The Utah Hockey Club had no problem selling out their very first game at the Delta Center on Tuesday, a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.

The capacity for each game is 16,020, including 4,889 obstructed-view seats or what the team calls “single-goal view” seats. The club sold off-season tickets for the 2024-2025 season, for a total of approximately 8,500 full-season equivalents between half- and full-season packages. The availability of individual game tickets varies per game. On weekends and for high-demand games, the team can provide up to 5,000 single-goal seats, according to Smith Entertainment Group.

How much does a ticket cost for one game?

That depends. Prices vary depending on a number of factors, including when tickets are purchased, the opponent and the date and time of the game.

Take Utah’s next home game, Oct. 19, against the Boston Bruins, one of the NHL’s most storied franchises. Tickets range from $101 in the upper bowl to $757 at center ice in the lower bowl as of Wednesday afternoon, according to the Utah Hockey Club website, which directs online buyers to official ticketing partner SeatGeek.

Three nights later, when the Ottawa Senators come to town, the range drops from $44 for seats in the top bowl to $314 for seats in the bottom of the bowl. Prices rose again when the Colorado Avalanche hit the ice at the Delta Center two nights afterward.

According to Ticketmaster, the average ticket for a 2024-25 NHL game costs $100 to $120.

Utah Hockey Club owner Ryan Smith acknowledged the high prices and said the trend in the sport is for player salaries and ticket prices to increase.

“We are doing everything we can in that regard,” he said.

On a budget

To take a smaller bite out of fans’ wallets, the team previously announced what Smith called the “Augusta National version” of concessions. The famous Masters golf tournament site sells sandwiches, snacks and drinks for $3 or less. At the Delta Center this season, some vendors are offering popcorn, nachos, hot dogs and ice cream bowls for $3 each. Dasani water bottles are available at all retailers for $2.

The team also has a multi-year agreement with Nomi Health to offer 100 partial ice view tickets in the upper bowl free to the community at each game, along with a hot dog and one non-alcoholic drink.

“Especially with hockey right now, we want as many people to participate as possible,” Smith said as the team just opened its first season in Salt Lake City. But, he added, it is kind of “forbidden” for us in terms of views.

When the club announced single-match ticket sales in the summer, partial viewing seats started at $19.

Smith Entertainment Group plans to remodel the arena to improve sight lines for hockey while maintaining it as a basketball venue for the Utah Jazz.

“In hockey we do our best with the partial view seats. Once we have 17,000 seats here, it will be a completely different program,” said Smith.