Ten thousand ticket-holders no-showed the Steelers’ second home game.

The Penguins have 632 straight home sellouts but haven’t yet sold out Saturday’s home opener — which features Chicago and beloved ex-Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.

PNC Park is empty because the Pirates don’t try to win.

Pitt football and basketball don’t count. Pittsburgh isn’t a college sports town.

So let’s concentrate on the task at hand: The Penguins have made the playoffs for 15 consecutive seasons. Why can’t they sell more tickets?

The problem was revealed when the Penguins announced the reintroduction of their Student Rush program, which peddles discounted seats to high school and college students.

Using Student Rush for the home opener smacks of desperation. So does instituting a Student Rush “buy one, get one free” offer for the second game. That’s Tuesday vs. Dallas.

There’s nothing wrong with Student Rush. In fact, there’s much that’s good about it.

Young fans energize the arena and make the game-night experience more electric. Steelers crowds at Heinz Field could especially use an injection of youth and enthusiasm.

During the Penguins’ previous lean periods, Student Rush ticket-buyers forged a bond with the team that doubtless made many into full-price attendees moving forward. (No franchise in Pittsburgh has done a better job courting youth than the Penguins.)

Getting some money for a ticket is better than no money for an empty seat. (Though one wonders how those who paid full price feel about a kid who paid a fraction sitting next to them.)

The pros and cons noted, it shouldn’t be this difficult for the Penguins to sell tickets.

The Penguins finished first in their division last season. They won a championship in 2017, as opposed to the Philadelphia Flyers winning one in 1975. They have big stars like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, though both are currently hurt. Payroll spends to the salary cap max.

If all that doesn’t inspire brand loyalty, what will?

The pandemic plays a factor. Sports have long been morphing into a made-for-TV business. Covid got people used to not going. A lot of people work at home now. Leaving home to attend a game is different than heading to the game straight from the workplace. Some want no part of big crowds, or being packed together.

But all that smacks of excuse-making. It’s nickel-dime.

Entitlement plays a factor. The Penguins have exited in the playoffs’ first round for three straight years. (Buffalo hasn’t even made the playoffs for 10 seasons.) Anything shy of a legit Stanley Cup contender is a disappointment when the great unwashed are spoiled rotten.

Today’s fan wants a comp ticket at the red line 10 rows up, free beer and a bobblehead.

Fair warning: If attendance dips, there’s no reason for the Penguins to keep Crosby, Malkin and Kris Letang. (The latter two are free agents at season’s end.) The Penguins’ championship window has closed. Selling tickets might be the biggest reason to keep the core three.

The Penguins have lost a lot of money during the pandemic. Further red ink might be used to print exit visas.

When you add up all the evidence, the conclusion is inescapable: Pittsburgh isn’t the sports town it pretends to be. (Few cities are.) You’re not rabid fans. You’re discerning consumers.

But here’s how the Penguins could sell out every game: JuJu Smith-Schuster night, every night. #CorvetteCorvette

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