Why your Habs tickets cost more than any other NHL team's this season
asserted
tickets → cost → team
Canadiens claim title for priciest tickets, with average home ticket cost over $220
Move over, Toronto.
uncertain
ticket → claim → tickets
Following a successful year that saw the Montreal Canadiens reach the Eastern Conference final, tickets to see the Habs play at home this season will be the most expensive in the NHL — a new feat for the historic franchise.
asserted
Habs → follow → franchise
According to sports betting and online casino research firm Bookies.com and TicketData.com, a website devoted to tracking resale ticket prices, Canadiens fans will pay an average of over $220 for cheapest tickets — more than double the league average — to see their team in action this season.
uncertain
fans → accord → action
Montreal is one of the biggest markets in the NHL, and the Canadiens consistently rank in the top five among priciest tickets in the league, with the Toronto Maple Leafs leading the pack most seasons over the past decade.
asserted
Leafs → rank → decade
Moshe Lander, a sports economist and associate professor at Concordia University, says although Habs fans might not be happy about the high ticket costs, they shouldn’t be surprised.
uncertain
they → say → costs
“Unfortunately for Montreal Canadiens fans, a little bit of success is the type of thing that reawakens a lot of dormant fans.”
asserted
that → reawaken → fans
After starting a rebuild in 2021 that saw the Canadiens finish at or near the bottom of the standings three years in a row, Montreal reached the playoffs in each of its last two seasons, and a skilled young core is driving a renewed sense of excitement around the team.
asserted
core → start → team
Lander says it is also driving ticket prices up.
asserted
it → say → prices
“It’s in demand like anything else,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → anything
'It used to be more accessible,' fan says
Habs fan Melissa Plett has been attending games at the Bell Centre since she moved from Manitoba to Montreal 15 years ago, but current prices are making her think twice about buying a ticket this season.
asserted
her → use → ticket
Plett says she understands why ticket prices are going up, but as the team continues to improve, she worries die-hard fans will be priced out of the rink.
asserted
fans → say → rink
“I feel like it used to be more accessible,” Plett said.
asserted
Plett → feel → ?
“Even when you go down [to the boards] for warm-up and then you have to leave because the ticket owners come down.
asserted
owners → go → up
It definitely feels like it’s the elites or whatever you want to call them that can afford that down there.”
asserted
that → feel → that
Plett says playoff tickets are even more inaccessible.
asserted
tickets → say → ?
“You keep wondering which game you should pay for because these tickets are so expensive,” Plett said.
asserted
Plett → keep → game
“It’s become such a gamble on your money.”
asserted
It → become → money
For other fans, like Sunil Peetush, it’s worth the gamble.
asserted
it → ’ → Peetush
It is the big show in Montreal, so you’re expected to pay a premium,” he said.
asserted
he → expect → premium
Peetush, who is a season ticket holder, says he maintains that it is a good deal to see the Habs play in Montreal — if you can get tickets before they hit the resale market.
asserted
they → say → market
His season tickets come out to less than $200 per game.
asserted
tickets → come → game
“I see them selling on the aftermarket sometimes $600 to $1,000 a seat where I am sitting,” Peetush said.
asserted
Peetush → see → 1,000
While the team doesn’t have any say in resale prices, Canadiens owner Geoff Molson wrote in a statement to CBC News that the organization aims to make games accessible to as many fans as possible.
asserted
games → have → fans
At the start of each season, it releases thousands of tickets to the public, including discounted options for families and students.
asserted
it → release → families
A limited number of tickets for upcoming games are also released on the 15th of each month.
asserted
number → release → month
The same seats sold directly by the organization are consistently cheaper than those on the resale market, but Plett says they go so quickly, she doesn’t even bother trying to get into online ticket queues.
asserted
she → sell → queues
“Even if I tried to get on that… chances are I'm not going to be the one to buy them and then I forget about it and I miss out,” she said.
asserted
she → try → it
Earlier this year, Quebec cracked down on resale markets when it passed a law requiring platforms to disclose when tickets are being resold.
asserted
tickets → crack → platforms
But critics say it still comes up short in lowering prices for consumers on the secondary market.
asserted
it → say → market
Unlike similar legislation in Ontario, the Quebec law doesn’t include a price cap on resale tickets, which allows resellers to charge inflated prices much like an unregulated market.
asserted
resellers → include → market
When faced with criticism, Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette defended his government’s decision to stop short of introducing a price cap on resale tickets, arguing that it would create an illegal market.
asserted
it → face → market
In the Canadiens’ case, the law, which came into effect Sept. 12, has so far done little to limit illegal resale markets.
asserted
which → come → markets
Although the organization’s terms and conditions state holders must resell their tickets exclusively through Ticketmaster, the team’s official marketplace, fans looking for seats can still find them on a number of other ticketing sites or through social media groups dedicated to reselling and buying Canadiens tickets.
asserted
fans → state → tickets
High interest paired with a healthy resale market means the price to see the Habs play at home likely won’t decrease any time soon.
asserted
Habs → pair → home
Still, Peetush says this season’s high get-in price at the Bell Centre will be worth it most nights.
asserted
price → say → Centre
“The team is so dynamic, it’s so young, the building is just topping…
asserted
building → ’ → ?
I guarantee you if they win, you’ll be hyped for a week."
asserted
you → guarantee → week
The Aporia
