Wild introduces premium pricing; preseason tickets on sale Saturday
Posted on August 20th, 2008 – 3:00 PMBy Michael Russo
The Wild announced today single-game ticket prices for the 2008-09 season including new Premium pricing for 12 home games. Single-game ticket prices will range from $24.00 to $98.00 and Premium game ticket prices will range from $29.00 to $118.00 (Facility fee and Ticketmaster charges not included).
The following 12 contests will feature Premium pricing for the 2008-09 season: Oct. 11 vs. Boston, Oct. 30 vs. Montreal, Nov. 26 vs. Dallas, Nov. 28 vs. Tampa Bay, Dec. 19 vs. N.Y. Islanders, Jan. 3 vs. Detroit, Jan. 17 vs. Anaheim, Jan. 27 vs. Toronto, Feb. 14 vs. Ottawa, Feb. 21 vs. Detroit, March 17 vs. Colorado and April 10 vs. Nashville.
> Single-game tickets for the 2008-09 NHL regular season will go on sale Saturday, Sept. 20.
The Wild also announced today that a limited number of single-game tickets for the club’s three preseason games at the Xcel Energy Center will go on sale Saturday starting at 10:00 a.m. at the Xcel Energy Center Box Office (175 West Kellogg Boulevard), on the Minnesota Wild web site (www.wild.com), and at all Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com) locations or charge by calling Ticketmaster at (651) 989-5151. Single-game tickets for Wild preseason games at the Xcel Energy Center are available in all price levels.
2008 Minnesota Wild Home Preseason Schedule
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME (CDT)
Wednesday, Sept. 24 Columbus Blue Jackets Xcel Energy Center 7:00 PM
Tuesday, Sept. 30 Chicago Blackhawks Xcel Energy Center 7:00 PM
Wednesday, Oct. 1 Buffalo Sabres Xcel Energy Center 7:00 PM
Lastly, former Gopher Ben Clymer signed with Minsk in Russia, agent Ben Hankinson says.
82 Responses to "Wild introduces premium pricing; preseason tickets on sale Saturday"
What they haven taken enough of our money yet?
That ticks me off a little but i guess if your selling out every game you keep knocking up the price until you find the correct price point. But still it would be nice if they gave us a break now and again.
Ha, they missed the game against Ovechkin Nov 24!
They miss Ovenchicken but tack the premium on Nashville? Must be the hated rival now for CL…
That Nashville game just happens to be the final home game of the year, which is always a hard ticket to try and get.
Odd that they left Washington off though.
BNAG, that’s fan appreciation night! We appreciate you fans s-o-o-o much we’re going to make you pay more to come to this game.
They had to chose between Ovechkin and Wes Walz. They chose Wes…DOH!
Best Line in the NW?
Edmonton
Cole - Horcoff - Hemsky
Calgary
Cammalleri - Langkow - Iginla
Colorado
Wolski - Stastny - Hejduk
Vancouver
Sedin - Sedin - Demitra
Minnesota
Brunette - Koivu - Gaborik
That top line in Calgary is scary and Edmonton has a nice scoring punch with Penner also as an option on the 1st line PP.
I guess I don’t really know what the top line in Minnesota is? DR says Koivu/Gaborik. Too bad PMB doesn’t play center.
AiH, I think you have the correct top line, but who knows, maybe PMB will be on that line come the home opener, if they can’t sign Gabby and have to deal him?
Thinking more about this premium pricing, it also gives the Wild a springboard for higher prices in the opening round of the playoffs…
They already go X% up from the regular season prices, now they can keep that X% but go off the Premium prices, since it’s technically a regular season price…
[…] Originally published by Russo’s Rants […]
Anyone have some tips on scoring good seats at a fair price? I’m trying to get to the Carolina game on December 23rd.
Should I try Ticketmaster when single seats go on sale?
I’m not crazy about trying for a scalper on game day. I don’t want to risk missing out on my one shot for a Wild game in St Paul this season.
