"On the Glass" Seating is the Biggest Scam in Hockey. Who is the Business Genius that Convinced Fans to Pay a Premium for It?

[jetsmooseice]

I was looking at Toronto Marlies ticket options for an upcoming trip to Toronto and I see that even they charge top dollar for the front row now.

2023-24 Memberships – Toronto Marlies

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Unlike at a basketball game, sitting in the front row for hockey sucks. You typically don't have a clear view of the ice, and it's harder to tell where the players are and what they're doing as compared to sitting even 5 rows up. In the past, the front rows were not really seen as desirable. You still see this in junior rinks where most fans tend to congregate a bit higher and the lowest rows are often empty.

Anyway, when did this trend of charging more for the front row begin? My frame of reference is Winnipeg... in 1996 there was no such thing as front row glass premium seating because no one would have gone for it. Then in 2011 when the NHL returned, premium glass seating was a thing.

So who was the marketing wizard that figured out how to convince fans to pay more for front row hockey tickets?

Click to read more...

 

[KevFu]

Idiots who like to pound on the glass.

 

[CTHabsfan]

Idiots who like to pound on the glass.

Yup^^^^^ Although they still might be better than people sitting in the 5th row who feel the need to stand up and turn around anytime play is in their area so they can be seen on camera.

 

[Stumbledore]

Our first foray into STH with Jets 1.0 was a pair of seats against the glass, a few seats to the right of the net, at the south end. Watching the Golden Jet rush up the ice with Nilson and Hedberg was a sight I'll never forget.

I'll also always remember when I took my eldest girl to a game and the lass -- newly able to drink in Manitoba -- put her beer on the ledge below the glass and discovered what happens when hockey players plow each other into the boards. By the time girls two and three started attending games more often, we'd moved our seats up to about the tenth row in the southwest "wedge" of seats that was angled into the old barn at Polo Park.

Except for a game in the Forum as someone's guest, I've never gone back to a front row seat at any hockey game and I can't say I miss it.

 

[Bear of Bad News]

It's not where I usually sit, but I occasionally (5% of the time?) get the seats where the goal judges used to sit, and I love it. Down low is a great place to get first-hand just how powerful and fast the modern game is, and it's harder to get the true force when you're up higher.

To the original question, different people enjoy different things about attending a hockey game in person.

 

[CharasLazyWrister]

I sat in the front row once. It’s cool for a total of about ten seconds when the action actually gets close to you.

Other than that, you and your fellow front row viewers, are treated to the worst view in the house at a premium price.

I’d be willing to pay significantly more for the front row of balcony seats than on-the-glass seats even though it’s never priced that way.

I like hockey and want to see as much of the game as possible. Maybe it’s a pompous thing to say, but I’m guessing most people dying to sit up against the glass aren’t the biggest hockey fans.

 

[jetsmooseice]

I sat in the front row once. It’s cool for a total of about ten seconds when the action actually gets close to you.

Other than that, you and your fellow front row viewers, are treated to the worst view in the house at a premium price.

I’d be willing to pay significantly more for the front row of balcony seats than on-the-glass seats even though it’s never priced that way.

I like hockey and want to see as much of the game as possible. Maybe it’s a pompous thing to say, but I’m guessing most people dying to sit up against the glass aren’t the biggest hockey fans.

It's a cool experience to do it once in a while. I've sat in the front row at Jets games and it's interesting to see the expressions on players faces and the raw speed. But it isn't something I would do on a regular basis... if season tickets in row 1 were the same price, I would still opt to sit higher. I'd never consider paying extra for them.

Like I said, front row works for basketball... much smaller playing surface, fewer obstacles. But for hockey it's not ideal at all. It's weird that there is such a steep premium price tag attached to it now, even at the lower levels of hockey. It's not like there is any "star appeal" at an AHL game the way there is at a NHL game where there's a thrill seeing big names like McDavid or whoever up close.

 

[CharasLazyWrister]

It's a cool experience to do it once in a while. I've sat in the front row at Jets games and it's interesting to see the expressions on players faces and the raw speed. But it isn't something I would do on a regular basis... if season tickets in row 1 were the same price, I would still opt to sit higher. I'd never consider paying extra for them.

Like I said, front row works for basketball... much smaller playing surface, fewer obstacles. But for hockey it's not ideal at all. It's weird that there is such a steep premium price tag attached to it now, even at the lower levels of hockey. It's not like there is any "star appeal" at an AHL game the way there is at a NHL game where there's a thrill seeing big names like McDavid or whoever up close.

