Fred Harbinson is encouraging fans to take advantage of early-bird ticket prices and secure their tickets now for the 2017 Crescent Point Western Canada Cup Junior-A hockey championship.
The Penticton Vees president, GM and head coach said the club is at around 30 per cent of their ticket sales target for the tournament, which the city will host for the first time ever April 29 to May 7, 2017.
“Things have been pretty steady but we’re just hoping to keep the momentum going and avoid the lull in July,” explained Harbinson. “Why spend the extra money if you don’t have to?”
Harbinson said the Vees are continuing to make it more affordable for everyone to enjoy watching games at the South Okanagan Events Centre – be it the league, playoffs or an event such as the WCC.
He said fans can book their WCC tickets with a minimum $25 deposit and can pay the balance of the $129 through an installment plan.
“We recognize every dollar is important to families,” said Harbinson.
He said it will cost around $700,000 to stage the tournament, which features the host Vees and the champions from the B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba Junior-A leagues.
The top two teams advance to the RBC Cup national championship later in May.
“When I took over as president (before 2013-14), we had our eyes on hosting one of those two big competitions and the timing of the WCC made most sense for us,” said Harbinson. “People have been asking for us to host, we put together the bid and now here we are … and we need people on board, especially with the early-bird promotion we have going now.”
Harbinson noted the WCC ticket packages were much more expensive the past two years — $250 this past year in Estevan and $275 in 2014-15 when the Vees won the WCC in Fort McMurray, Alta.
“We have the nicest arena in Junior-A hockey and we’ve had consistently the best on-ice product over the last several years,” said Harbinson. “We’re really excited with what we’ve created here.”
Harbinson said with hosting the WCC, the Vees have asked sponsors to give a little bit extra this season.
“The response has been positive,” said Harbinson. “We’ve emphasized their importance and how they’re a big part of the team and what we do here.”
Thanks to a partnership with Penticton-based Peter Bros. Construction, fans age 18 and
under have been admitted to Vees games free of charge the last two years. That initiative continues again this season and also includes the WCC games, Harbinson said.
“We’re really excited to be able to offer that to our younger fans,” said Harbinson.
The partnership with Peter Bros. has helped boost the Vees average attendance, though it had been trending in that direction
after the Vees dropped their season’s ticket prices dramatically when Harbinson became president.
“We upset a lot of other teams in the league because they felt we were undervaluing our product,” said Harbinson. “But we wanted to make it more affordable, and with our corporate involvement on promotions like the ‘Wicked Wednesdays’, coupled with a top-notch on-ice product, we’ve now got an outstanding atmosphere for every home game.”
The Vees averaged 1,786 fans in 2012-13, down significantly after the Vees magnificent 2011-12 national-championship winning season when they averaged 2,108 in the regular season and 2,762 overall.
This year, the Vees averaged 2,560 overall including playoffs. In the last two seasons, they have only had four crowds under 2,000 fans.
Harbinson has also been busy with his GM’s duties in the past few months, building a team capable of again contending for a national championship.
“We’re going to have a real solid team again … a bit older with real good size,” said Harbinson. “We’re going to be exciting to watch again.”
For regular season/playoffs and WCC ticket bookings and information, contact director of corporate sales and group tickets Laura Carleton at the Vees office at the SOEC at 250-493-8337.
