When it comes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, NHL franchises will go the distance to try and get the tiniest of edges over their opponents.
For the Carolina Hurricanes, which will face the New York Rangers in the second round without having the benefit of home ice, that means banning New Yorkers from buying tickets to games played in Raleigh.
Carolina Hurricanes allow playoff ticket sales only to locals
Thoughts?
As captured and shared by Joe Schad on X on Thursday, May 2, the Hurricanes are restricting ticket sales for games 4 and 5 to “residents of North Carolina, South Carolina, and southern parts of Virginia” in an attempt to keep Rangers fans from flooding PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC.
That warning is shown to potential buyers trying to acquire tickets on the Ticketmaster platform from outside the aforementioned locations.
Hurricanes Trying to Preserve Home-Ice Advantage Like It’s 2022
Two years ago, when the Rangers and the Hurricanes met in the NHL playoffs for the last time, Carolina already used a similar strategy to restrict ticket purchases by New York fans trying to invade PNC Arena.
It can’t be said the Hurricanes’ plans worked, however, as the Rangers went on to dominate the Canes and ultimately beat them in seven games back then.
Fans from outside the areas allowed by Carolina through Ticketmaster will need to resort to secondary-market purchases in order to get inside PNC Arena.
“Residency will be based on credit card billing address,” the Ticketmaster policy reads. “Orders by residents outside North Carolina, South Carolina, and southern parts of Virginia will be canceled without notice and refunds given.”
Julian McKenzie of The Athletic quoted a statement published by the Hurricanes explaining their decision to restrict ticket sales to local residents on May 2.
“Our focus is on creating the best atmosphere for our fans at PNC Arena, and we feel this policy helps us achieve that goal. We’ve been geo-restricting ticket sales in the playoffs for a few years now, and it’s not uncommon in the NHL (or other pro sports),” the Hurricanes said in the statement, according to McKenzie.
New York Fans Banned Across Sports, But Not Alone
The NHL announced the schedule of the second-round series between the Rangers and the Hurricanes on Thursday, May 2, and at the time New York had not imposed ticket restrictions for games played at Madison Square Garden.
New York will host games 1, 2, and if necessary, also games 5 and 7. The Rangers fans will be able to attend those games without problem, but they might join New York Knicks fans in finding it hard to attend games on the road.
The Knicks fans, with the franchise facing the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA playoffs, had 2,000 fewer tickets available as the Sixers owners and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin partnered to acquire and gift those seats to locals ahead of Game 6.
The Sixers fell to the Knicks on Thursday, May 2, crashing out of the playoffs even with those 2,000 Philadelphia residents in attendance.
In the NHL, other franchises have applied this type of ticket restriction in the past.
The Nashville Predators limiting purchases for Game 6 against the Vancouver Canucks (scheduled for May 3) only to those within the Nashville TV viewing area.
The Florida Panthers blocked non-USA residents from purchasing tickets last year during their series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
And for a few regular-season games, the Buffalo Sabres have limited ticket sales exclusively to New York state residents to boost the home-ice advantage in those games.
The second-round series between the Rangers and the Hurricanes will kick off on Sunday, May 6, with Game 1 taking place at MSG in New York.
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Hurricanes Using Shady Strategy to Boost Home-Ice Advantage