There was not a single person in sections 330 and 334 a few minutes into the game tonight. Not one....

There was not a single person in sections 330 and 334 a few minutes into the game tonight. Not one. I think a couple souls showed up a while later and sat there, but that was…it.

You definitely did not dissuade critics who say Denver is just a bandwagon hockey town tonight, folks. The announced attendance was definitely not the actual number in the building either. I’d say the real number was about 8,500, maybe a bit less actually.

— Adrian Dater, All Things Avs

15 days ago James Mirtle 27 comments 0 recs |

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Hockey isn’t alone in inflated attendances. I was watching the Sacramento Kings game last night and they said the attendance was 12,000(Arena holds 17,000) but there couldn’t have been more than 9,000 in attendance. People are just not spending extra money on tickets right now.

"It ain't over till it's over." - Yogi Berra

by 49er16 on Nov 5, 2009 1:12 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

I noticed a bunch of empty seats on the Sabres broadcast last night behind the benches. I am willing to bet the “cheap” seats were full but not the lower bowl.

The population of Pominville keeps rising!

by Blackcapricorn on Nov 5, 2009 1:38 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Not at the Avs game.

The New Improved Avalanche. Now with Real Coaches!
Jibblescribbits: C'mon over and waste some time

by Jibblescribbits on Nov 5, 2009 1:51 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Sure, because they’ll comp you down into the lower bowl so it doesn’t look as bad on TV…

by dare_ on Nov 5, 2009 2:43 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

no they won’t, at all.

You have to sneak down.

The New Improved Avalanche. Now with Real Coaches!
Jibblescribbits: C'mon over and waste some time

by Jibblescribbits on Nov 5, 2009 3:45 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

They did last year. I went to Denver for a conference last year and wanted to take in a game while I was there. Bought the cheapest ticket I could. Went to buy something to drink. A concierge asked me if I wanted to move down and gave me a comp ticket to sit maybe nine rows up behind the net. Pretty much everyone sitting around me said the same thing had happened to them…

by dare_ on Nov 7, 2009 7:02 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Then why can’t I get cheap damn tickets?!?!?!?

I don’t even like the Avs, but I’d head down to the Pepsi Center and watch a game if it were like 5 dollar tickets or something. Cheap date night, if nothing else. On the occasions that I’ve looked at tickets, they’re pretty expensive.

http://sacrificethebody.blogspot.com/
Sacrifice the Body - Examining the NHL through statistical analysis, reasoned thought, and blind conjecture.

by IAmJoe on Nov 5, 2009 1:39 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

FIVE DOLLAR TICKETS? Ridiculous marketing gimmick, lousy hockey town, desperation move, etc. etc. etc.

Seriously, though, I think something that was lost in the derisive laughter over the Coyotes’ home opener is the fact that when the tickets were priced to where actual blue-collar fans could go to a game, they sold out the building.

You would think that a sold out barn would be worth reducing ticket prices for a few games in this economy…

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Nov 5, 2009 1:46 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

You would think that a sold out barn would be worth reducing ticket prices for a few games in this economy…

Something along the lines of:

If you sell a fan a reduced ticket,
He’s going to want another one for his wife and kid,
If you sell him a reduced ticket for his wife and kid,
His kid will want a program,
If you sell the kid a program,
His dad is going to want a beer,
If you sell the dad a beer,
His wife is going to want some nachos,
If you sell the wife some nachos,
Her kid is going to want a jersey,
If you sell the kid a jersey
His mom is going to want a hat,
If you sell the mom a hat,
The family is going to have a good time,
If the family has a good time,
They might come back….if the tickets are the same price.

-Kevin Forbes
Hockey's Future

by kforbes on Nov 5, 2009 1:50 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Meanwhile, you’ve just bilked them for $300 and they didn’t even notice.

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Nov 6, 2009 8:48 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

It’s not a minor league operation, though. The Marlies here in Toronto have higher prices than what the Coyotes had in their opener.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Nov 5, 2009 1:59 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Isn’t that because Toronto hockey fans will pay virtually any price to see hockey games?

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Nov 5, 2009 2:18 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

No. Their games are not well attended.

$25 for a lower bowl seat is an AHL price point. NHL teams can’t come close to profitability like that.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Nov 5, 2009 2:28 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Obviously not, but I don’t think I was advocating lowering lower-bowl prices to $25 in perpetuity. Maybe select certain blocks in the lower level for promotions like Student Rush or Military Appreciation or whatnot, but not as an ongoing, universal concern.

