2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

[Quinns]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Priority 13: C10 Row 2 seats 11-14

[iowabasedtraveler]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Purchased September 29:
Club Level, Section C25, Row 7, two people off the aisle.
Colgate and Omaha fan here.
With fans of Alaska (Fairbanks), Wisconsin, Clarkson, Dartmouth, Minnesota and North Dakota.

[BC/HE]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Update on ticket availability: Priority 11 today can purchase. Lots of good seats available all over the rink. Lower Bowl section 115 and the 3 corresponding side sections at the faceoff dots have plenty of seats. I would say about the top half of 115 is available. Lots of Club seats available but the sides are pretty well taken except for the top row bar stools at the rail. Second row Club on the ends are still available as well as all seats behind them. Center ice upper level is selling around the 8th row so the corners and ends are much closer. Priority 11 can purchase up to 8 seats too. Very surprised by the quality of seats still open. Assume that lower priorities will gobble up the seats when lots of low level locals get their chance but higher levels don't seem to be buying as much or as often as they did in the past.

[TigerFan86-87]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Update on ticket availability: Priority 11 today can purchase. Lots of good seats available all over the rink. Lower Bowl section 115 and the 3 corresponding side sections at the faceoff dots have plenty of seats. I would say about the top half of 115 is available. Lots of Club seats available but the sides are pretty well taken except for the top row bar stools at the rail. Second row Club on the ends are still available as well as all seats behind them. Center ice upper level is selling around the 8th row so the corners and ends are much closer. Priority 11 can purchase up to 8 seats too. Very surprised by the quality of seats still open. Assume that lower priorities will gobble up the seats when lots of low level locals get their chance but higher levels don't seem to be buying as much or as often as they did in the past.

I can't speak for anyone else, but from my perspective the lower bowl seat prices are getting too hefty. Even though I'm in the highest priority level, I've selected upper bowl first row seats twice already instead of much closer lower bowl or club level seats. I imagine that for many, all of the prices are too high. They won't be coming down any time soon, at least as long as they can continue to claim the event sells out every year (although we all know that it doesn't).

[melmac]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Priority 9, 8 seats, C35. Almost picked C33, lots of seats there.

[pgb-ohio]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Update on ticket availability: Priority 11 today can purchase. Lots of good seats available all over the rink. Lower Bowl section 115 and the 3 corresponding side sections at the faceoff dots have plenty of seats. I would say about the top half of 115 is available.

I GREATLY appreciated this report. Long story short, I had a serious case of mission fatigue this year. Thought about taking a year off. But my travel buddies got me motivated. Then your update post got me right back up to speed.

Granted, it was little irrational to have Priority 20, but select at Priority 10. OK, it was flat out stupid.

But you know what? We wound up with Section 105, Row 16. Best Lower Bowl location since at least DC. About all we lost by waiting was the chance to sit on the aisle. And we could have had that as well, but chose to be a few seats closer to center ice.

Lots of Club seats available but the sides are pretty well taken except for the top row bar stools at the rail. Second row Club on the ends are still available as well as all seats behind them. Center ice upper level is selling around the 8th row so the corners and ends are much closer. Priority 11 can purchase up to 8 seats too.

Being back in the spirit, I did a fair amount of checking. I agree with your report.

Very surprised by the quality of seats still open. Assume that lower priorities will gobble up the seats when lots of low level locals get their chance but higher levels don't seem to be buying as much or as often as they did in the past.

Again, agreed. They'll be some interesting issues to discuss when this lottery is complete. And just when so many of us thought the lottery was in a hopeless long term rut...

Although I must say that the iterative process is much easier than it was the last few years. Checking a box that you're not a bot was so much easier and quicker than having to decipher an eye test chart for a number or identify a bunch of pictures that do or do not contain vehicles / windows / dog s*** / or whatever in them. It used to take forever just to get back in for each seat selection.

If you check enough locations, the eye test charts eventually come back. But no question, it's much more user friendly than in the past.

[Greg Ambrose]

Reading this thread it has become obvious that college hockey is just not as popular as it used to be. There was a small piece in the Boston Globe this past Sunday about NESN deciding to no longer televise Hockey East games, something that they have done since the league’s inception in 1985. Production costs were the reason. I can’t speak for other leagues but attendance in most HE arenas has been down last year and so far this year. Is this a trend?

Remember vividly the 2002 FF in St. Paul. The Xcel Center was jammed packed both nights,,obviously fueled by the Gophers being in it. With the drop off in attendance at Mariucci, I am starting to wonder if the games will be sold out, even if the Goofs are in it.

[Greg Ambrose]

Reading this thread it has become obvious that college hockey is just not as popular as it used to be. There was a small piece in the Boston Globe this past Sunday about NESN deciding to no longer televise Hockey East games, something that they have done since the league’s inception in 1985. Production costs were the reason. I can’t speak for other leagues but attendance in most HE arenas has been down last year and so far this year. Is this a trend?

