Pittsburgh Penguins Tickets

About The Pittsburgh Penguins

On February 8, 1966 the National Hockey League (NHL) awarded an expansion team to Pittsburgh for the 1967-68 season. Pittsburgh had to pay a whopping $2.5 million for their entry into the NHL and $750,000 in start-up costs. The Pittsburgh Penguins’ tickets increased due to the increased capacity of the Civic Arena from 10,732 to 12,500 in order to meet the NHL standards for expansion. The Penguins also had to pay an indemnification bill in order to settle with the Detroit Red Wings, who held the rights to Pittsburgh Hornets. McGregor was named president and CEO by the investor group. Pittsburgh Penguins’ tickets were beginning to gain interest among hockey enthusiasts.

The Penguins’ opening game was on October 11th 1967, against the Montreal Canadiens. The team earned themselves a record of 27-34-13 that season and missed the playoffs. The Penguins were only six points away from first place in the West Division. A great milestone for the team was on October 21st 1967, when the Penguins became the very first team from the “expansion class” to defeat an “Original Six” team member, the Chicago Blackhawks. They won 4-2, putting the Pittsburgh Penguins’ tickets on the top of hockey fans’ lists.

Although team player Bathgate led the Penguins in scoring, he and Boivin later left the team. George Sullivan, a former player, was the head coach for two seasons and was then replaced by Hockey Hall of Famer Red Kelly. All these changes likely contributed to the Penguins missing the playoffs in 5 out of seven seasons, a fact that greatly affected ticket sales.

As if the poor sales of Pittsburgh Penguins tickets was not bad enough, in 1970 the Penguins suffered a terrible loss of a very promising rookie team member, Michel Briere, who finished third in scoring on the team. He was injured in a car crash, and after a year in the hospital. His Jersey number, 21, was the first of the franchise to be retired.

Ticket sales increase again when the team reached the playoffs in 1970. They advanced to the Western Conference Finals, but lost to the St. Louis Blues. In 1972, the Penguins managed to get into the playoffs but did not go beyond that.

In 1975, the team came extremely close to reaching the Stanley Cup semi-finals, but were defeated by the New York Islanders. With poor sales of the Pittsburgh Penguins tickets, the team’s creditors demanded repayment of their debts in 1975, forcing the team into bankruptcy. Just when it seemed as if there was no hope for this team, a group which included Wren Blair prevented the Penguins from completely disbanding. The team missed the 1977-78 season playoffs.