With a 3-2 win last night in Colorado to cap a 10-3-2 month, the Nashville Predators look poised for another appearance in the playoffs.

The playoffs are starting to be old hat for the Preds — it would mark their fifth appearance in six seasons — but this year the team is trying something new in the ticketing office with "dynamic" or "value" ticketing.

The concept, announced Thursday, is relatively simple. Using a system developed by a Texas company called Qcue, an algorithm adjusts ticket prices based on demand.

"If you see a huge run up on seats in the attack-twice end, for example, it will adjust that section," Predators executive vice-president Chris Parker said. "When you're seeing a real aggressive purchasing, it can make adjustments accordingly."

A handful of professional sports teams use the model already. Baseball's San Francisco Giants are perhaps the most aggressive, with a system that includes variables like the weather forecast and opponent, even the game's starting pitcher.

For now, the lowest price-point in Bridgestone Arena for the playoffs is $26. As tickets start to sell, the baseline price goes up. If sales are sluggish, the prices are adjusted downward. One key factor, Parker says, is to make sure season-ticket holders are still getting the best deal.

"There's a floor and a ceiling, and no one will pay less than a season-ticket holder," he said.

Ticketing is one of the purest examples of supply and demand. There's a finite number of seats and no one is adding any more games or any more seats. Dynamic ticketing is designed to find the perfect intersection of the supply and demand curves.

"There is a software program and algorithms that are applied to help chart and pattern what's going on. You don't just put your finger in the air and say we want the price to be X. It's all based on activity. It's very akin to the airplane seating model. The earlier you buy, the better your pricing and selection options will be. The longer you wait, the fewer pricing and selections options you'll have," Parker said.

Parker said the team will try out the dynamic ticketing system for the playoffs — most franchises who use the model tested it first in the post-season — but there's a "possibility" it could become the standard operating procedure at Fifth and Broad.

Scheduled arena events factored into playoff timetable

In the week the playoffs gear up, Bridgestone Arena has three concerts on the docket: Sugarland on April 16, Lady GaGa on April 19 and Bob Seger on April 21. That does throw a bit of a wrench into arena scheduling — especially considering Lady GaGa's predictably extravagant stage show has a lengthy load-in time.

Parker said the scheduling gurus at the league office consider lots of things when setting game dates and times — including arena availability, but also TV commitments and the desire to get the top match — in order to inconvenience venues as little as possible.

"Absolutely, the NHL is aware of it," Parker said. "The process is that the league has teams submit date availability well in advance, and without a crystal ball, that seems to be the best strategy. All of us have to hold a required number of available dates and they toss it into a computer."