Remember vividly the 2002 FF in St. Paul. The Xcel Center was jammed packed both nights,,obviously fueled by the Gophers being in it. With the drop off in attendance at Mariucci, I am starting to wonder if the games will be sold out, even if the Goofs are in it.

[dxmnkd316]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

If the gophers are in it, tickets will be impossible to come by.

[pgb-ohio]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Reading this thread it has become obvious that college hockey is just not as popular as it used to be. There was a small piece in the Boston Globe this past Sunday about NESN deciding to no longer televise Hockey East games, something that they have done since the league’s inception in 1985. Production costs were the reason. I can’t speak for other leagues but attendance in most HE arenas has been down last year and so far this year. Is this a trend?

Sorry to hear about the loss of NESN coverage. That news, combined with this thread, probably do reflect a discouraging trend. My observation is that, more than ever before, fans aren't willing to watch games unless they have a rooting interest.

For those of us who consider ourselves fans of the sport as a whole, that's tough to accept. I've long taken solace in the belief that were enough of us to fill an NHL Arena once a year. The 2018 lottery results to date certainly call that belief into question.

Hard times have befallen the sole survivors. Maybe our devotion to the Frozen Four is crazy. And regardless, we are growing old. But at least for a while longer, I'm going to remain Steely in my resolve.

Remember vividly the 2002 FF in St. Paul. The Xcel Center was jammed packed both nights,,obviously fueled by the Gophers being in it. With the drop off in attendance at Mariucci, I am starting to wonder if the games will be sold out, even if the Goofs are in it.

I remember 2002 very well. All these years later, it's still one of my favorite tournaments.

If the gophers are in it, tickets will be impossible to come by.

Tough ticket, yes. But these days there are a lot more avenues for accessing tickets on the secondary market. So not impossible.

A full assessment of the situation must also include the fact that a portion of the Gophers' fan base has become seriously disaffected by the change to B1G Hockey, and the ever increasing cost of tickets. Will that group of fans really come back for a Gopher Frozen Four? My guess is that some would, and some would not. If I'm right, that means a decrease on the demand side of the equation.

Putting all the above together, having the Gophers in the field should translate to a full building. But most likely no sellout, until the Gophers actually qualify for the FF.

We got a glimpse of this in 2011. Gopher fans were pessimistic that year. The event didn't truly sell out until UMD & UND qualified for then field. And I must say that demand in the 2018 Priority Lottery appears to be much weaker than in 2011.

Want a great atmosphere at the 2018 FF? We'll need a lot of fans from the participating schools. The State of Hockey has 5 D-1 teams. UND, UW & MTU are an easy drive away, and have a long history with the venue. Without the Gophers, you'd need at least two teams from that list. Failing that, my prediction is a discouraging number of empty seats.

[dxmnkd316]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

They hate the conference, not the team. 2011 was in the middle of a bad stretch of seasons where the gophers barely even sniffed a chance at making the post season and I think it was around the time seating in maroosh was changed. We’ve since rattled off six conference championships in a row.

If the gophers don’t make it, it probably won’t sell out entirely without the help of UND or Wisconsin fans. If the gophers play in St. Paul, that will be an expensive ticket regardless of the Big Ten situation.

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Reading this thread it has become obvious that college hockey is just not as popular as it used to be. There was a small piece in the Boston Globe this past Sunday about NESN deciding to no longer televise Hockey East games, something that they have done since the league’s inception in 1985. Production costs were the reason. I can’t speak for other leagues but attendance in most HE arenas has been down last year and so far this year. Is this a trend?

I would like to see that trend compared to other sports which typically get solid attendance (like not field hockey...). I'd like to know if it's a general college sports trend or just hockey.

I guess I could get one data point by asking my nephew who works in the BC ticket office. He's responsible for football, basketball, and hockey. The latter he says he hardly has to work at because it sells itself. But then BC isn't very good at the first two sports right now...

Remember vividly the 2002 FF in St. Paul. The Xcel Center was jammed packed both nights,,obviously fueled by the Gophers being in it. With the drop off in attendance at Mariucci, I am starting to wonder if the games will be sold out, even if the Goofs are in it.

Never underestimate the effect of the bandwagon fans coming out of the woodwork for a championship.

[pgb-ohio]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

They hate the conference, not the team. 2011 was in the middle of a bad stretch of seasons where the gophers barely even sniffed a chance at making the post season and I think it was around the time seating in maroosh was changed. We’ve since rattled off six conference championships in a row.

I acknowledge and agree with all of that. Still, based on my Minnesota contacts, I do hear a fair amount of hate directed toward University administrators, primarily with respect to ticket prices & forced donations. But hatred toward the players or coaches? No. Not hearing anything like that; never intended to say that.