AiH it shouldn’t be a problem. You could try Ticketmaster or even Ticket King right on 7th (they’re the professional scalpers now that it’s legal here) or try buying on the street. The best chance at getting discount tickets is about game time because the street scalpers are willing to deal knowing they may be stuck with unsold inventory. Carolina is not a big draw so you should be able to buy good lower bowl seats at almost half price.
AiH, obviously if you want to see the game go the Ticketmaster route, then you are assured of getting in the building. The other options are if the single game tix are sold out on Ticketmaster before you can get any.
Aaron:
There are always plenty of tickets on the street. The scalpers start high and work from there. If you don’t like their seat locations or price then it is easy you walk away. Just like at a car dealership they will follow you down the street and lower their prices. You wouldn’t have any trouble whatsoever getting tickets for that Carolina game right at Face Value or below as it won’t be a high demand contest. I’ve found the prices rise in the spring as the team makes a playoff push. Also, there are always tickets on Craigslist or eBay for reasonable prices.
AiH, I agree with El Gato about scalping. That’s how I get to most of the games I attend and I have only once not been able to get tickets. Midweek games are usually really easy to scalp (looks like the 23rd is a Tuesday so that’s in your favor). It seems people don’t want to go to games as much on a school night, or maybe have a hard time getting there from work so they give up their seats.
My only concern for you would be that you are talking right before x-mas, and things do tend to get a little tighter around the holidays.
And no way should you have to pay face value for this game. El Gato’s half face price is probably about right.
This is surprising because I know a lot of fans are starting to get frustrated with the lack of creativity with JL and DR and this team. People aren’t buying into the program as easily as they did a few years ago.
Location tip: usually I try walking from Washington to 7th Street along Kellogg (basically the south side of the Xcel) as a starting point. There are often a couple guys there that sell a little cheaper, and I have had good luck finding singles there if you are attending alone.
Hmm. Columbus’ 2nd round pick in ‘07 reportedly decides to quit hockey.
Thanks for the ticket tips.
I’m trying to decide where I want to sit for the Aeros season. If you guys could sit anywhere in the X for a season where would it be?
KiPA - how are you handling the news on Whitney?
Aaron, we keep it real over in 108! 
I’m in the midst of picking my (measly) 15 games. 
Gonna miss the opener, too, but I’ll be in Playa del Carmen, so I guess it’s a fair trade off.
Excited for the Goligoski era. He basically needed an injury to crack this year’s D corps.
I’ve been a Whitney detractor for much of the last two years and I don’t even have a rational explanation why. The injury explains at least in part his bad season last year though. Just hoping he recovers and becomes the player we expect.
I was in 108 two seasons ago, home of “Hooker Chick” as my lady friend says.
Last season was 119 behind the visitor’s bench. That was fun because I could really give it to the opposing teams. Fahey of the Ice Hogs was always a favorite of mine to yell at. I think he is going to Europe this year?
Oh! Hooker chick! I know exactly who you’re talking about. WTF is up with that? A bandana is NOT a shirt. And she so rail thin, she must be freezing. Fortunately, down on row 2, I only had to see her when we were leaving. The sight of her always jars me out of my blissful hockey fog…
Fahey is a shit. We gave him hell in the box, too. Glad to hear he was getting it on both sides of the ice. Wish it had done us any good. I think he enjoys being hated. He went to the Rangers, so we’ll be spared that PITA this year.
I like our seats but I’d probably sit higher and closer to center ice if I didn’t have other opinions to factor in.
So they raise prices for the playoffs and “premium” games. Fair enough. (although I wonder their criteria for determining what makes a game premium). What ticks me off is wouldn’t it also make sense then to lower the prices for pre-season games? How are those the same value as a game in late March with playoff positions on the line?
With the premium pricing in effect, does that mean the team will be giving a premium effort that night, too?
