Almost 50,000 fans attended the Warriors' Eden Park fixture, creating what the club viewed as a major achievement despite the defeat.
The NRL moved the match from Go Media Stadium to accommodate the expected crowd.
The Knights won, extending the Warriors' record at Eden Park to six defeats in seven matches.
Ackerman praised the venue and its organisation on Monday, saying, "The stadium could not have done it better, legitimately could not have done it better,"
He highlighted the closed roads, supporters welcoming team buses, widespread Warriors merchandise and the strong engagement of new fans.
Ackerman also credited the crowd movement, Savage's halftime performance and the atmosphere before addressing the ground's poor record.
"That said, we can never go back there. There's a hoodoo," he joked after watching scoreboard history repeat itself.
He said the attendance mattered beyond the result: "Regardless of what happened last night at Eden Park, in terms of the scoreboard, 48,000 people tells you the story of this club,"
With the Warriors' season finished, Stevenson said chief executive Cam George and the club deserved pride in the occasion.
"That's the success story because those scenes yesterday were awesome."