After fans voiced their displeasure, the Washington Capitals have decided to bag the experiment of using white netting above the boards at Verizon Center. Introduced this preseason, fans immediately let it be known that they did not like the new look nets:
“The white netting is worse than the old black one, which I wasn’t a fan of,” said Weber Grandish, 36, of Arlington, who has season tickets in Section 115. “The view of the players on the ice is seriously like looking through a snow storm, which is quaint for the Winter Classic, but not for 41 home games. You can’t read players’ names on their jerseys.”
Like the reasonable businessman and owner that he is, Ted Leonsis listened to the complaints and has decided to revert back to the traditional black netting.
It hinders the fan experience and it is not an asset to our local rights holder, Comcast SportsNet. Therefore, starting with Friday’s preseason game, we will reinstall the black netting that had been used last season.
All too often change is hated for shallow reasons. We like the familiar and loathe the unfamiliar. But in this instance, the change did in fact seem to be a step in the wrong direction.