrien of Smooth Rock Falls, Ont.: "I found it funny that those who determined the 100 People of Power & Influence chose to rank Joe Fan a lowly No. 100. It just shows you what those in the hockey world (NHL and NHL Player's Association included) really think of the fans."
From Gregg Brodin of Staten Island, N.Y.: "I seriously think your selection of Joe Fan a lowly No. 100 was a major underestimation...remember if it wasn't for Joe Fan there wouldn't be any need for the other 99 people on the list."
Point taken. And between you and me and the tens of thousands of other eyes that read this, we agree...to a point.
We believe the fans are paramount. Without their support, there would be no fuel to fire the machinery.
That said, there are a few reasons we slotted Joe Fan at 100. For starters, we instituted a policy a couple of years back that each position on the People of Power & Influence list should be represented by an individual. No more ties or shared spots. We make an exception for No.100 - it's intended to be the list kicker. Because no one individual represents "Joe Fan", and because of our desire to represent the paying public in this crucial CBA year, we felt 100 was the only applicable spot.
In addition, the power of Joe Fan hasn't been completely harnessed. If the fans were able to galvanize and unite - if they started boycotting games for example - their strength would multiply exponentially. The NHL Fans Association does have more than 20,000 members, but that's not enough to wield significant clout. The fandom remains a little like Marc-Andre Fleury: vast potential yet to be fully realized.
But don't despair. We're about to provide a vehicle for your voice. We have a wide-ranging fan survey in the works; it's scheduled to appear in our Feb. 10 issue and will be available online. We'll ask your opinion on everything from the state of the game on the CBA negotiations, as well as solicit your thoughts on the things you like best. We also invite you to send us suggested questions. If common themes emerge that we haven't considered, we'll include them in the poll.
If you've got a question for the survey, please send it to: aproteau@thehockeynews.com; or write, The Hockey News, 100 Sheppard Ave. West, Suite 100, Toronto, Ont., M2N 6S7.
We look forward to your participation.
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