The Chicago Blackhawks season tickets for the 2018-19 season will go up by an average of four percent despite the team currently sitting last place in the Central Division. The team sent out its renewal information to season ticket holders recently, and various reporters have since tweeted out the upcoming increase in prices.
The cost of Blackhawks season tickets will go up by an average of 4 percent next season.
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 10, 2018
There are now 17 tiers of prices, seven more than in the past.
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 10, 2018
For many fans, this will be a disappointing decision. A four percent increase is the similar to what we saw a year ago, and continues a trend of rising prices to attend Blackhawks games. For many fans, including yours truly, being able to consistently afford tickets at face value simply isn’t possible.
That was always understandable as the team rolled off playoff appearances, but this season, the Blackhawks are likely to be in the draft lottery instead. The disappointing performance has led to prices plummeting on the secondary market, and there are season-ticket holders who have said they’ve had trouble recouping value for some tickets, which is part of how many people subsidize the costs.
With that said, it’s not difficult to see why the Blackhawks are content to keep raising prices: They keep selling out the building. Chicago has the highest average attendance in the NHL at 21,626 per game this season, and that’s with those sky-high prices amid a losing season. Presumably, the team plans to be better next season, and in that case, people will likely to happy to pay whatever the team asks.
But there will surely be fans upset with this, and it’s fair to wonder how long this push-and-pull goes before demand for Blackhawks tickets starts going down. Clearly we’re not quite there yet, though, so if you’re a season ticket holder, get ready to pay a bit extra to keep your seats.