If the gophers don’t make it, it probably won’t sell out entirely without the help of UND or Wisconsin fans. If the gophers play in St. Paul, that will be an expensive ticket regardless of the Big Ten situation.

Define expensive.

Granted, $290 for lower bowl seating is already very expensive by college hockey standards. But selling a ticket at face value, or a small percentage above, isn't particularly dramatic.

To pick an arbitrary number, I'd say that lower bowl packages would need to reach at least $400 before they'd be expensive in the relative sense. And the thing is, the typical college hockey fan is a person of average means. One motivation for supporting the college game is that many find NHL prices to be a hardship. Push the price of the tournament to $400 or $500, and I just don't see that much of a market for those tickets. Even in the Twin Cities.

[pgb-ohio]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

Priority 6 is on the clock.
Priority 5 on deck, with their window opening on Wednesday.

For those interested in sitting in the Lower Bowl on the Sides, here's a Scouting Report. In all cases I'm referring to the $290 dollar seating in Row 3 and Above:

Section 102: 9 Rows with at least 4 seats together.
Section 105: 10 Rows with at least 4 seats together
Section 115: 11 Rows with at least 4 seats together
Section 118: 5 Rows with at least 4 seats together

The aisle seats are essentially gone. But otherwise, there is a very nice selection of seats in the middle rows and upper rows.

Sections 101, 106, 114 & 119 have no seats available; presumably these are the participating school allotments.

Comments:
1. In historical context, it's astounding that so many lower bowl/sides seats are available this deep into the lottery. It now appears possible that someone holding even a single priority point will be able to get this seating.

2. Or, maybe demand will spike at the lower priority levels. Maybe. Fans who only attend when the tournament is in St. Paul would currently hold 2 priority points. Fans who attend in the Central Time Zone -- but otherwise not -- could have as many as 6 priority points. So we're just entering the levels where "Upper Midwest Locals" might enter the lottery in substantial numbers. We'll see.

3. Equally astounding is the fact that priority holders are still allowed to buy up to 8 tickets, even as we enter the lower levels. More evidence that sales have been very light.

4. Clearly one factor on the demand side is the ever-increasing price of the tickets. The high price is moving some fans upstairs. Others are electing not to travel at all. The NCAA is dangerously close to killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. If they're smart, they'll hold the line on future price increases for the medium term. If they're really smart, they'll give serious consideration to at least a modest price rollback.

5. On the supply side, I can't help but wonder where all these desirable seats are coming from. Have that many "corporate friends" really dropped out? Or is this a good will gesture by the NCAA? If the latter, I'm quite concerned that it comes a year too late. Disappointment over the lack of lower bowl/ side seating has been festering for years. It appears to me that the Chicago lottery results were the "last straw" for more than a few long-time fans. For an example, see alfablue's post early in this thread.

There's a lot to chew on here. But one takeaway is that if you're a priority holder about to get to the front of the line, you have an opportunity to buy seats in locations that are much better than anticipated.

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: 2018 Frozen Four Ticket purchase thread

4. Clearly one factor on the demand side is the ever-increasing price of the tickets. The high price is moving some fans upstairs. Others are electing not to travel at all. The NCAA is dangerously close to killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. If they're smart, they'll hold the line on future price increases for the medium term. If they're really smart, they'll give serious consideration to at least a modest price rollback.

This.

I can only speak for me. I'm at a point in my life where I can easily afford a Frozen Four trip even if it requires flying and staying in nice hotels. I make good money now, I've saved a lot for retirement, it's not an issue for me. Granted I'm still a frugal person (my friends would use the term cheap b*st*rd...), but I can treat myself and afford this trip even as prices continue to go up.

But, it doesn't mean I want to. I still personally believe very firmly I need to get value for my money. (Of course, next year when it's in Buffalo, it becomes an el cheapo trip, ticket prices not withstanding.)

We all rate value in our own way. I'm a huge racing fan, especially Formula 1. Occasionally, I try to get to a Formula 1 Grand Prix, which can be a very expensive proposition. When a Frozen Four trip starts to approach the cost of a F1 Grand Prix trip, well that's where I start seriously questioning the value of that cost for the Frozen Four trip.

5. On the supply side, I can't help but wonder where all these desirable seats are coming from. Have that many "corporate friends" really dropped out? Or is this a good will gesture by the NCAA? If the latter, I'm quite concerned that it comes a year too late. Disappointment over the lack of lower bowl/ side seating has been festering for years. It appears to me that the Chicago lottery results were the "last straw" for more than a few long-time fans. For an example, see alfablue's post early in this thread.

And a bit of this.

It has always amazed me how sporting organizations don't get the concept of DON'T P*** OFF YOUR LOYAL FANS. Because ultimately those are the fans you need to fall back on when times are tough.

NASCAR did this big time over a decade ago. Now, they are paying dearly for it...