Bill for Duck Seats Not Cheap : Hockey: Some fans decry team’s prices for Anaheim Arena’s least costly tickets.

The NHL comes to Anaheim this October, but seeing the Mighty Ducks play in person is going to cost some Almighty Bucks.

The average single-game ticket price at Anaheim Arena next season will be $31.80, and the cheapest single-game ticket in the 17,278-seat facility will be $18--$7 more than the least expensive seat for the Kings at the Forum this season.

Hockey fans who thought they would trim their game-day commutes and save a little money in the process by switching their allegiance to the Ducks are finding out that expansion hockey doesn’t mean inexpensive hockey.

Though the Ducks ticket prices for next season appear to be similar to Kings prices this season in the middle ranges and less expensive in some upper ranges, the cheapest per-game price for season tickets for the Ducks will be $16, which is $6 more than at the Forum.

The average per-game price for season tickets in the 5,202-seat lower level at Anaheim Arena will be $44.62. In the upper level, the average will be $19.94.

“Don’t you think that’s ridiculous?” said Dawn Geery, of Walnut, who owns Kings season tickets with her husband, David, and his brother and sister-in-law. “I thought it was going to be a nice family thing, this Mighty Duck thing with Disney. God, no way. I was thinking it would be $12 to $15. This much? For an expansion team?”

The Geerys pay $27.50 each per game for what she calls their “decent” season seats, two rows down from Kings owner Bruce McNall’s box.

“This isn’t affordable at all. We might as well keep going to the Forum,” she said. “Who are the Ducks going to have? The attractive thing with a new team was going as a family thing, saving money.”

The season and single-game ticket prices the Walt Disney Co. announced Monday for next season fall somewhere between the least expensive in the NHL this season--a general-admission seat in Winnipeg costs $9, about $7.50 in U.S. funds--and the most expensive--a front-row seat between the blue lines to watch the Kings at the Forum costs $280.

They are not out of line with recent expansion team pricing. The Ottawa Senators, who sold out for the season before ever playing a game and have won only nine times all season, have the most expensive “cheap” ticket in the NHL at $21.95--about $18.50 in U.S. funds.

The least expensive ticket in the lower level of the San Jose Sharks new arena next season will be $38, compared to $32 at Anaheim Arena.

Overall, the average Duck ticket price is $5.80 more than the NHL average of $26 this season, though that figure is somewhat skewed by the fact that the eight Canadian teams’ prices are not in U.S. funds, and some teams are likely to raise prices for next season.

“I believe this pricing is going to work with the market in Orange County,” said Jack Lindquist, president of Disneyland and chairman of the Mighty Ducks.

The least expensive season ticket price for a 41-game home schedule is $656, and would buy a seat in the upper level behind the goal line. The most expensive, at $5,125, would buy one of the 174 seats on the front row, excluding the 18 behind the goals that are $75 per game.

Prices have not yet been set for luxury boxes or club seats, whose price includes the right to the seating for all entertainment events at the arena during the year.

Among the other key prices for hockey:

--Seats between the face-off circles on the lower level are priced at $50 for season-ticket purchase, $55 otherwise. Lower-level corner seats are priced at $40 for season-ticket purchase, $45 otherwise. Seats behind the goal line on the lower level are $32 for season-ticket purchase, $35 otherwise.

--One of the better deals might be the first three rows of the upper level, which are closer to the ice than in other buildings because the seating structure is steep. Those tickets are $25 for season purchase, $28 for single games. Other upper-level prices range for season sales are $16, $19 and $22.

--Handicapped seating is available for 80 people at $28.77, which is the average price of all other seats. The Kings’ price for handicapped seating is $2, as is the Lakers.

Disney’s purpose in announcing its season ticket prices--which include a discount of about 10% over single-game tickets--is to move forward in meeting the NHL’s final requirement for the team to play in the 1993-94 season by selling 10,000 season tickets.

Disney officials said single-game tickets will not go on sale for some time, and that people who have put their names on Disney’s list of season-ticket prospects will be contacted and need not telephone or write the team again.

“If you’re on the priority list, you can be assured that you will be hearing from us regarding securing your seats,” said Tony Tavares, president of Disney Sports Enterprises.

Though some fans expressed dismay at the prices, others were more accepting.

“To me, it seems kind of high because it’s a newer team, but I know they’re trying to take advantage of the newness of the Ducks,” said Mark Shimamoto, of Fountain Valley, who shares Kings season tickets with a group of friends and is considering switching to the Ducks.

Duane Kasulka of Fountain Valley, one of Shimamoto’s friends, says he pays $17 per game for his Kings season tickets that he describes as “halfway up the colonnade.” But he says he will switch to the Ducks.

“I definitely will,” he said. “I’m going to drop the Kings just because the Ducks are closer. I probably can only afford to go up to $25 or $32, though.

“It’s disappointing that they don’t have the $10 seats like the Kings had. People went specifically for the $10 seats, which accommodate your everyday family, which is what (Disney) was going after.”

Families who were encouraged by Disney’s involvement were more taken aback by the prices than other groups.

Under the prices announced Monday, it will cost $12 more for an 11-year-old to watch a single-game from Anaheim Arena’s lower level than it would for the child to spend the day at Disneyland, where admission is $23 for children younger than 12.

“I guess I’m really shocked,” said Lorie Geery, of Huntington Beach, who goes to Kings games with her in-laws. She and her husband, Paul, have three young children. The last time they went to a Kings game, ushers told them that their oldest, at 4, now requires a ticket.

