Prior to Saturday's premiere, TT took the temperature of the clubs on how the season ticket sales have gone.
Half of the 14 clubs have increased and the rest are at the same level as last season.
Total SHL drew over 2.4 million spectators during the regular season last season, an average of 6,643 per match. Both the total and the average were new records.
With Djurgården back, much suggests a new record season.
SHL's CEO Jenny Silfverstrand believes that the effect of the pandemic is still showing.
When we had been at home for 1.5 years, you longed to meet, hang out, laugh and experience something together. It's not just with us that you see it's increasing, you see it in other sports as well. People attract people, says Silfverstrand.
Want to buy the arena
For SHL clubs, it was far from certain that there would be such interest and upswing. Especially not when the economic situation was - and in some cases still is - tough with high prices and mortgage rates.
But the worry was unfounded.
Reigning champion Luleå has had an audience average close to its arena's maximum capacity (6,150) for the past three years, last season the average was 6,129.
The club stopped season ticket sales at 4,300 sold to be able to offer tickets to the matches. There, members are given priority - and the club has doubled its membership in recent years to almost 10,000.
Single ticket sales have gone extremely well, for the home premiere it took five minutes and it was sold out. There are more matches that have sold out even before the season has started, for example when we meet Skellefteå and the matches between Christmas and New Year's and so on. So the interest continues to be very high, says Luleå's communications manager Robert Hedlund.
Luleå is negotiating with the municipality to buy out the arena to expand it.
"A lot of space"
HV71 has, despite mediocre sporting results in recent years, increased its season ticket sales and set a record when single tickets were released, despite the site crashing. During one morning, tickets for 1.5 million kronor were sold, Jönköpings-Posten reported.
So is there any limit to the success?
The limit is when there are no more seats or standing places left and when everyone who can watch the matches on TV is watching. It's not just what we see in the arenas that's the increase, but also on social media and on TV. There's a lot of space left to follow and get engaged, says Jenny Silfverstrand.
She says that neither SHL nor the clubs take the audience success for granted.
It's about continuing to be creative, meeting our supporters, doing what our clubs do by working with their audience all the time to give them a good experience. Being responsive and always tweaking things.
Göran Sundberg/TT
Facts: SHL audience
TT
The clubs' audience average last season/arena capacity (season ticket sales this season/difference compared to last year, in parentheses):
Frölunda 11,359/12,044 (4,000/increase compared to last year).
Brynäs 7,700/7,909 (3,300/increase).
Färjestad 7,588/8,250 (Secret/same level as last year).
Malmö 7,193/12,600 (Secret/25 percent increase).
Linköping 7,103/8,150 (2,500/+900).
HV71 6,722/6,800 (3,800/+400).
Djurgården 6,560 in Allsvenskan/8,094 (3,700/20 percent increase).
Leksand 6,556/7,650 (2,500/same as last year).
Rögle 6,198/6,310 (4,100/same as last year).
Luleå 6,129/6,150 (4,300/increase).
Örebro 5,363/5,500 (3,500/same as last year).
Skellefteå 5,269/5,801 (2,300/same as last year).
Timrå 5,163/5,800 (2,345/same as last year).
Växjö 5,111/5,750 (2,000/10 percent increase).
The clubs' season ticket figures were collected between September 4 and 10.
