Detroit Is Hockeytown?

Everytime I watch a game at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, I kinda chuckle at the painting of the word "Hockeytown" on the ice. Who appointed Detroit "Hockeytown"?

I believe three (3) factors should be considered in determining what city is the real "Hockeytown":

• Success of local professional team(s)

• Success of local college team(s)

• Player success (a) total number of players (by state) making the NHL and (b) total number of players (by state) entering the US Hockey Hall of Fame
  

There are really only three areas to choose from: Metro Detroit, The Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul and Metro Boston. Let's take a look at how these three cities stack up against my three criteria.

- Success of local professional team(s)
Detroit has one of the best run franchises in all professional sports. They have won the most Stanley Cups of any of the NHL teams in the US and are third behind Montreal and Toronto overall.

Between the North Stars and the Wild there is really not too much to work with here. The North Stars never won a Stanley Cup, though they did make it to two Stanley Cup Finals appearances - in 1981 and 1991. The Minnesota Wild have made only three playoff appearances since their inception and have advanced no further than the conference quarter finals. The Boston Bruins are a storied franchise but unfortunately, since the early 70's, they have not really done too much.
Winner: Detroit

- Success of local college team(s)
In the metro Detroit area you have the University of Michigan. Michigan has seven (7) NCAA championships. In Minnesota you have the Golden Gophers with five (5) championships. In Boston you have Boston University with five (5) championships, Boston College with three (3) and Harvard with one (1).
Winner: Boston

- Player success
(a) total number of players making the NHL
Minnesota=200
Massachusetts=163
Michigan=118

(b) total number of players entering the US Hockey Hall of Fame*
Minnesota 48/52
Massachusetts 35/37
Michigan 13/13

* first number is state of birth, next number is high school or prep school
The heaviest weight goes to this category.
Winner: Minnesota

So who is "Hockeytown" based on the numbers? I believe Minnesota gets the edge here with Boston not too far away in second. Detroit clearly is third. But hey, hats off to the Red Wings' marketing operations department - not bad self-appointed branding!