By Travis Brine
The gloves are off in the battle for Ottawa’s hockey dollar. While the Senators may be the pro team in town, when it comes to families it seems the little guy is coming out on top.
The Ottawa 67’s are regaining fans after feeling the initial punch of the Ottawa Senators. The 67’s say the reason for the resurgence is their affordable prices.
Season ticket sales have increased almost 50 per cent from last year. Doug Drain, 67’s director of marketing and communications, says the increase is because families are simply finding it too expensive to attend Senators games.
“The Senators originally had a big effect on us,” says Drain. “But now the fans are coming back because we provide affordable family entertainment.”
Drain adds that many residents in areas such as Orleans and Centretown don’t want to travel to Kanata to see the Senators.
The 67’s ticket prices are significantly lower than its competitor in Kanata. The top price for a 67’s ticket is $9.50. Seniors, students and children also receive discounted prices and parking is free. The total cost for a family of four is just over $30.
These prices look good compared with the cost of attending a Senators game. Unless a family grabs a few of the limited number of $15 family zone seats, the cost for a game is going to be high.
If one includes $8 for parking it will cost a family of four around $120, not including taxes, to attend a game. This price doesn’t include food or souvenir purchases.
The Senators have made an attempt to be more affordable by offering 1,144 seats at $15 each. However, nearly half of these seats were scooped up by season ticket holders. This makes it difficult to get these tickets, especially for more popular games.
Phil Legault, Senators’ director of media relations, says he doesn’t know if tickets are too expensive for families.
“You have to talk to fans. I can’t address what the fans think,” says Legault.
Some hockey fans who’ve chosen to attend 67’s games say the price of an NHL ticket is too high. Claude Leduc has begun attending 67’s games with his son Tyler, 6, because of its affordable prices.
“I think they (Senators games) are overrated, especially for a kid my son’s age,” says Leduc. “He may get bored after an hour and over there it costs me a hundred dollars.”
A survey taken by the Ottawa 67’s found the average fan was a family person with one or two children. For this reason, the 67’s have geared their marketing towards families.
“The Senators and us (67’s) target two different markets,” says Drain. “The Senators are after the corporations and not the family. We, on the other hand, target the families and not the corporations.”