Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
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Wheat Kings owner/general manager Kelly McCrimmon addresses the media at Wednesday’s press conference.
The good news for Brandon Wheat Kings fans is they know their team is locked in for five more years at Westman Place.
The bad news is it will cost a little more to see them.
As the Wheat Kings and the Keystone Centre announced their new five-year lease agreement on Wednesday, the Western Hockey League also unveiled season ticket prices for the 2012-13 campaign. Adult season ticket prices will cost $425 next season, an increase from $350 in 2011-12.
Wheat Kings owner/general manager Kelly McCrimmon said the increase is due in part to the significant increase in rent paid to the Keystone Centre under the new lease. While specific financial terms weren’t released, McCrimmon stated yesterday that his team will pay four times more in rent under the new lease.
"I think Wheat King fans trust we care about them based on how we priced our tickets for as many years as we have," said McCrimmon, who added that part of the reason the team will take on a higher rent this season is to keep the Keystone Centre from levying additional fees, such as paid parking. "We’ve had the most affordable tickets in the league for a number of years and I think that has helped our season ticket base grow, and it’s helped our overall attendance grow."
The Wheat Kings slashed their season-ticket price by 33 per cent for the 2006-07 season, resulting in increased attendance of about 1,000 fans per game.
An examination of season ticket prices around the league showed only four clubs — the Prince Albert Raiders, Swift Current Broncos, Everett Silvertips and Spokane Chiefs — offering adult prices below $425 for the upcoming season. However, all four of those clubs offer a range of prices, with their most expensive seats costing more than $500.
For the first time since 2005-06, the Wheat Kings are also offering seniors’ season tickets, priced at $375, while youth tickets will cost $200. All of those prices will be reduced by $25 if sold prior to the early-bird deadline of June 15.
That should make for a busy few weeks for the team, which normally begins ticket sales well before now, but was delayed this spring by the lease negotiations.
"We mailed our letters yesterday, so they’ll be in the hands of our season ticket holders this week and we expect to be quite busy from now until the early-bird deadline," McCrimmon said. "Even though we’re late in beginning the process, we don’t anticipate that it’s going to impact us that dramatically because we’re ready to hit the ground running at this point."
<Bt-4>ONE-TIMERS: The Wheat Kings sold about 3,000 season tickets and averaged 4,143 fans per game last season. They set franchise records of 3,600 season tickets and an average attendance of 4,761 in the
2009-10 Memorial Cup season … Calgary have traded RW <B>Rob Trzonkowski to Kamloops for a fourth-round pick in the 2014 WHL Bantam Draft.<t$>
» rhenders@brandonsun.com
By the Numbers
East Division adult season-ticket prices for the 2011-12 WHL season (excluding early-bird promotions):
Team Ticket Price
Brandon $425
Moose Jaw $460
Prince Albert $420 to 514.50
Regina $520
Saskatoon $515 to 599
Swift Current $310 to 510
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition May 24, 2012
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The good news for Brandon Wheat Kings fans is they know their team is locked in for five more years at Westman Place.
The bad news is it will cost a little more to see them.
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The good news for Brandon Wheat Kings fans is they know their team is locked in for five more years at Westman Place.
The bad news is it will cost a little more to see them.
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