News Article: Habs sellout streak comes to an end after 583 games

[Teufelsdreck]

Big deal! A few scalpers were stuck with unsold tickets.

 

[TRG]

IMO this is due to which generation was in the right age range (18-25 years old).Those born between 1980 and 1987 or so.This is probably the last generation to remember the vibe of a winning Montreal Canadiens team, as well as growing up watching the entertaining NHL of the 90s, plus collecting hockey cards and the likes.Hockey just seems less important to the new generation.

Imo it's just the price of the tickets that got absolutely ridiculous.

 

[sbhatt]

A roster that lacks star power and ticket prices that have climbed far too high...not surprising.

 

[Genesis76]

583 is outstanding, too bad we did little to nothing over that span to reward the fans who spent their hard earned money with such loyalty for that long.

Lets be honest, Rejean Tremblay doesnt work very hard for his money.

 

[WhiskeySeven*]

Ticket prices are bad and the product generally stinks.

In general, they lose, they don't have any exciting players, they have a bad in-house presentation, and the prices for concessions are awfully high. Not a single 80 point player, not one! Haven't had one since Kovalev!!! Not a single 70 point player!! Sometimes, not even a single 60 point player! That's just sad.

Montreal is a young person's city reeling from the catastrophic middle-class job market collapse of the late-2000s/early-2010s. Wages are far too low, costs are increasingly disproportionately. People still haven't gotten wages they deserve, they likely won't for many years.

The Habs can promise nicer food and better presentation but the product on the ice is just bad. Year after year of boring, defensive coaches and talentless teams playing chip and chase hockey with little passing takes a toll. Many of my die-hard friends have stopped watching games entirely. Not even highlights. The product is just bad, priorities change, and life gets in the way.

The sellout streak should've ended years ago imo. I feel sorry for the fans who spent so much to witness this team's toothless attack the past three years.

 

[WG]

Is it still worth to get if you are only interested in the NHL?
I still cannot enjoy American Football even though my wife is the daughter of the 4th most successful college coach and she has explained all the rules etc. Baseball is as boring as cricket and I never really liked basketball.

Yes. There's always a 40-50% promo to be had, for $3-4 per month you get Habs plus there are good stories from around the league (I liked the story about the accountant/emergency goalie who played in a game for Chicago last year) and they had really good draft coverage this spring.

The Odelein story a couple of weeks ago was worth a month's cost on its own.

 

[PaulD]

All good. Despite the sell out streak over, I still think the vibe in the arena is better so far this year than last year as a whole.

and the hot dogs

 

[PaulD]

With Price out last Saturday. Who's the draw exactly? Domi, Drouin, and Gallagher?

Come on.

Team blows.

 

[Habaneros]

With Price out last Saturday. Who's the draw exactly? Domi, Drouin, and Gallagher?

Come on.

Team blows.

tickets for sale (by resellers)for under 20 usd bucks right now at Bell Centre...lol

Here's a real LOL....tickets for $8USD if ya wanna go watch Habs at Barclays Center in Brooklyn Ny

 

[DangerDave]

Seems like an odd time for the streak to end. For the first time in a while I feel like going.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

so we played boring hockey through out that whole time more or less and sold out every game.

Now that we're fun to watch for the first time in forever, they can't sell out?

 

[Adam Michaels]

and the hot dogs

God forbid we forget the hot-dogs!!

 

[Adam Michaels]

so we played boring hockey through out that whole time more or less and sold out every game.

Now that we're fun to watch for the first time in forever, they can't sell out?

The way I see it, I bet it's not the first time they haven't sold out. But you can make the argument the tickets were sold but people probably didn't attend.

Also, this is still early in the season and a lot of fans are still fresh off of last year's terrible season. Should the Habs keep up the way they're playing so far and start putting together wins, that place will be on another sold out streak.

 

[Habaneros]

God forbid we forget the hot-dogs!!

Hotdog sellout streak now at 3 games???

 

[Habaneros]

The way I see it, I bet it's not the first time they haven't sold out. But you can make the argument the tickets were sold but people probably didn't attend.

Also, this is still early in the season and a lot of fans are still fresh off of last year's terrible season. Should the Habs keep up the way they're playing so far and start putting together wins, that place will be on another sold out streak.

I got a feeling...I said before season started even if Habs came out with a hot start there would still be tons of empty...and there is lots of empty...

Another prediction ..empty seats all year regardless ..and if they do squeak into playoffs there will be empty seats...

