A sigh of relief: Vancouver businesses welcome back the NHL

There were few jerseys adorning the backs of hockey fans in downtown Vancouver on Monday morning, but a sense of excitement was in the air.

The NHL lockout appears to be over.

“I can’t wait,” said Kevin, who proudly wore his jersey to work. “I never thought it would happen.”

Robson Sports was certainly busier on Sunday morning, as fans explored what merchandise was available to start off the shortened NHL season.

“I’d say we had a forty to forty-five per cent drop in sales,” said Ramon Cajuguiran, manager of Robson Sports. “Especially in a location like this, rent is just expensive.”

On Monday people were still shopping in the store, and Cajuguiran said without the return of the NHL season, he would have been forced to close one of their stores.

“All of the part-timers that work here, they’d all have to go,” he said.

Hockey fans across Canada breathed a collective sigh of relief on Sunday when the news about the lockout was announced. Deputy Commissioner of the NHL, Bill Daly, said it appears there will be a 48-game season starting January 19th.

Business at the Canucks Team Store remained steady throughout the lockout, said supervisor Matt Oxanham, who added shoppers are excited for hockey to begin again.

“Without hockey it’s slower,” he said, “but the Canucks fanbase is still there.”

Businesses that rely on hockey games to bring in the customers were also relieved the sport will soon be up and running again.

“Thank God that all those millionaires and billionaires saw fit to respect and honour the people who made them so wealthy – their fans!” said Sam Yehia, owner of Malone’s on West Pender.

They had to find ways to bring in the customers somehow.

“We definitely saw a difference in the amount of guests attending our place,” said Yehia, “however, with the introduction of Karaoke, Trivia and live entertainment we were able to mitigate the loss of business.”

Tim Murphy, general manager of the Shark Club Bar and Grill across from Rogers Arena, said from a business perspective, they are very excited hockey is starting again (click to listen to the interview):