The NHL playoff seedings will tell you that the Phoenix Coyotes are the third seed and Chicago Blackhawks No. 6 in the Western Conference quarterfinals, but here's another interesting number matchup: it's 1 vs. 30 in average attendance per game.
↵That No. 1 distinction would belong to the Blackhawks, who averaged a league-leading 21,533 fans per game (41 regular-season games) at the United Center in the Windy City. The 30? The Coyotes, who ended up last in overall attendance per game at 12,320 in Glendale.
↵The Blackhawks sold out every game and filled their barn at 105 percent capacity -- that would be an overflow crowd every night -- while the Coyotes were at 72.5 percent capacity on average, according to the ESPN NHL attendance report.
↵Having mentioned this, playoff time is definitely full-house time, even if all that white in the stands Thursday night for Game 1 of the Phoenix-Chicago series at Jobing.com Arena was smattered with Blackhawks red. Those Chicagoans love their Hawks.
↵The WhiteOut tradition continued. Here's what the arena looked like before fans were allowed in, with T-shirts waiting for them on the seats...
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... and close to faceoff.
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