The Anaheim Ducks are slashing individual game tickets for the upcoming season in hopes of drawing a wider audience after another year of decline at the box office.
The cuts cover nearly 90% of tickets and come to an average discount of about 13% compared to last year on purchases through the Ducks and Ticketmaster websites.
It’s the first time since the team won the National Hockey League’s Stanley Cup in 2007 that it has cut prices on such a large percentage of individual game tickets. The Ducks have seen ticket sales fall the last three seasons following an uptick the season after it won the championship.
“We wanted to have a price point for every demographic, and we’re closer to doing that,” said Tim Ryan, the Ducks’ executive vice president and chief operating officer. “We’re trying to reach as many people as possible.”
The new pricing means that the number of tickets available at $40 or less have increased by nearly 350% from last season. Tickets that cost $41.50 last year are now priced at $25, $27, $32 and $36.
The Ducks saw a nearly 11% drop in ticket sales per game last season to 15,168 fans, according to the SportsBusiness Journal. The team sold out only five of their 41 home games at the Honda Center, which has a capacity of 17,174 for hockey.
The team also is considering variable pricing on certain games and on premium seats, according to Ryan.
Sales of club seats are flat from a year ago, and the franchise has offered to sell fractional rights to luxury boxes for the first time.
That’s part of a bid to be “more efficient and more creative” on marketing the team, Ryan said.
The Ducks racked up a gain on season tickets. The team added 600 season-ticket holders, according to Ryan, who declined to give a total.
The club ranks in the middle of the pack in the 30-team NHL on season-ticket sales, according to Ryan.
The sluggishness on overall ticket sales comes amid some success on the ice. The Ducks have made the playoffs in five of the past six years. Last season was one the most exciting in recent years in the NHL, as a host of teams in the Western Conference fought for the last remaining playoff spots in the final week.
The move to cut ticket prices is part of a broader effort to parlay their late-season surge to a playoff appearance into more support from Orange County’s demanding fans.
“I am keenly aware, and so is our ownership, that winning is vital in Southern California,” Ryan said. “We are very aware of how hard we need to work and not take one fan for granted.”
The Ducks are owned by Henry Samueli, cofounder of Irvine-based chipmaker Broadcom Corp.
The Ducks’ home ice at the Honda Center is the fifth-smallest arena in the league and its lower bowl is the fourth-smallest, according to the team. The lower bowl is where the pricier seats are located and generate the most revenue on game days.
