Achi news desk-
As the Edmonton Oilers enter the final weeks of the NHL regular season and things are looking optimistic about making the playoffs, fans are expressing excitement but also disappointment over increased ticket prices.
In general, the cost of playoff ticket prices from 2023 and 2024 has increased for all parts of the arena, during all four possible rounds.
Global News compared the price difference from last year to this for three different sets of seats inside Rogers Place:
| Upper Bowl | Round 1 | 2nd Round | 3rd Round | 4th Round |
| 2023 | $83 | $96 | $114 | $202 |
| 2024 | $97 | $135 | $190 | $294 |
| Increase: | 17% | 40% | 67% | 45% |
| Lower Bowl | Round 1 | 2nd Round | 3rd Round | 4th Round |
| 2023 | $239 | $275 | $325 | $579 |
| 2024 | $311 | $395 | $554 | $858 |
| Increase: | 30% | 43% | 70% | 48% |
| Club Seats | Round 1 | 2nd Round | 3rd Round | 4th Round |
| 2023 | $429 | $493 | $584 | $1,039 |
| 2024 | $564 | $716 | $1,005 | $1,555 |
| Increase: | 31% | 45% | 72% | 50% |
Prices are up an average of 25 to 30 percent in the first round, 40 to 45 percent in the second round, a staggering 70 percent in the third round and about 50 percent in the fourth round.
There’s nothing like playoff hockey in Edmonton. Oil Country is coming to life with some of the loudest and most passionate fans, which economists say is helping to drive premium prices.
“There’s a passion there and its supply and demand, like anything else,” said Moshe Lander, a Concordia University sports economist who lives in Alberta.
Lander said he cheers for the Calgary Flames but is jealous of the energy Edmonton fans bring to the games.
“Obviously the city loves the team and they’re pining for a Stanley Cup they haven’t sniffed in 30 years.”
The Oil are having a good season: as of Thursday afternoon, they were second in the Pacific Division (13-7-0) and 10th overall in the NHL (43-23-4.)
“When the team is doing well, when everyone is hopeful and enthusiastic that they are going to be able to go deep into the play-offs this time – rather than choke – then what do they want is to be able to prove that.
‘There are a limited number of entry points, and a limited number of seats. This is the price that balances supply with demand.”
Lander said the 2024 prices are not unreasonable and in fact, they are likely to be too low in 2023.
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“Simply put, this is the price of success. When you have a team that is talented and expected to go far, you have to pay for the privilege of seeing a quality team.”
It was the loyalty and energy of the crowd in Edmonton that attracted Manitoba resident Jesse Martin to become a fan himself in 1998, two years after Winnipeg lost his former team when the Jets moved to Phoenix.
“I was looking for a team and I would say this: it wasn’t the greatest player that made me an Edmonton fan. What made me an Edmonton Oilers fan was the crowd, the fans,” Martin said from his basement decked out in orange and blue decor and sports memorabilia.
“Watching through the TV and seeing the chilling atmosphere and the power, it was reverberating through the speakers and it would give you goosebumps.”
“Honestly, it was the blue-collar fans in Edmonton that made me a fan.”
Martin is certain the Oilers will go all the way this year. In fact, he is so confident, he has already booked an AirBnB in Edmonton during the time when the third round is expected to take place.
“I wanted to go to round three where it was going to be real excitement, the effort to reach the cup, the chance of a lifetime to be part of something like that.”
Martin said it’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip so he’s willing to pay a premium for that experience, but he also acknowledges that average Albertans might struggle to shell out hundreds or thousands of dollars for one night of entertainment.
The passion of the fans kept the Oilers in Edmonton when the team was in danger of being sold in the 1900s, Martin said, referring to when a local group of 35 individuals and companies came together to buy the team from the former owner Peter Pocklington.
The fans also stood by the Oilers when they endured a playoff drought that lasted more than a decade, Martin said. Although he recognizes that the hockey team is a business that wants profit, it should not be at the expense of pricing those who are loyal to the Oil.
“You can’t take your real, blue-collar, die-hard fans out of the game. They have to be part of that. You have to get a price for them. It doesn’t mean we can’t get expensive seats and of course, every round is going to be a bit higher.
“But there is a limit on where you had to say, ‘We need these fans.’ We want these fans to enjoy and embrace all of us because they keep us going.”
Lander said the Oilers don’t necessarily charge top dollar, but rather analyze by section, by row, seat by seat, to find a middle ground price that appeals to the most customers in order to maximize profit.
“In the past, teams were not as scientific when it came to pricing tickets and they didn’t necessarily have the technology to be able to process the data to find out what the correct prices are.
“Teams have gotten a lot smarter about this and it’s not an Edmonton phenomenon. He is a professional sporting phenomenon.”
Lander said the numbers speak for themselves.
“If the arena is full, the prices are not too high. 18,000 people can pay that price to get in.”
Global News reached out to the Oilers Entertainment Group, which declined to comment for this story.
The Oilers host the Los Angeles Kings in a key Pacific Division game on Thursday night. The Kings have won four straight and are only three points behind the Oilers.
With a dozen games to go in the season, who makes the playoffs is still anyone’s game.
& copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
