Red carpet, full house expected for Hawks opener

There's no doubt the Blackhawks have been on a roll, making it to the Western Conference Finals last season and being a pick to click by some experts to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals this time around.

And, as to be expected, attendance at the United Center has increased along with the teams' fortunes. The Blackhawks established an NHL club record by attracting an average of 21,783 to their 40 home dates at United Center (not including the 40,818 at Wrigley Field for the 2009 Winter Classic).

They enter tonight's home opener against Colorado having recorded 52 consecutive full houses. And it looks like they'll have little problem extending that streak this season.

One thing for sure, though, is the Hawks won't be breaking their own regular season attendance mark of a year ago.

That's because thanks to the re-created "Madhouse on Madison" along the 300 level - featuring a renovated concourse with 144 flat screen televisions, new food and beverage stations above select seating sections and two new bars that open up to panoramic views of the arena - the new seating capacity for Hawks games will be 19,717, down from 20,500.

"The Madhouse on Madison is another example of the innovative concepts we're creating at the United Center in an effort to continually enhance and upgrade our fans game experience," said Terry Savarise, senior vice president of Operations at the UC.

Despite a tough loss to Detroit on Thursday, the Hawks will open the home portion of their season with plenty of buzz nonetheless.

The hoopla kicks off with a special red carpet event on Madison Street from 5 to 5:30 p.m., before the team faces off against Colorado at 7:30 p.m.

Blackhawks players will arrive via limousine on Madison in front of Gate 3 at 5 p.m., and each will be introduced before walking down a red carpet and into the United Center.

The event, which is free and open to the public, also features appearances by Blackhawks alumni, executives and broadcasters. Parking lots around the UC will open at 4 p.m.

Chicago sellouts

Here's a quick look at some sellout numbers for some local teams:

• During the Michael Jordan era, the Bulls had a run of 610 consecutive sellouts.

• The last regular season non-sellout for the Bears at home was Sept. 9, 1984, against Denver. They are currently on a run of 212 consecutive home sellouts.

• Not every game is a sellout, but the Cubs surpassed the 3-million mark this season for the sixth consecutive year.