The Flyers rank sixth among NHL teams for the average price of a ticket and 13th in its Fan Cost Index, according to Team Marketing Report's annual assessment that came out last Friday.

An average ticket to a Flyers game costs $60.25 this season. That's above the league average of $49.66 and an 8.2 percent increase over last season. Toronto tops that list, at $76.15 per ticket. Montreal ($64.26), Vancouver ($62.05) and Boston ($61.40) follow. Minnesota is fifth at $61.28, just ahead of the Flyers. On the low end? It wouldn't cost you much to attend games in Buffalo ($36.43) and St. Louis ($29.95). The Flyers visit Buffalo in November and March, and tral to St. Louis in late January after the All-Star Game.

An average premium Flyers ticket is $173.80, this second highest in the league. The New York Rangers have far and away the most expensive premium ticket, at $254.98. Toronto is third, at $168.14. The NHL's average for a premium ticket is $113.44. Carolina's premium ticket ($75.98) ranks lowest among NHL teams. 

There are a few other interesting numbers among the average ticket prices. While Boston ranks among the top five in average ticket price, its premium ticket costs $88.93, well below the league average. Chicago, one of the league's downtrodden franchises, has an average ticket price of $52.22 and a premium ticket that averages $114.30. Washington ranks below the league average, at $41.66 (average ticket) and $130 (premium ticket)

Defending champion Detroit plays in the Joe Louis Arena, one of the older arenas in the league (opened in late 1979) and one of the few without corporate sponsorship. Tickets to those games on aveage cost $46.60 and premium tickets go for $60.89.

This Fan Cost Index (FCI) you've probably heard about before is used to measure the cost of the fan experience for all four major sports. According to the Team Marketing Report Web site, it represents "a weighted average of season ticket prices for general seating categories, determined by factoring the tickets in each price range as a percentage of the total number of seats in each stadium. It comprises the prices of four average-price tickets, two small draft beers, four small soft drinks, four regular-size hot dogs, parking for one car, two game programs and two least-expensive, adult-size adjustable caps."

This season's FCI in the NHL is $288.23, a 5.5 percent hike from last season. The Flyers' FCI rose 2.9 percent. Toronto tops all franchises in FCI, at $411.30. Montreal ranks second ($361.25) and Boston, where parking on average costs $20 and a cap costs $20, ranks third ($352.60). Carolina ($219.52) and St. Louis ($193.26) have the NHL's lowest FCIs.
      

Used to e-mail questions to a readers panel connected with the Savvy Consumer column and post their responses. Most were universal issues that just about everyone had an opinion on: ticket prices, ads placed on players oor on the playing surface, or crying in the locker room.

With a chance to bring more people into the dialogue, I'd like to start interspersing questions among the posts related specifically to teams.

So, curious how much of Saturday's game you watched? The game started just after 8 and lasted almost 5 1/2 hours, ending close to 1:30. This is an issue that comes up during every baseball postseason; the games often end so late that many people on the East Coast already are in bed. Still, with TV calling the shots, there's no hope this trend toward 8 or 8:30 p.m. starts will change anytime soon. For instance, every remaining Phillies-Dodgers game will start at 8:22. Even a game of normal length won't end until almost midnight. 

So, how late did you stay up Saturday. If you left the game, at what point or time did you decide to head to bed?

The Phillies have announced that they will hold a viewing party for Game 3 at the Great Plaza at Penn's Landing on Sunday night. The event, sponsored by the Penn's Landing Corporation, is free. It will start at 8 o'clock.

If you go, you can watch the game from Dodger Stadium on a 17’ by 27’ LED video display. Game time is 8:22 p.m. The Great Plaza is located off Columbus Boulevard, between Walnut and Market streets.

"Our fans have been so amazing all year. We all wish we could be in Los Angeles to root in person, but this is a great way to gather with fellow Phillies fans, watch the game and cheer us on to victory," wrote Michael Harris, Philies director for marketing and special projects, in an e-mail.

Special appearances will be made by the Phillie Phanatic and Phillies Ballgirls, and rally towels will be given to fans. You also can purchase a variety of snacks and beverages (nonalcoholic and beer). Guests are being asked to bring along blankets and chairs, as well as food and beverages.

Of course, last week the Eagles and Phillies played at the same time. Those with two TVs were in the best shape; otherwise it was an afternoon spent clicking the remote back and forth. This Sunday both teams will be on the West Coast. The Eagles will play the 49ers at 4:15 in the Bay Area, and almost certainly will be over before the first pitch is thrown at Dodger Stadium.

There was talk of arranging a public viewing of last Saturday's NLDS Game 3 at Milwaukee, but those plans were trashed when word of Bruce Springsteen's free concert on the Parkway for Barack Obama was announced.

