All-session Frozen Four tickets for upper level seats at KeyBank Center started at $225 getty images
Following the drop in attendance at the Frozen Four this past weekend in Buffalo, Canisius College AD Bill Maher acknowledged that the "price in the marketplace for tickets was a concern," according to Rachel Lenzi of the BUFFALO NEWS. Maher, who serves as co-Dir for the tournament, said, "There were plenty of people in the marketplace who had that concern, but that was coming from a third-person perspective. No one flat-out said to me, ‘That’s ridiculous’ (about ticket prices). I found out a lot from the media, people who were saying, 'Tickets are too high.'" One ticket for the two semifinal games and the national championship game at KeyBank Center "cost $300 for a seat in the lower bowl, while a seat in the upper bowl cost $210-$215." Erie County Exec Mark Poloncarz on Sunday tweeted, "When we made the pitch for the bid NCAA officials said so many people travel to attend it annually regardless of who was in the 4 that most tickets would be sold before. That wasn't the case. Price was an issue, so was poor Sabres season [in my opinion] hurting marketing and other things." Maher said the teams that played in Buffalo -- Minnesota Duluth, Providence, UMass and Denver -- were "not teams that drove a large number of ticket sales." He also said there was "some fatigue in the marketplace," noting the '18 World Juniors, and the cheaper "price of Sabres tickets" (BUFFALO NEWS, 4/16).
CHECK OUT THE PRICE TAG: In Duluth, Matt Wellens writes the problem with this year's Frozen Four attendance was the "steep" ticket prices. All-session tickets "started at $225 and that was for the upper level." Lower-level seats "started at $475." Single-session tickets "started at $120." Buffalo is also "not an easy city to reach," as it is a "lengthy drive (or train ride) and an expensive flight for most everyone in college hockey towns." Buffalo is "by no means a destination city" like Chicago was in '17, or Tampa in '16 (DULUTH NEWS TRIBUNE, 4/16).
