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Want Calgary Flames playoff tickets? They’re more expensive than you were used to

As these things tend to do over time, prices have increased by a decent amount. But if you want in, well, then you want in…

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It’s been six long years since Calgary has seen playoff hockey. The drought comes to an end tonight, as the Flames will host the Vancouver Canucks for their first home playoff game since 2009.

You can bet the stands will be red as the fires of Hell as the C of Red comes back to life in full force. It's gonna be awesomely loud and invigorating, and maybe even a little intimidating: the colour red will do that.

It's also gonna be kinda costly to get in there; especially so if you weren't a winner of the Flames-hosted lottery draw to buy playoff tickets directly. If you still want in, you'll have to rely on a third party site: the NHL Ticket Exchanges, Stubhubs, and Rukkuses of the world. And with demand pretty high, you're looking at paying something like, oh, $200 for press level seats. A couple dozen less, if you're lucky.

It’s a far cry from 2004, when I remember my dad getting us $49 tickets to sit at centre ice in the first four rows of the press level for the Flames’ first home game against the Lightning. So, for the Stanley Cup Final. Getting tickets that cheap in just the first round this year would be nothing short of a miracle.

In fact, thanks to Rukkus, we can see just how much prices have changed since the Flames last made the playoffs:

That graph gives us the projected average ticket prices for the Flames for both the 2009 playoffs and this year's, should they make it that far, based off of historical data.

Over six seasons, that's roughly an additional $20 you could predict to pay per ticket. That doesn't sound like much, until you remember to add up another $20 for each person you're considering going with, and then it adds up really, really fast. Projected prices for later rounds get even more extreme, and that's without the additional cost six years of waiting has thrown in.

So basically… yeah, things have gotten more expensive over the years.

If you're really desperate to go but aren't sure how much you can afford, Rukkus recommends waiting until an hour before the opening faceoff, when ticket sellers may be most desperate to get rid of their tickets. At least, that's been the trend over the past 150 playoff games: you may miss out on a bit of time, but you may get a cheaper deal as well. It's like a game of playoff chicken.

We're rooting for as many diehards as possible to be able to go, of course – so best of luck to you, and especially our readers, if you manage to get in! The atmosphere is sure to be amazing, and probably totally worth it. Go Flames.

by Ari Yanover