The Phillies are planning to give you another choice on where to watch Game 3 of their series against the Dodgers on Sunday night. Little information has been released as yet, but team officials are saying that they're planning a public viewing of the game at Penn's Landing starting at 8 on Sunday night.

Game time is 8:22 p.m. in Los Angeles.

Of course, last week the Eagles and Phillies played at the same time. Those with two TVs were in the best shape; otherwise it was an afternoon spent clicking the remote back and forth. This Sunday both teams will be on the West Coast. The Eagles will play the 49ers at 4:15 in the Bay Area, and almost certainly will be over before the first pitch is thrown at Dodger Stadium.

There was talk of arranging a public viewing of last Saturday's NLDS Game 3 at Milwaukee, but those plans were trashed when word of Bruce Springsteen's free concert on the Parkway for Barack Obama was announced.

Turns out that tickets to today's game at Citizens Bank Park sold, on average, for $220. That's slightly less than what they went for yesterday. For playoff games, StubHub sales stop two hours before game time.

The most expensive ticket sold was $1199 for a spot in the Diamond Club.

At this moment, the average price for Game 6 tickets next Friday is $253. There are about 3,000 posted on StubHub's site, ranging from $120 to $4300. Game 7 tickets are selling, on average, at $266. Certainly, some of the local ticket agencies and other secondary online spots also will have access; figure those average prices to rise if the Phillies come home with an opportunity to clinch next Friday night. And Game 7's average price no doubt will escalate by late next week. 

If you can find a cheap flight, StubHub is showing lots of inventory at a lower price for the games in Los Angeles. There are approximately 3,500 tickets left for Game 3 on Sunday. Average ticket prices for the three potential games out there is $153, compared to $225 at Citizens Bank Park. The lowest priced ticket was for Game 4, an average of $148. The price range was $5 for a spot in the top deck up to $2500 for a ticket in the Dugout Club. The average price for Game 1 is $156 and for Game 5, on Wednesday, is $155.

Average ticket prices for the four possible games in Tampa is $173; and $297 for the three games scheduled for Boston.

World Series tickets for the three potential games in Philly have been hovering around $860.

  Going to today’s Game 2 between the Phillies and Dodgers? Want to see a doubleheader? The 76ers and Phantoms have deal for you. Anyone with a ticket stub from today’s Phillies game can see, for free, tonight’s Sixers-Knicks exhibition game at the Wachovia Center or the Phantoms’ season opener against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at the Wachovia Spectrum.
  The Phillies’ game begins at 4:25. The Sixers and Phantoms begin at 7.
  Fans with Phillies’ Game 2 tickets should take their stub to the Wachovia Complex box office for their Sixers or Phantoms ticket. Tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, according to Comcast-Spectator.
  Former Flyers Bernie Parent and Joe Watson will sign autographs on the concourse at the Phantoms’ game. When the Spectrum opened on Oct. 19, 1967, Flyers captain Lou Angotti and Penguins captain Ab McDonald took the first faceoff. Both captains will re-enact that first puck drop tonight, in this final season of hockey at the Spectrum.

  Similar to the National League Division Series, it appears that the ticket to Game 1 will be the least expensive of any of the NLCS games to be played at Citizens Bank Park.
  Sean Pate, of StubHub, said late this afternoon that prices had slowly decreased during the week.
  “If I look at the last few days, it has been creeping down,” he said. “Monday it was at $238, Tuesday at $241, Wednesday $239. Probably tomorrow you’ll see $225 potentially. But again that’s going to be the steady average.  As far as getting in, the low end probably will be in the $120 range.
  “What might be interesting to look at is see what the tickets are listed for, maybe even in the morning. That’s when you start to see some people getting desperate and wanting to get rid of these tickets.”
  Pate noted that the site was still listing more than 1,000 tickets. “That’s still really good availability,” he said.
  Locally, Jeremi Conaway of Wanamaker Tickets in Center City said they were seeing an increase in calls throughout today. “I think tomorrow it’s going to be real tough to find a ticket, especially late tomorrow. And if they win tomorrow, Friday will be a monster.”
  Conaway said they had about 700 left, then a couple minutes later noted that “we’re down to 690.” And around 1,000 for Friday. “By morning, that number will be cut in half,” he added, “simply because of all the orders overnight. With all the [promos] they’re doing on ESPN, people are really starting to get the positive buzz.”
  Prices to get in the door, as Conaway called them, were around $115 “ranging up to $600, $700 for the best of the best. Friday it’s a little stronger, just because it’s a Friday. That day [the low-end price] will be $125.”
  Mike Garvie of ticketnetwork.com said earlier today he was seeing tickets going for as low as $90 for today’s game, up to around $800 for a premium seat.
  By comparison, fans looking to possibly travel to the West Coast were finding more available seats but with a greater range. Around 7,500 tickets still were available today for Game 3 Sunday night, according to StubHub. Those were selling at an average of $172, but someone had purchased a ticket as low as $30 for sit in the leftfield pavilion and as high as $2500 for a spot in the Dugout Club, similar to the Phillies’ Diamond Club.
  Tickets to the three potential games at Dodger Stadium were selling at an average of $163; the average ticket price for the four possible games at Citizens Bank Park was sitting at $239, according to StubHub.
  In the other league, more than 1,900 tickets were still posted for Game 1 Friday in Tampa, where the average ticket price was $174. It was almost twice as much ($329) for the three scheduled games at Fenway Park, where more than 2,000 tickets were available for Game 3 on Monday.
  Wanamaker’s Conaway noted that people were inquiring about the “if necessary” games at Citizens Bank Park next weekend; Game 6 is scheduled for Friday night, Oct. 17, and Game 7 would be played the next night.
  “We’re definitely selling 6 and 7,” Conaway said, noting fans would get a complete refund if one or both of those games aren’t played. Ticketnetwork.com and StubHub have the same policy. Average ticket price at StubHub were listed at $254 for Game 6 and $274 for Game 7.
  “People will often buy early in the cycle,” StubHub’s Pace said, “in order to get something that could be a deal. A lot of people will wait, but the people that do buy in advance [do so] because if it does happen to go to a Game 7, that’s obviously historic and those ticket prices will certainly spike as soon as it looks like it’s a foregone conclusion.”