Anybody know if there are other teams that do premium pricing or something similar???
i have a crazy idea… why don’t you (the wild) show us you can put a team on the ice that is a consistent playoff performer and then i’m sure people will have no problem shelling out a few extra bucks. but easy there you greedy buggers, let’s not get the cart before horse.
The Wild is not alone in this. I read that Florida just started this year. However, other NHL clubs have had premium pricing for a few years now.
My guess is premium pricing or not they will continue to sell tickets this season.
If they could charge by effort they would’ve charged double the first couple of seasons when effort was all they had.
I really want to be ticked off about this, so I’m going to be, just for a minute.
Did they not already announce a ticket price increase for the year, at least for season ticket holders? It can’t be that they are trying to make a little extra to sign Gabby, since the salary cap is set, so making extra only benefits CL.
This is really irritating to me. Being a die hard fan, I will of course, pay the price. That in and of itself justifies the increase to the management, but still. Very frustrating.
Now, the business management major with minor in econ completely understands the move. I just hate to see over 1/4 of the home games get called “premium.”
Grrr…
OK. I’m over it. Anyone have any Kool-aid left?
This is from early August on puck daddy(Yahoo).
I swear I just saw PMB at the grocery store.
http://downloads.wild.nhl.com/podcasts/PONDCAST_883_LEIPOLD.MP3
Leipold Q&A at the BBQ.
You did not see PMB at a grocery store in Houston. And if you did, what the hell am I doing in Austin?
Remember the only way the revenues increase is if ticket prices increase, hence the premium pricing and season ticket price increases. As long as people keep paying they’ll keep bumping up the ticket prices. Just wait until they lose their sellout streak like Colorado did. It won’t take long in this economy, especially with the new stadiums going up. NHL is only one year away from a decrease in revenue if you ask me. They can’t keep increasing ticket prices and think people will still show up no matter how great the team. They just won’t - Case in point: Detroit Red Wings.
Isn’t it possible that some of the increases in ticket prices are due to an increase in costs? It’s not just our expenses that are going up.
I know but it really really looked like him. Though I think he was taller. Like 5′8″… 
If costs are going up then cut the damn budgets! The biggest expense? Salaries, but noooo, they go and up the damn cap every year and agreed to some ridiculous base minimum salary, which is probably one of the most ridiculous things in the CBA. And instead of staying at that base minimum, everyone spends to the maximum salary cap, talk about ridiculous if your expenses are going up! I’d bet there aren’t a lot of expenses conserved on hotels or travel expenses or around the offices.
Not all teams are spending to the cap. I’m too lazy to do the research at this moment, but I’m fairly certain that we have discussed several teams that are close to the floor.
And salaries aren’t going to go down in professional sports just because the economy is in the tank. There are people who have multiple year contracts, who others are going to compare their own personal value to. That’s how it’s going to work regardless of outside factors.
And if the Wild is going to start making their players stay at the Motel 6, we’re going to have an even harder time getting big name free agents to sign here.
Salaries are increasing but its the other items such as travel, food, and hotel costs that are also increasing. We are in the top half of spending on salaries but we are also spending more money on travel. The idiocy of the league to schedule a game @ NYI, then one home game, then flight out almost immediately to play the Rangers and Devils.
You know what I found funny about the Leipold Q&A. Someone asked about why we didn’t re-sign Voros. Nothing about Rolston or Demitra but Voros.
:rolleyes:
You know what I found funny about the Leipold Q&A. Someone asked about why we didn’t re-sign Voros. Nothing about Rolston or Demitra but Voros.
People are idiots.
(Not limited to one team either; I’m not picking on Wild fans. I saw one Penguin fan think Goligoski and a draft pick is a fair deal for Gaborik.)
Here is an uninformed blogger writing about the Wild re: the Gaborik situation.
“Besides Martin Skoula and Owen Nolan (if he stays healthy) the Wild are definitely lacking in the sound defensmen or two-way player department.”
LOL. Martin Skoula a sound defensemen?! He was much better in the second half of the year but the first half was atrocious.
