ARIZONA COYOTES

Arizona Sports Face-Off: Digging the Whiteout?

Apr 12, 2012, 5:53 PM | Updated: 9:00 pm

Playoff hockey is back in the desert, and it’s bringing
the “Whiteout” with it.

As such, Coyotes fans will turn Jobing.com Arena into a
sea of white for the third consecutive year.

That’s all well and good, provided you like the concept.
But what if you don’t? Should the Whiteout go away,
forever?

That’s the topic of this week’s Arizona Sports Face-Off.

Vince Marotta:
Dump it
Adam
Green: Keep it
I used to love the
Whiteout, I really did. The visual aspect of it is just
stunning.

But once you get past the aesthetics of it, what’s there?
Let’s say you meet a beautiful woman, the most gorgeous
creature you’ve ever seen, but all she can talk about is
how hilarious the characters on “Jersey Shore” are. No
thanks.

The Coyotes haven’t won a playoff series since 1987– the
year they started the Whiteout! So the Whiteout, in all
of its “coolness” has helped lead to exactly one playoff
series win in fourteen tries.

There’s got to be more than the visuals — in this case
actually winning hockey games and playoff series is the
important thing, and that hasn’t happened. Time for Plan
B.

Look, I know the Whiteout has not helped
the Coyotes win games. Their record in the playoffs is far
from impressive, and there is no competitive advantage to
having all the fans dressed in white.

But the Whiteout isn’t about the players — it’s about the
fans and the atmosphere they create.

So what if it’s not a unique tradition or, really, even
the Coyotes’ tradition? It’s there, and it’s great.

Be honest, you know there are few sights in sports that
are more awesome than seeing an entire stadium or arena
filled with people, all of whom are wearing the same
color. There is more energy, more passion and more
excitement — and that’s what the team wants.

And they’ll get it at every home game in Glendale.

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Arizona Sports Face-Off: Digging the Whiteout?