The Montreal Canadiens gave their season ticket holders a delightful surprise for the upcoming season by releasing a statement saying that if fans want printed tickets they will be charged with an additional ‘printing fee’. Habs spokesperson Francois Marchand confirmed this by stating that the default option now is mobile e-tickets, whereas traditional printed tickets will now cost an additional $150 (per seat, with additional tax).

Now, I agree that we should be moving towards e-tickets and doing our best to avoid producing more waste, but charging $150 for printed copies? That’s Steep. That’s so steep, you could (if you really wanted) pay for a ticket to a Maple Leafs game, have three beers, and buy some popcorn. Printing costs may be an expense that teams are looking to cut but with the already extortionate price of tickets, surely you should let the fans choose, not force them into an option with added fees. For most fans, games are an experience that people want to be able to remember and a good source of memories are old tickets. You can sift through your old stubs and look back on the great times you were able to have. Not dig up an old e-mail and reminisce, it doesn’t really have the same appeal, to be frank…

With season ticket prices reaching up to $9,500 Canadian dollars last year, there really needs to be better communication between the team and fans. Teams, such as the Montreal Canadiens, seem to be out of touch with the reality for most fans that they are unable to afford to see their own team play. With this news, the Toronto Maple Leafs released a statement saying that they would not be considering any additional charges for their tickets, and would not consider such fees without first passing it by fans. Maybe teams like the Canadiens should be focusing on the fact their employees are being paid salaries reaching over $2million and think about where their revenue actually comes from, to begin with. If you upset your fans with such changes then you risk losing them all together, which means you lose money, which means you lose your nice seven figure salary.

Another consideration is that some fans will have been on season ticket waiting lists for up to ten years. In this time, prices have skyrocketed and fans who eventually get their offers come through may not even be able to afford them anymore. Imagine waiting ten years, to only get an e-mail. No decorated box, no ticket, no homage to the fact you have spent all this time waiting, just a confirmation with a number. Charming.

Both the Calgary Flames and Ottawa Senators have commented upon this issue, stating that they both offer the option for mobile tickets, but do not charge for the physical copy.

Thank you for reading this piece on the new Canadiens ticket printing charges, what do you guys think? Should they take back such charges? Or do you think it’s time to move into the future and push electronic tickets?

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-Theodore