Well the fact that they asked about Voros (as if it wasn’t PAINFULLY obvious why he wasn’t re-signed) pretty much tells the level that person is working at. Hopefully everybody else there knew better than to ask Leipold about that stuff. Not his yob.
That quote is hilarious, Sunshine. So much wrong with it, I’m not sure where to begin.
That person just wants to see Voros get beat up, I am sure.
The other questions were about changing the culture of the Wild and how close were we to signing Hossa.
Its interesting that Leipold said that he met with Lemaire and Tremblay a couple of weekends ago. He mentioned it while responding to a question about watching the games and knowing the Xs and Os of the game.
Oh, I missed that… that is interesting. Maybe he was getting his orders from the big boss to fulfill Riser’s promises to Gabby. Ha.
I only remembered it because he was trying to answer the question in his horrible French-Canadian accent.
LOL That’s what it was. I got so distracted by the accent, it blew my listening comprehension all to hell.
Yeah, that accent was unbelievably bad. Someone should tell him to never ever do it again.
I know its not Leipold’s thing but I am surprised he hasn’t talked to Gaborik either. Maybe that will come down the road.
A lot of people forget that Leipold has only owned this team outright for about four months. Hasn’t gone thru a full regualr season yet. Give the guy time. Yes, he was owner at Nashville, but he started that franchise. This franchise (altho in the League for teh same amount of time, roughly) is an established entity with its’ own quirks.
re: Premium games- I thought it was the Russo factor. He’ll be in the house on opening night, fan appreciation night, etc.
i have a crazy idea
so do i. i say all games are free and they have tip jars at the exits so if you like what you saw maybe you leave a little in the jar…
I don’t think the premium pricing includes season tickets so if you don’t like it, become a STH.
We kinda debated this to death a few months ago, IIRC.
Ticket prices at the X are pretty reasonable compared to the rest of the division, especially in the upper level.
AHHHHhhhhhhhh!!!!! I need Hockey!!!!!!! And yes I know that I used an excessive amount of exclamation points, but that’s just how much I need a hockey fix. Vintage Games on NHL Network and You Tube clips just aren’t cutting it anymore.
Went to the last Saints home game for the season last night, they know how to do fire works. It was excellent even if we lost 14-2. We also got a some cazoo’s, the Mr and I in a fit of needing hockey were sitting in the car playing the Wild anthem and the U Of M rouser while we waited for the line leaving the parking lot to thin out. All in all a good time was had by all.
Have I mentioned I’m very hockey deprived and starting to twitch?
Hockey.
Pretty much sums it all up, doesn’t it?
Forget contracts and trades and ticket prices.
One thing we can ALL agree on:
Hockey.
Tip jar, haha, that is classic! There is a performance based ticket pricing idea in there somewhere.
U of M rouser? What does that have to do with hockey? The few Gopher games I saw last year looked like “a bunch of retards trying to hump a doorknob.”
If you must know Aaron I’m U Alum. I’m allowed to like the Gopher’s. Thanks for pissing me off right away this morning.
Just a little poke in the name of fun. I’m an SCSU alum so just go ahead and parade out a couple of your banners and I’ll shut up pretty quick.
Don’t have to parade them Aaron, they’re hanging in Mariucci for all the world to see. Besides, that would be a lot of banners to carry around.
Lack of hockey and lack of response from the resume’s I’ve sent out is making me crankier than normal.
I went to the SCSU games out in Colorado Springs last year and they have a ton of banners hanging up. It is kind of intimidating, until you realize a vast majority of them are simply participation banners.
i have a crazy idea… why don’t you (the wild) show us you can put a team on the ice that is a consistent playoff performer…
They are a consistent playoff performer. The past two seasons they’ve made the playoffs. The past two playoffs, they’ve lost in the first round. 
Looks pretty consistent to me. Perhaps you meant ‘contender’.
hanging in Mariucci for all the world to see
typicall gopher fan thinking the world revolves around mariucci and the gophers.
