Sadly Hartford and especially East Hartford are flat out dangerous places when the sun goes down. Having the Whalers for sure brought people into the city and really helped all the merchants downtown. Unfortunately the Whaler owner demanded a new arena for 140 million (it was needed) but then wanted another 45 million for loses incurred the previous 3 years! That wasn't going to happen hence the move to NC! There was a lot of nice restaurants, bars and live music in downtown Hartford at that time. Pretty much is a ghost town at night and it's not going to come back imo.Absolutely!
Sadly, the Whalers were the only thing that made Hartford come to life. Even if they didn't sell out every night, it made the city go in terms of getting folks to come to the city. Since their departure, Hartford is an afterthought in terms of places to go to in the region. In fact, most people avoid it all together. Younger generation goes right to West Hartford now.