Jihadist al-Bucky starts up with tickets yet again
The Buffalo News’ Bucky Gleason is just so desperate to see his prediction come true.
On no less than two occasions, he has pontificated in his columns about the coming meltdown in ticket sales, and how Sabres fans are on the cusp of abandoning the team in droves after the team’s front office incompetence in failing to resign their marquee players. But the reaity is quite the opposite, interest in Sabres tickets remains strong and even he admits that for the most part, the calls the Sabres are fielding are from fans asking if they have moved up on the season ticket waiting list. (Something you already learned days ago if you are a reader of this space.)
But Bucky won’t give up easily… his latest plan? RAISE TICKET PRICES! And to back up his rationale, he turns to one of the greediest money mongerers in the city, someone who has given almost nothing back to this community, Delaware North’s Jeremy Jacobs. (By the way Jeremy, how’s Seth doing?) Says Jacobs…
Jacobs was recently elected as chairman of the board of governors. He said Rochester billionaire Tom Golisano is the right owner for the Sabres, but Jacobs believes higher ticket prices would ease the financial pressure on the organization.
“We’re still driven very much by our ticket revenue,” Jacobs said. “The attendance in Buffalo is strong. Buffalo has had a very low ticket price for a number of years. As long as the interest is strong as it is, it may be painful, but people may have to pay more for tickets. . . . On a comparative basis, when you’re paying comparative salaries, you need comparative income.”
Bucky goes on to suggest that a modest $2 hike in ticket prices would be the panacea… raising $1.5-million.
This is where Bucky needs to get out of his popcorn munching, free-wified pressbox cocooned world and spend some time in the stands with the ticketed consumer. For the Sabres DID indeed raise season ticket prices, and the average increase was? Yes, $2. Furthermore, single ticket prices and gold, silver, bronze and value categories have yet to be announced. My guess is that you will see a more substantial increase for those single tickets, and more games being designated into that gold and silver category.
I will say it again… when it comes to marketing this team, selling tickets, and keeping fans satisfied, the Sabres get it. They understand this market, and while they could always do some things to improve, this is one area of the organization where they should be commended.
Your next fatwa oh al-Bucky? Inshallah, we all await!
Alex Says:July 15th, 2007 at 10:14 am
I just saw Bucky’s column in the paper so you can take credit for “scooping” him here with your story a few days ago on how people are still in line for Sabres tickets.
I think your muslim references are totally funny. I can just imagine a cartoon of Bucky wearing a dark hood with Saudi Arabian alphabet and letters and holding a AK47 with Quinn kneeling on the ground awaiting his beheading.
Jon Splett Says:July 15th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
When I lived in Salem,MA and the topic of hockey would come up the response was always the same.
“I used to watch hockey until Jeremy Jacobs bought the Bruins.”
If there is one person you DON’T want to be taking advice on what to do with your hockey team it’s him. Boston went from being a hockey town before his arrival to the Bruins being an afterthought since he took over. The guy could easily make the top five of ‘worst owners in sports’ which is probably why the worst columnist at the paper thinks it’s a good idea to ask him what he thinks.
starbuck Says:July 15th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
The Islamic verbiage is juvenile at best. I won’t even say what it is at worst.
And you seem to know a lot more about Mr. Jacobs lack of giving back to the community than do the UB web site and Roswell Park web sites, each of which is littered with these apparently false claims of his “giving back” in time and money, to UB, the United Way, and Roswell:
http://www.buffalo.edu/ubcouncil/members_jacobs.htm
http://www.roswellpark.org/Giving/About_Us/Newsroom/Jeremy_Jacobs_Family_Makes_1_Million_Gift
Peter Naylon Says:July 15th, 2007 at 10:02 pm
What do you expect in a one newspaper town? But, that being said, I live in New York City (a veritable three-newpaper town) and our chief hockey scribe; one Larry Brooks of the New York Post, is a complete and absolute moron. Call Bucky what you want but the guy was the only one in the Buffalo media to grill Quinn and Regier. Was he zealous to the point of embarrasment? Maybe, but I’ll stand by most of what he was saying and still give him credit for putting up a fight. As for the Kulyk brothers, the jury is still out.
Andrew Kulyk Says:July 16th, 2007 at 7:50 am
Starbuck… the Muslim references absolutely ARE juvenile. Sometimes a little silliness is OK too and we’re here to have some fun so no need to be dour and stoic.
Being a UB School of Management grad, I am very much aware of the Jacobs’ philanthropy to the college. But here is the seamy underbelly… rare is the time that they do anything for the community out of sheer altruism. Underneath the veneer of a donation is usually some quid pro quo for beverage pouring rights, a Sportservice concession contract or some other side deal to benefit their bottom line.
As for Bucky I have said it before and I will say it again… he is a pretty good darned journalist. I have watched him work and I am a fan of his hockey column and he does his job well. I just don’t understand why he has gotten this bee in his bonnet on this issue. Raising ticket prices a good thing? Sort of like saying raising gas to $5 will help us because oil companies will have reason to seek out new energy sources.
Let’s take Bucky’s argument to an absurd degree… let’s raise ticket prices to an average of $500 ticket. Sabres fans will bail on buying tickets, idiot Leafs fans will snap up the 18,000 tickets for their four games because those morons will pay anything. End result? $36-million in revenue from the Leafs games, empty arenas the rest of the time, and Bucky proclaiming that yes, he was right all along… Fans are no longer buying tickets and it’s all because Quinn and Regier are to blame.
Product pricing… it all affects supply and demand… something I learned in college in Economincs 101.. while sitting in my beautiful classroom in the Jacobs Management Center. (Right down the hall from the Sportservice cafeteria.)
Alex Says:July 16th, 2007 at 10:41 am
There are two Kulyk brothers? I’ll buy a ticket if they do a charity tag team wrestling match against Bucky and Jerry!
Keller Says:July 17th, 2007 at 5:49 am
Just out of curiosity…how would we know if Jacobs made an altruistic donation?
Maybe he already has.
I don’t like the idea of painting a man as a Mr. Burns without all the facts.
Jon Splett Says:July 18th, 2007 at 9:51 am
I think the portrait of Jacobs as Mr.Burns was put to canvas long ago. Back in 2001, Page 2 named him their “Worst Owner in Sports” and he hasn’t exactly proved anybody wrong with the Bruins since.
http://espn.go.com/page2/s/2001/0710/1224543.html