The Calgary Flames were once guaranteed to sell out practically every single game of the season. However, over the last couple of years, attendance at Flames games has been lower than usual. It first started to be seen after the COVID-19 pandemic, where it’s likely that Flames fans just couldn’t justify spending money on tickets as regularly as before.
During the 2023–24 season, the Flames averaged an attendance of 17,490, bringing them to a percent capacity of 90.1%. So far this season, the Flames have averaged around the same—with an average attendance of 17,344—bringing them to a percent capacity of 89.9%. A slight decrease from the year prior, but nothing notable.
With the Flames going into a retool/rebuild phase, has this affected how many fans are attending games? We asked, you answered.
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Are readers going to more or less games this year?
We presented the below poll to our readers.
More than last year
Roughly 23% of responses indicated that they are going to more games than last year. This could be due to the excitement that the younger Flames players bring to the ice.
Matt Coronato is finally establishing himself as an NHL regular and a consistent goal-scoring threat, Connor Zary is one of the most exciting players to watch on the Flames roster, Dustin Wolf is getting regular starts and is fighting for the Calder trophy, and Jakob Pelletier is getting NHL games.
If there is one incentive to go to Flames games this year, it’s to watch the future of the franchise showcase their skills.
Same as last year
Most responses have indicated that they are going to roughly the same number of games that they did last year. This lines up with the actual attendance numbers, as mentioned above.
At the end of the day, the Flames are not going to be fighting for the Stanley Cup. For fans who may want a high chance the Flames will win the game they attend—who wouldn’t?—there is not much incentive for them to pay for the tickets to attend these games. Overall, it’s not surprising that most people aren’t changing their attendance habits.
Less than last year
Roughly 30% of responses stated that they are going to less than last year. The Flames are just entering their retool/rebuild phase, so outside of Dustin Wolf, they don’t have any truly elite-level prospects or young players playing NHL games yet, and they won’t until next year at the earliest if Zayne Parekh makes the jump to the big league.
Additionally, if the Flames continue to decline and sell off their assets, they should be restocking their cupboard in the NHL draft with younger elite players then. So, as of right now, this isn’t the most exciting timeline of their retool/rebuild.
Besides, the Saddledome isn’t getting any younger, and until Scotia Place is completed in 2027, I would expect Flames game attendance to remain steady until then.
Attendance has been steady
Though games are not being sold out, Flames game attendance has remained consistent and is not too much of a cause for concern. They are in the bottom half of the league for attendance, which is not great. However, when we take into account the state the team is in and the fact that a new arena is in the process of being built, it’s definitely not surprising.
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