But if you are a pro franchise having a problem selling out your barn – I know, I know, tough to understand if you’re in Toronto, Boston, Montreal, or Minnesota – then the first place you look is your ticket prices. Even taking $10/ticket off standard prices would help, particularly in this economy.

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Nov 5, 2009 2:40 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I’ve advocated for discounting in the past, as long as it’s not at the expense of season’s ticket holders. It could work in some cases to help at least get people interested.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Nov 5, 2009 2:42 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Exactly – and you could even do OCCASIONAL “super deal” type things on weak weeknight games, so long as you comped the season ticket holders somehow (ticket vouchers, etc.).

What boggles my mind is that there are some owners out there that don’t seem to understand that a full or nearly full barn is a better sales tool – and source of higher income over a longer term – than high ticket prices on mediocre numbers of filled seats. Live hockey is all about atmosphere, and the more full the arena the better the atmosphere, period. Those are the games that get people coming back.

You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

by zyllyx on Nov 5, 2009 4:18 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Ahhh, I miss Bill Wirtz sooooo much.

by ChicoMaki on Nov 11, 2009 1:44 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

back when the Caps weren’t drawing well, I’d average about 2 offers each month for lower bowl (the upper sections behind the goals) seats at a considerable discount. So they made the pricing attractive, but only on select days, and only to people who were already established single-game purchasers.

The caps getting good happened just as I landed a new job that let me buy season tickets. it didn’t take too much convincing for me to buy and full package.

by RedBirdie on Nov 5, 2009 7:19 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Plus, today’s Student Rush freeloader could be tomorrow’s season-ticket holder, if the team improves by the time said student becomes gainfully employed (see: Pittsburgh Penguins).

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there). Link now 100% less broken.

by Doogie2K on Nov 6, 2009 8:49 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

This

This is probably the #1 problem for the Avs right now (#2, marketing, or lack thereof).

Their ticket prices are on par with Boston, Philly, and Chicago despite:

Denver is 1/2 (or less) their size and
All three of those teams had great seasons last season (and have higher costs of living).

The New Improved Avalanche. Now with Real Coaches!
Jibblescribbits: C'mon over and waste some time

by Jibblescribbits on Nov 5, 2009 1:54 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

That’s what irks me about the pricing model of constantly raising ticket prices beyond inflation when a team is good. That’s used to justify “building a winner” yada yada, but the result is that, with the exception of a few markets, once the team’s performance weakens, suddenly fans get rational, and the mortgage payment fans spent on tickets to a competitive team sounds absurd when applied to an awful team. And if the team responds by discounting tickets to fill the building in lean times, they end up alienating season-ticket holders who keep paying out the nose no matter how bad the team is.

I’m projecting my own subjective tastes here, but if you’re not so boom-and-bust dependent, you might cut down on the bandwagon factor and instead cultivate a dependable, loyal core following that shows up (and buys beer) through thick and thin.

Lighthouse Hockey: Side effects may include Weight gain and frequent game loss.

by Dominik on Nov 5, 2009 2:32 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

what?

how are the Avs not marketing the hell out of Duschene????

"The only way out is in a body bag. Go Leafs Go." - Blinky

by Karina on Nov 5, 2009 6:03 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

continued

I’m just perplexed at these NHL franchises that seem to create their own problems because they don’t market their stars. And some of them have the most marketable stars – who’s more likeable than Shane Doan in Phoenix?
Duschene is the perfect player for the Avs to market the heck out of – the kid grew up an Avs fan, idolizing Joe Sakic, and was a #3 overall pick! Why aren’t these guys’ faces plastered everywhere?
Here in Vancouver, I can’t take a bus, train, or even cross the street without seeing the Canucks – why doesn’t everyone do this?

"The only way out is in a body bag. Go Leafs Go." - Blinky

by Karina on Nov 5, 2009 6:08 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

maybe

Some of the teams are afraid to market the stars because then what happens when they get traded? Not making it seem as though they will be around long-term means that they leave their options open when they get a great offer, the star starts to get good enough to warrant more money than the team wants to pay, or he get into some kind of trouble – drugs or drinking, or he has a relationship with the wrong woman, or he is just a malcontent.

I think it’s a little silly at the least myself – but maybe that is what some of them think.

They might also be marketing the stars but the fans think they are boring because they aren’t loud-mouthed, gun-toting, trash-talking donkeys but are pretty normal, law-abiding people.

"While there's life, there's hope." --Cicero

by Baroque on Nov 5, 2009 6:16 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs