Detroit Red Wings Clips June 2, 2016 Detroit Red Wings PAGE 2 A look at the Detroit Red Wings' exhibition schedule PAGE 3 Wings to face Crosby twice in preseason PAGE 4 Wings fans face price hikes in new arena PAGE 7 Red Wings face Penguins, Bruins, Blackhawks and Maple Leafs in preseason
A look at the Detroit Red Wings' exhibition schedule Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press 1:46 p.m. EDT June 1, 2016 The Detroit Red Wings released their 2016 exhibition schedule today, and familiar rivals dot the early autumn audition landscape. The Wings host Pittsburgh on Sept. 27, play Sept. 28 at Boston, and then host the Bruins on Sept. 30. Oct. 2 has the Wings hosting the Chicago Blackhawks, and the 4th has the Wings at Chicago, followed by another road game the next night at Pittsburgh. As usual, the exhibition season closes with a home-and-home against the Toronto Maple Leafs, with the Wings in Toronto on Oct. 7 and hosting the Leafs Saturday, Oct. 8. The Wings' exhibition season has gotten more interesting as the club has shifted from a veterans-weighted philosophy to more of a youth movement. Last September, 19-yearold Dylan Larkin used the audition to convince coaches and management that he not only was ready for the NHL, he was capable of playing among the top six forwards. This September could be big for 2013 first-round pick Anthony Mantha -- he is coming off of a good second year of pro hockey in Grand Rapids (he led the Griffins with 11 playoff points and had 21 goals among 45 points in 60 regular-season games) and scored twice during a 10-game stretch with the Wings in March. He turns 22 in September. Mantha isn't the only prospect who will be under scrutiny. Tyler Bertuzzi (seven goals in nine AHL playoff games) could use exhibition games to leave the impression that he should be high on the list when the Wings inevitably need to make a call-up because of injuries. On the back end, Xavier Ouellet already is penned onto next season's Detroit squad. But Ryan Sproul and Nick Jensen also are out of waiver-exempt status. It's certainly realistic that one or more gets moved during the summer, because the Wings aren't going to field three inexperienced defensemen when the regular season begins. The 2016-17 NHL regular-season schedule is slated to be released later this month Detroit Free Press LOADED: 06.02.2016 2
Wings to face Crosby twice in preseason The Detroit News 1:48 p.m. EDT June 1, 2016 The Red Wings will face Sidney Crosby and the Stanley Cup finalist Penguins twice in the 2016-17 preseason. Detroit will open the preseason against Pittsburgh Sept. 27 at Joe Louis Arena. They'll face the Penguins at Consol Energy Center Oct. 5. Pittsburgh heads into Game 2 of the Stanley Cup final tonight against the Sharks. The Penguins won the opener 3-2 Monday. The Wings will also host Boston (Sept. 30), Chicago (Oct. 2) and Mike Babcock and the Maple Leafs (Oct. 8). The other road games are against the Bruins (Sept. 28), Hawks (Oct. 4) and Leafs (Oct. 7). Tickets for the preseason will go on sale Aug. 19. Detroit News LOADED: 06.02.2016 3
Wings fans face price hikes in new arena Gregg Krupa, The Detroit News 5:23 a.m. EDT June 2, 2016 Detroit Thousands of Detroit Red Wings season ticket holders are beginning to discover how much more it will cost to move into Little Caesars Arena, scheduled to open for the 2017-18 NHL season. Details presented to the customers at meetings that began late last month and will extend into the summer reveal that the lower bowl of the new arena will sweep back and up from the ice at almost precisely the same angle as the lower bowl of Joe Louis Arena, affording much the same sight lines. Next season, the last for the Red Wings in Joe Louis Arena, those tickets will cost mostly $92-$120, up from $90-$109 last season. In Little Caesars Arena, they will cost $100-$240, except for in the premium club area, where the most expensive seat costs $330. Some fans can afford the new seats. Others have complaints. Joe Pirronello of Westland has had season tickets since the 1950s at the old Olympia and he said he s satisfied with his new circumstances. I locked in a pair of tickets, he said.... The way it all ended up, it really was not as bad as I thought. Tom Wilson, the president of Olympia Entertainment, said it s been somewhat easier to keep people in approximately the same areas, moving from building to building. What we do have is 9,000 seats in the lower bowl versus 6,000 at The Joe, so we have a lot more great seats to offer, Wilson said. But certain people are going to have to move back a little. Seats start closer to ice The top price at Little Caesars Arena is for two large club sections stretching from ice level to the top of the lower bowl and from just inside one blue line to just inside the other blue line on both sides of the ice, a total of 1,400 seats. Parking and all food, beer and wine are complimentary, and access to the seats is available only through the club entrances. In the mezzanine and upper bowl of Little Caesars Arena, the seats will rise more abruptly than in Joe Louis Arena as they sweep back from the ice. They also start closer to the rink. The plan is to provide improved sight angles from those locations, and they are similar to the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh and Montreal s Bell Centre. Next season, at Joe Louis Arena, season tickets in similar areas will range from $33 to $95, up from $30 to $89 this season. 4
In the first season in Little Caesars Arena, season tickets in the mezzanine will begin at $65 and increase to $70 in rows two through five. A seat in the first row is $98. And another club at that level will cost $126 and include parking, but not concessions. In the upper bowl of the new arena, tickets will range from $40 to $65. The cheapest season ticket at Joe Louis Arena last season was $30. Choices, choices Pirronello said he faced a tough decision: Would he pay a 100 percent increase from the $120 next season at Joe Louis Arena for similar seats, but with complimentary parking, food and light alcohol at Little Caesars Arena? Or would he pay just $10 more for a seat that puts him farther from the action, without the freebies? Pirronello s new seats are only two rows higher and about five yards farther from center ice, for which he will pay $130. His six decades of seniority helped. Others may be less fortunate. Lou Giroux, of Dearborn Heights, bought season tickets at the Olympia in 1974, about 20 years after Pirronello. Giroux said he cannot afford $240, and the $130 seats likely to be offered him will be farther away from center ice than Pirronello s. He said he is considering moving up the mezzanine, if he can stay near center ice, or not making a purchase. I m just a hockey fan. I m not a big corporation or a doctor or a lawyer or an accountant or anything like that, Giroux said. They are trying to turn the center area on both sides into a corporate area, resold every year, and eating 2,000 meals every year. They can do what they want, but I don t have to pay it. Face-to-face talks with fans Ticket prices rise every time a stadium or arena in professional sports is replaced. New seats offering new amenities cost more for season ticket buyers. Premium seating helps raise revenue needed for construction, the continuing operation of the franchise and to enhance profitability. Red Wings officials knew they would face some issues with the team s passionate, longtime season ticket customers. They say they are helped by advantages in the new building and strong direction from the Ilitch family. In most buildings, they ll go from goal line to goal line with their club seats, said John Ciszewski, senior vice president of sales. What was most important to our ownership was: Displace as few people as you possibly can. They also wanted the tightest bowl possible. Now, it s a reality when you have a new arena that you re going to have beachfront property and you re going to try to get as much as you can out of the beachfront 5
property. But they were really adamant, so our club seats are just beyond in the blue lines. Special attention is required, Wilson said, when about 1,500 of the 14,000 season ticket customers have at least 38 years of seniority and 50 percent have 20 years. That s why John made the decision, we want to bring them all in one at a time, he said. No emails. Nothing impersonal. We ve had people here since the 30s, Ciszewski said. We were not naive enough to believe that we weren t going to have some tough conversations. We didn t want to hide behind a computer. We wanted to have those conversations face-to-face. I will tell you, we ve had people come in here with no color on their face because they were expecting the worst, and by the time you take them through and get them into the conference room and they see the price, you can see their shoulders just relax. We ve had a couple of people walk out without getting their seats. They were a little upset. We said, Hey, we re just starting the process. Give us a chance. Don t close us out, yet. We ll get back to you. Detroit News LOADED: 06.02.2016 6
Red Wings face Penguins, Bruins, Blackhawks and Maple Leafs in preseason Ansar Khan akhan1@mlive.com By Ansar Khan akhan1@mlive.com on June 01, 2016 at 1:18 PM, updated June 01, 2016 at 1:21 PM DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings will face some familiar foes during the preseason during their final season at Joe Louis Arena. The eight-game schedule features home-and-home sets against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs. Here is the complete schedule: Sept. 27 vs. Pittsburgh at Joe Louis Arena, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 28 vs. Boston at TD Garden, 7 p.m. Sept. 30 vs. Boston at Joe Louis Arena, 7:30 p.m. Oct. 2 vs. Chicago at Joe Louis Arena, 6 p.m. Oct. 4 vs. Chicago at United Center, 8:30 p.m. Oct. 5 vs. Pittsburgh at Consol Energy Center, TBA Oct. 7 vs. Toronto at Air Canada Centre, TBA Oct. 8 vs. Toronto at Joe Louis Arena, 7 p.m. Michigan Live LOADED: 06.02.2016 7