 

[Lshap]

With Price out last Saturday. Who's the draw exactly? Domi, Drouin, and Gallagher?

Come on.

Team blows.

I think what kills fan interest almost as much as a bad team is not giving a damn about the individual players. Hockey, like any entertainment, is all about the story, and stories come down to characters. A decade ago the team went through some awful seasons but still had great lead characters like Kovalev and Koivu for us to rally around. Last year there were no characters I gave a damn about. Gallagher and Byron came closest, and I had a soft spot for Deslaurier's enthusiasm. Otherwise, the players were as dull and disinterested as the team was disastrous.

Surprisingly, this new roster is likeable right out of the gate. Domi's awesome, Tatar is great to watch, Kotkaniemi makes me feel like a dad watching his kid develop, and I'm digging the rest of the new guys wearing unrecognizable jersey numbers. I still want to get a better draft pick at the end; meanwhile I'm actually having fun cheering on this new group of Habs, whoever they are.

 

[LeHab]

It absolutely did............they are kidding themselves, if they think different...the last couple of years, it sure seemed like it was very easy to get tickets compared to years gone by.............not to mention a ton of people who bought tix were not going to the games.

.
Habs oversold luxury suites and counted unsold single seats as sold to claim the streak. On Monday, a few hours before the game you could still get 8 seats side by side in a few sections. Same for today, still 8 side by side available in Blue, Red C, Course Light and La 7.

The only time in recent years they did no claim "full house" was to honor Beliveau passing by substracting 1.

 

[MtlBoxFan]

Could Molson be the most inept owner in sports? He managed to break the sellout streak of a team that would sell out every game while producing nothing for 25 years.
The lack luster pre-game ceremonies. The constant increase in ticket prices...it was bound to happen. I hope he has to fight to get the enthusiasm of the fans back.

 

[MtlBoxFan]

tickets for sale (by resellers)for under 20 usd bucks right now at Bell Centre...lol

Here's a real LOL....tickets for $8USD if ya wanna go watch Habs at Barclays Center in Brooklyn Ny

Yeah but some seats can't even see the goalie at the barclay center.
I actually think 8$ is over priced if this is what you get.
https://amp.businessinsider.com/images/561bf5449dd7cc14008c1296-750-563.jpg

 

[Hockeyholic]

The team sucks. But more importantly, they are boring. Just dull. There's no player on the team that makes you jump out of your seat.

Btw, there's no way I would pay to read a newspaper article. Not worth it.

 

[peate]

Is it still worth to get if you are only interested in the NHL?
I still cannot enjoy American Football even though my wife is the daughter of the 4th most successful college coach and she has explained all the rules etc. Baseball is as boring as cricket and I never really liked basketball.

I'd love to meet her.

 

[Schwang]

We all knew it was coming. Still, we’re playing MUCH more inspired hockey this season so the fans will appreciate a good effort, something that was completely missing last year.

On a side note, the article itself is from The Athletic, which is an amazing bang for your buck. Yes, it’s paid content but the best sports journalism out there, IMO.

How did this not happen last season?!
Gotta day I’m surprised. They’re winning and are putting an exciting product on the ice, so I don’t get why people wouldn’t attend. I’m definitely interested much more than last season.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

The way I see it, I bet it's not the first time they haven't sold out. But you can make the argument the tickets were sold but people probably didn't attend.

Also, this is still early in the season and a lot of fans are still fresh off of last year's terrible season. Should the Habs keep up the way they're playing so far and start putting together wins, that place will be on another sold out streak.

yeah I figure there's some hangover from last year but I mean you'd think there's enough Hab fans who've been paying attention this season so far where you can see that we've been playing some of the best hockey I've seen them play in I don't know how long. And it's actually fun. Even when we've played good in the last 30 years, we've rarely been this fun and exciting.

 

[Habs 4 Life]

Big deal! A few scalpers were stuck with unsold tickets.

Nope because those tickets are sold therefore even if there are empty seats, the game can still be a sellout
This year, there is plenty of tickets which you can still purchase online

 

[Per Sjoblom]

Yes. There's always a 40-50% promo to be had, for $3-4 per month you get Habs plus there are good stories from around the league (I liked the story about the accountant/emergency goalie who played in a game for Chicago last year) and they had really good draft coverage this spring.

The Odelein story a couple of weeks ago was worth a month's cost on its own.

I noticed it was like 3-4 dollars per month for a year, I can definitely do that and if I find I didn't read it enoiugh I can always cancel.

Thanks!