Many National Hockey League players inhale smelling salts on the bench before every game, and despite knowing exactly what to expect from the pungent chemicals in those nasty little vials, they still appear shocked at every whiff.

That mental image could apply to some Edmonton Oilers season ticket holders when their smelling salts arrived recently in the form of a pamphlet detailing the cost of playoff tickets.

They had to know it was coming, but holy sticker shock, Batman.

Some fans are reporting first round price increases of 44 per cent to 62 per cent over the regular season. Should the Oilers advance, the price keeps going up each round.

(Assuming of course the Oilers don't lose 15 of their final 17 games and somehow slide right out of the post-season picture, which seems highly unlikely.)

According to the pamphlet, an upper bowl seat at Rogers Place that starts at $135 to see the Oilers battle the Flames or Ducks in the first round of the playoffs will cost Joe Phan $158 in the second round, when the Oilers and Sharks pair up; $181 in the Conference Final when the Oilers meet the Minnesota Wild; and $271 in the Stanley Cup Final, when the Oilers take on the Washington Capitals. (Editor's note: Actual playoff scenario may differ wildly. Readers' discretion is advised.)

It's huge money, no doubt. It's also common practice in every city, in every major league sport.

Playoff games are seen as premium products, and sold that way all over the map. Tickets to championship games, like the World Series, NBA Finals and Super Bowl, are even more outrageously expensive. It doesn't make it right, it just makes it the way business is done in pro sports.

Nevertheless, some Oiler fans have taken to social media to vent their spleens. Others have mused publicly about selling entirely different organs, like kidneys, to pay for the privilege of watching playoff hockey for the first time in 11 years.

They were kidding. We think. But hey, this is a hockey town.

Some of those complaining about the hikes have done so in the context of having supported a dreadful team through an entire dreadful decade, paying good money for bad hockey and worse off-ice decision-making, only to have said franchise jack up the prices at the very first opportunity, taking advantage of fans old and new.

It's an argument that relies on the notion of loyalty as a two-way street. Not so much.

Even so, it is a tad flip to chide those complainers for buying tickets they didn't have to buy throughout the gory years.

Because, as Edmonton's previous trips through the emotional wringer have proven, there is a tangible risk to tuning out any pro sports franchise en masse, and team owners will use that threat of relocation as leverage when it suits their ends.

This city has moved past that stage, thankfully, but paid a hefty price to move the Oilers into a swanky new barn, which in turn has sparked a downtown building boom and re-energized the city's core, particularly on game nights. So yes, there has been significant return on investment.

The team, coincidentally, has enjoyed its own revival, and playoffs almost certainly await those willing to pay the price to see them in person.

There is, however, a respite for season ticket holders who don't want to sell a vital organ or pay the playoff premium this spring. Though the Oilers chose not to offer up a spokesperson to address the specifics of the price increases, I was told that any season ticket holder who opts out of the playoffs will not be unduly impacted next season. His or her playoff seats will be sold to somebody else, of course, but come October, there will be no effect on anyone's standing as a season seat holder.

And there will be plenty of ways for all hockey fans, whether they have tickets or not, to get into the playoff spirit here. With huge video screens, bars and restaurants and public space, Ice District has been configured for exactly this eventuality and should replace Whyte Avenue as playoff central if the Oilers get on a run and the town goes gaga.

The Oilers have already been a more relevant entity this season than in any of the previous 10, and the anticipation of a playoff berth, perhaps even a series win, has filled the air with the scent of unbridled optimism for awhile now. It's a welcome change.

Edmontonians haven't had good reason to paint their houses in Oiler colours, fly flags from car windows, or grow playoff beards since 2006. Nor have fans had to pay at least 44 per cent more for the privilege of watching a post-season game.

In a big-league town, come playoff time, that is literally the price of admission. It really shouldn't come as a shock to anyone anymore.

dbarnes@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/jrnlbarnes