Sporting News earlier today fanned a release out to editors and writers around the country with news of its Best Sporting Cities rankings, which will appear in this week's issue.

So where was Philly? Fifth, behind Boston, Detroit, Dallas-Fort Worth and New York. It's based on point values that include categories such as won-lost records, postseason appearances, applicable power ratings, number of teams and attendance. Assuming the Eagles find their way out of the wilderness this season, this city could see its first October to September with four teams in the playoffs since, gees, 1981-82. We can hope, anyway.  

Not sure if sites with just a race track and a high school should be considered on the list, but the editors no doubt have their reasons. That said, you might be interested in where other cities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware ranked.

11, Pittsburgh
43, Baltimore
81, State College, Pa.
91, Piscataway, N.J.
119, Annapolis, Md.
140, Teaneck, N.J.
159, Moon Township, Pa.
163, Lawrenceville, N.J.
171, Emmitsburg, Md.
185, Easton, Pa.
207, Lewisburg, Pa.
210, Towson, Md.
212, Bethlehem, Pa.
215, Dover, Del.
247, Jersey City, N.J.
255, Princeton, N.J.
256, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
268, Loretto, Pa.
277, Long Pond, Pa.
298, Trenton
299, Allentown
300, Bowie, Md.
317, Harrisburg
322, Erie, Pa.
323, Hershey, Pa.
324, Altoona, Pa.
334, Reading, Pa.
341, Latrobe, Pa.
345, Westminster, Md.
354, Williamsport, Pa.
364, Frederick, Md.
378, Aberdeen, Md. (that Cal Ripken youth baseball complex carries some weight here)

Care to guess the bottom 10? Or what sport might be played in these towns?
391. Greeneville, Tenn.
392. Idaho Falls, Idaho
393. Troy, N.Y.
394. Vancouver, Wash.
395. Bluefield, W.Va.
396. Casper, Wyo.
397. Helena, Mont.
398. Princeton, W.Va.
399. Yakima, Wash.
400. Burlington, N.C.

Amid all the Phillies hysteria, Flyers officials just announced that they will be holding a pep rally tomorrow in the shadow of the city's tallest building.

What they are terming a way to "Flyer Up" the city will start at noon in the Comcast Center courtyard at 1701 John F. Kennedy Boulevard.

It will include a portable rink for fans to play street hockey, giant inflatables, raffle prizes and other giveaways. One of the team's icons from the Cup seasons, Bob Kelly, will be present to sign autographs. T-shirt giveaways also are planned throughout the city. The outdoor party is geared toward bringing attention to the team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals last year before getting ousted by Pittsburgh. The season will begin this Saturday at 7 p.m. vs. the Rangers.

Meanwhile, the Sixers will start preseason play tomorrow in Amherst, Mass., vs. the Celtics, then will come home to the Wachovia Center on Friday night for a 7 o'clock game against the Knicks. Remember, the Phillies start that afternoon across the street at 4:35.

One Sixers preseason game will be televised. Comcast SportsNet will carry the Tuesday, Oct. 21, game vs. the Cavaliers. For more on the Sixers, visit Sixerville on philly.com, where Hall of Fame writer Phil Jasner is cranking out all you can possibly know about this season's team.