I think the reason it still gets a premium price is the pure novelty of saying you sat “against the glass” and it’s a relativiely small number of seats that fit that classification at a given game. There’s enough kids, families, people who want to impress a date etc in the hockey world to keep up demand for the limited supply of front row seats.

After all, second row has no novelty at all.

 

[BKIslandersFan]

They are charging HOW MUCH for AHL tickets?

 

[mouser]

I prefer sitting in row 8-12 close to the faceoff dot in one of the zones. High enough to comfortably see most of the ice over the glass.

If you gave me my choice of seats in rows 1-7 I’d prefer rows 1-2 over rows 3-7 in the back and corners. Center ice with the benches and boxes in the way I’d reverse that to the higher row seats.

 

[Legionnaire11]

I imagine a few factors play into it. Well before spectator sports became what they are today, opera houses and concert halls were very popular and front row seats are obviously an advantage there. The mentality probably carried over, and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of non and casual fans still correlate front row concert seats with front row sports seats.

Second, in the early days of hockey, there was no glass or fencing around the rink. The NHL started using a mesh in the '20s and glass in the '40s, and those started out as only at the ends behind the goals, but it took even longer to adopt those precautions at lower levels. There was a good 50 years or probably longer of top level hockey where if you were sat at the front, there was nothing obstructing your view, you could even lean over the boards to get a better look if the action was on the other end.

Today, I'd say it's still a great experience from time to time, it's a good reminder of just how fast and violent the game actually is. But for serious fans who want to watch the full game and see plays develop on both ends, going up higher is obviously the way to go.

 

[powerstuck]

Isn't the basic premise that closer you are to the play, the pricier the ticket is ? I mean I can't think of a sport where a ticket further away from the play is pricier (let's exclude corporate boxes these have extras to compensate for cost).

 

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Doesn't the same technically hold true in basketball, too? The view is obviously better from a few rows further up, and it's a much more comfortable experience too. The allure of courtside is simple proximity to the players and play. Of course basketball doesn't have a barrier between players and fans so there's a chance for accidental intimacy but really you're paying 2k because Lebron's sweat may hit you? I mean in what non-celebrity worship sense is that a desirable thing.

 

[joestevens29]

Isn't the basic premise that closer you are to the play, the pricier the ticket is ? I mean I can't think of a sport where a ticket further away from the play is pricier (let's exclude corporate boxes these have extras to compensate for cost).

Yep, and as long as people are still paying for them it's going to continue.

 

[jetsmooseice]

Isn't the basic premise that closer you are to the play, the pricier the ticket is ? I mean I can't think of a sport where a ticket further away from the play is pricier (let's exclude corporate boxes these have extras to compensate for cost).

Football does not put a premium on the lowest seats. I can tell you at IG Field here in Winnipeg, the club seating section between the 25 yard lines specifically exclude the 5 or 10 lowest rows. I can't imagine a scenario where anyone would realistically say that they view from row 1 is better in any sense than the view from row 10. Soccer is similar, for instance, Premier League clubs generally don't charge the highest price point for the lowest seats.

Basketball has been mentioned but I think that's a bit different since the court is so small. I have sat low for football, hockey and basketball and basketball is hands down the best in terms of the view that the low seats offer. That is one where I think it makes sense to charge fans more. Football absolutely not. Hockey is maybe somewhere in between, but I guess team owners would like to convince fans that it's more like basketball in that regard.

 

[Channelcat]

I don't sit in the 100's.....maybe if it's free.........maybe

 

[tarheelhockey]

Doesn't the same technically hold true in basketball, too? The view is obviously better from a few rows further up, and it's a much more comfortable experience too. The allure of courtside is simple proximity to the players and play. Of course basketball doesn't have a barrier between players and fans so there's a chance for accidental intimacy but really you're paying 2k because Lebron's sweat may hit you? I mean in what non-celebrity worship sense is that a desirable thing.

I think there’s more to it than that. Even if you go to a high school basketball game, a courtside seat is the most interesting place in the building. You can hear the players/coaches/refs talking, you get a great view of the action, and the atmosphere seems much more intense. There’s nothing like when a player is dribbling up the sideline you’re sitting on, the intensity is real. The only downside is that you have a flat view of the other end of the court, but that’s not going to stop you from seeing much.

In hockey it’s a bit different because you legitimately can’t see the other end of the ice, you can’t hear anything through the glass, and you don’t really feel like you’re inside the field of play unless someone throws a hit or fires the puck right at the spot you’re sitting.