“We were kind of thinking we could get three tickets to the Mighty Ducks for the price of two to the Kings,” she said. “This is really blowing me away. We were definitely changing because we were sick and tired of fighting the crowds going to L.A.”

Jeff Derrico, who teaches elementary school in Garden Grove and lives in Rancho Santa Margarita, said he and his wife expect to attend Ducks games because “Transportation-wise, it’s closer.”

The couple recently took their month-old baby to a Kings game.

“We took her and she loved it, all the noise and lights,” Derrico said.

But he knows that in a few years, his daughter will be old enough to require a seat, too.

“That’s expensive,” he said. “I don’t know if they will, but it would be nice if they had some kind of family deal.”

Lindquist said family or children’s prices were discussed, as were packages under which fans could purchase partial season-ticket plans. But those types of projects will have to wait.

“We need to know what our season ticket base is going to be,” he said. “We may (introduce other plans) in the future, but for now we are going with the prices released today. Based on the tremendous number of inquiries and the response we had, we felt this was the pricing to put in place.”

Those who balk at the prices are offended that they will pay similar prices to watch an expansion team as they would to watch Wayne Gretzky in the next county.

“I’m not going to pay that kind of money to see a team lose every night,” David Geery said.

Dawn Geery remembers that when she and her husband first began attending Kings games, they were able to get in on $5 student tickets that are no longer available because the games sell out. She has watched ticket prices climb since Gretzky arrived in 1988.

“If they lost back then, you only lost 10 bucks,” she said. “Now by the time we pay for our seats, park, and get a baby-sitter, it costs over $100 every game. Now when they lose, we feel like going down and beating the heck out of ‘em.”

Ducks Set Ticket Prices

It will cost anywhere from $16 to $125 to watch the Mighty Ducks in their inaugural season, which begins in October.

LOWER BOWL

Seating category Sections Glass 1st row of: 202-214, 216-228 Rear Glass 1st row of: 201 and 215 Main 206-210, 220-224 Corner 204, 205, 211, 212, 218, 219, 225, 226 Rear 201-203, 213-217, 227-228

UPPER BOWL

Seating category Sections Lower 1st three rows of all Level 400 sections Main 409-414, 431-436 Corner 404-408, 415-419, 426-430, 437-441 Rear 401-403, 420-425, 442-444 Handicapped Seating N/A

PREMIUM SEATING

Seating category Sections Lower, Upper, Season Tickets 301-326

LOWER BOWL

Regular Single season ticket Seating category Capacity (per game) (per game) Glass 174 $125.00 $125.00 Rear Glass 18 75.00 75.00 Main 2,150 50.00 55.00 Corner 1,252 40.00 45.00 Rear 1,608 32.00 35.00 Total/average lower bowl 5,202 $44.62 $48.82

UPPER BOWL

Regular Single season ticket Seating category Capacity (per game) (per game) Lower 1,354 $25.00 $28.00 Main 2,135 22.00 25.00 Corner 3,611 19.00 21.00 Rear 2,165 16.00 18.00 Handicapped Seating 80 28.77 31.80 Total/average upper bowl 9,345 $19.94 $22.33

PREMIUM SEATING

Regular Single season ticket Seating category Capacity (per game) (per game) Lower, Upper, Season Tickets 2,731 To be decided To be decided Total capacity 17,278

Pricing the Mighty Ducks Over the counter (1993-94): $18, $21, $25, $28, $31.80, $35, $45, $55, $75, $125. Season subscription (1993-94): $16, $19, $22, $25, $28.77, $32, $40, $50, $75, $125. Boxes: To be announced. Parking: $6.

How the Ducks Stack Up

KINGS (FORUM) Over the counter (1992-93): $11, $20, $22, $33, $40, $45, $60, $70. Senate seat rental (yearly): $9,750, $8,650, $7,750. Parking: $6.

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS (CHICAGO STADIUM) Over the counter (1992-93): $17, $23, $35. Box seats (1992-93): $60. Parking: $4-10.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS (NASSAU COLISEUM) Over the counter (1992-93): $14, $24, $30, $35. Season subscription (1992-93): $14, $17, $23, $27.50, $60. Sky box rentals per year: $125,000 with minimum three-year contract. Parking: Prices not available.

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS (THE SPECTRUM) Over the counter (1992-93): $14.50, $19.50, $25, $27.50, $35, $40. Season subscription (1992-93): $12.50, $15.50, $21, $22.50, $30, $35. Luxury suite rentals (yearly with minimum three-year contract): $75,000 $125,000; $135,000 with minimum five-year contract. Club seats (yearly): $9,500. Parking: $4

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (EXPOSITION HALL) Over the counter (1992-93): $12, $19.50, $28.50, $34.50, $50. Parking: $5.

THE NHL AS A WHOLE 1992-93 average price: $26 (up from $23 last season). Cheapest: $7.50 U.S. general admission at Winnipeg. Prices of low-end tickets for other franchises include $9.50 at Minnesota, $11 for the Kings, $12 for Tampa Bay and New York Rangers, $18 for The Mighty Ducks and $18.50 U.S. for Ottawa. Most expensive: $280 for first row behind glass between the blue lines for the Kings, $125 for first row behind glass for Mighty Ducks, $84 U.S. for Senate-level seats in Ottawa. Sources: NHL, Disney Sports Enterprises