Since hockey returned from the lockout, I made it a point of going to as many games as possible. Me and a buddy from work would walk over to the Garden and take in the new-look Blueshirts. That first season back from the lockout was an exciting time, and it was easy to score tickets early on; no one was going to the games. Ticket prices weren’t terrible, either. I think they were $26 a pop for the blue seats before taxes and fees.
This season, though, the blue seats cost $46.50. No Brendan Shanahan, no Jaromir Jagr. A lot of questions lingering after somewhat disappointing performances from big signings Chris Drury and Scott Gomez. So. What, exactly, are we paying for? The hope that this season will be better than the last? That isn’t quite enough. Buy your “cheap” seat tickets online and you can tack on a $10 per ticket “convenience” charge with an extra $3.15 thrown in for “processing” and a pair will run you $115.
That’s one-hundred fifteeen simoleons. For the worst seats in the house. For a team that didn’t have the decency to let Brendan Shanahan decide his own fate, instead letting him twist in the wind all off-season long. For a team that cut loose Sean Avery, a dynamic and energizing player beloved by the fans for his intensity and agitating style. The laundry list of wrongs perpetrated by this club against its fans is longer than any measurements except those used by NASA. Tack on the ticket price, now.
It all comes back to the sport being a business and, as fans, the responsibility often falls to us to foot a foolhardy bill, like the front-loaded, cap-unfriendly contracts of Gomez and Drury. The money Gomez made alone demanded a performance far superior to what he gave. You can say he had a good season, but did he have a $10 million season? I don’t think anyone could make that case.
The fact is, though, that the Rangers are paying him that money, and as a result anyone who attends the games will be paying the Rangers’ inflated ticket prices for making that decision.
As the only act in town, it would be a real treat for the organization to give something back to the fans. Repay their fervent loyalty with fair prices. The Rangers must remain a profitable enterprise, but how much profit is too much? In my opinion, it’s when it becomes a sacrifice for the people who aren’t rolling in money to come to the games.