That said, I do think it’s an experience worth having at least once. It’s simply a different kind of fun, feeling the speed and power of the game up close. That’s especially true near the nets, where you get a front-row view to saves, goals, and scrums. Plus, you get to be on TV.

I suspect a lot of glass seats are sold to businesses which use the tickets to entertain clients. Especially at today’s prices, which would be absurd for an individual/family to pay.

 

[ManByng]

It's not where I usually sit, but I occasionally (5% of the time?) get the seats where the goal judges used to sit, and I love it. Down low is a great place to get first-hand just how powerful and fast the modern game is, and it's harder to get the true force when you're up higher.

This is true! If you want to be right beside the players when the hits happen, when fights happen close to you on the glass, and when the action is in your end, then the glass is for you! I myself never considered the glass seats in hockey premium because indeed the glass can obstruct your view down the ice, especially if you're right beside where the glass is held together. My 2 cents!

 

[FirstRowUpperDeck]

I understand the OP. As you can guess from my user name, an unobstructed view is high on my list for seat choice. Many years ago, my first Season Tickets were the first row of the upper deck. At one time I was paying under $30 for what I thought was the best seat in the house. But, they got wise and jacked up the price for the first row of the upper deck, and with the premium narrowing, and the need to have more impressive seats for clients, I moved downstairs. I am on the near top row of the lower deck, but the stairs drop right in front of me, so at least I have about 5 foot of vertical clearance in case fans in front of me stand all during OT or something.

My glass seats experience includes a buddy who spent big to see his Flyers when they came to town, right on the blue line, which turns out to really be the worst seat in the house unless you like watching the linesmen's back side.

A current hockey friend has glass seats in the corner, but watches the first period and rarely makes it back from the bar, so he sometimes texts me the ticket if I want to sit there. When available, I take my clients, fam, or friends down there. The view really does suck through the glass, but of course, is great when play is right in front of you. Everyone ought to do it once, but even those who get the chance usually want to go back to my higher seats in the third period.

Another client wanted to be within inches of Gretsky, so we bought tickets behind the AZ bench. Actually, even worse view than on the glass at the blue line.

Someone mentioned Bobby Hull....as a kid, my neighbor had glass tickets for the Hawks, on the side where Hull rushed up. In those days, the boards really were 2x4 boards, and had narrow gaps between them. Whenever someone skated by, my pants had a few vertical watermarks on them from the ice shavings, exactly 4" apart (well, probably 3.5", I'm not sure what the nominal board width was back then). I'm telling the story 50 years later, so obviously, it was a memorable night sitting on the glass. I could look up the game, maybe 1967, because I think it was the game Hull got his 50th despite missing a dozen games earlier in the season.

 

[AdmiralsFan24]

Forget about first row, I try to avoid the lower bowl altogether.

 

[joestevens29]

I prefer sitting in row 8-12 close to the faceoff dot in one of the zones. High enough to comfortably see most of the ice over the glass.

If you gave me my choice of seats in rows 1-7 I’d prefer rows 1-2 over rows 3-7 in the back and corners. Center ice with the benches and boxes in the way I’d reverse that to the higher row seats.

My favourite seats were last row of the lower deck at center ice. Very easy to get to and from the seats, and a nice view of all the ice.

Although at the end of the day now I'm just happy to go to a game. Getting to see McDavid live from any angle is something to see. That and with the price of tickets it's not the luxury it once was, so beggars can't be choosers.

 

[Jumptheshark]

Center ice noise bleeds for me

 

[Stumbledore]

My favourite seats were last row of the lower deck at center ice. Very easy to get to and from the seats, and a nice view of all the ice.

Although at the end of the day now I'm just happy to go to a game. Getting to see McDavid live from any angle is something to see. That and with the price of tickets it's not the luxury it once was, so beggars can't be choosers.

I've noticed when talking to younger people (which is probably almost everyone around me) that their preferred seat reflects the camera placements for the games they watch on TV.

 

[ManByng]

Forget about first row, I try to avoid the lower bowl altogether.

I have found that the top row of the lower bowl, though expensive, is perfect because of the fact that you're already closer to the action than the upper bowl and your right beside the concession and the bathrooms.

 

[rypper]

Idiots who like to pound on the glass.

You know, I'll admit I always scoff at those people, make fun of them, call it ridiculous etc. And then I sat 1st row at the glass.

Something weird takes over you and you can't help but smack the glass. After you feel shame, but in the moment? Your life's goal is to slap that glass so hard every player knows it.