Bandgeek…your dedication to all things Rodent is admirable…misguided, but admirable… 
I think there is a banner hanging in the National Hockey Center:
‘Student Section’
Ok so I’m sick as a dog and you guys are raggin’ on me. Almost makes me cry, almost. Just because you have jealousy issues, don’t dump them on my doorstep.
Seriously, my head feels like it took the place of Boogies speed bag. I think I’ll go make myself eat to get some sugar in my system and then hopefully nap away this headache.
Oh and ummm…. FOOD!!!
Its simple- dont buy any concessions,no youth hockey programs at the game,wild merchandise. They will see that these programs and venders are being hurt because of there B.S tickets prices and they will come down in price. It is so B.S that year after year they give us a shit team and we have to pay for it. You wont see my family buying anything wild and i will eat before the game every time now.
Lastly, former Gopher Ben Clymer signed with Minsk in Russia, agent Ben Hankinson says.
Minsk it is not Russia. It is capital of Belarus FYI.
THATS THE WAY TO GO ,WILD!!! STICK IT TO THE TEAM OF 18,000 UNTIL THEY START STAYING HOME IN DROVES. I’LL BET YOU CAN GUESS WHERE YOU CAN SHOVE YOUR PRODUCT,CAN’T YA????
[…] enjoying the Minnesota Wild more and more. There aren’t some teams that would announce “premium” listing pricing for destined bag games the aforementioned hebdomad they’re disagreeable to convince their concern contestant […]
Premium pricing means will have wallmart pricing. Ha! Ha!
When do they announce “Premium Results”?
They probably didn’t include the Washington game because it’s being played on a Monday night.
I’m really disappointed, every year the tickets go up! Now we have to pay more for a game that will sell out anyway!! WTF! It’s not like the X isn’t going to make a killing off of the RNC!! If I didn’t like hockey so much I would retaliate some how! We should all go to the games with banners that protest the ticket prices!
hmmm - Did anyone else notice that the preseason tickets were no longer ‘free’ in the season ticket packets?
Preseason tickets haven’t ever been free Sparky.
The NY Islanders? Can anyone check to see what the Wild’s profits were last year? Just another reason why this kind of stuff turns me “off” pro sports.
I need to pay more money because Marian Gaborik needs 10 million dollars a year, three houses and eight cars to live a comfortable life.
The premium pricing scam is likely the one thing that this franchise has done that makes me madder than any other. They sell out every game. There’s no excuse to jack up the prices further than they already are. Seriously, $98 for a single seat to a single game IS a premium price. Just charge what you think you can get away with for every game if you sell all of them out. Want to make a game less than a premium game? Then how about a few “value” games like some baseball teams do and actually lower the price for Columbus and Nashville (and all those Edmonton visits while you are at it).
And to declare 12 games out of 41 is ludicrous. 12? Ha! You might be able to convince me that there’s 6 special nights in a season, maybe 8, but more than 25% of the season with this schedule qualifies as “premium”? Don’t flatter yourselves Wild.
I hope we get to see 41 premium games - 41 of the best games in the entire NHL’s 1000+ games played by the Wild. I don’t feel comfortable with the moves made by DR/JL the last 2 years to make this happen. The Wings fans must be paying for 41 premium games.
Another price hike!!!! Absolute BS
I do not ask to get paid more when I just do ok at my job. This is the problem with pro sports…we support the hell out of this team and they just keep charging us more and more to do it.
Just another way for a small market team to get extra money, any other conclusion is plain ignorance. The small market teams have the highest ticket prices. Minnesota is lucky that they are competitive each year so people go, for now. If memory serves me right, Florida has the highest ticket prices but a lousy team, so no one goes. Minnesota lacks the a huge TV contract and people like the big markets have which give them big revenue. There’s a reason why the Detroit’s and New York’s of the league have cash to spend.
My question is what are they going to do with the extra revenue? Give it to an over-the-hill never-was like Owen Nolan?!
