Knicks fans occupy Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center, and the Hurricanes risk succumbing to a crowd of fellow New Yorkers when the Rangers come to Raleigh for Games 3 and 4 of the second round starting Thursday night exposed to
The Hurricanes aren’t scared enough that owner Tom Dundon follows Sixers ownership and buys tickets himself.
However, to ensure PNC Arena is painted red, ticket sales are geographically restricted to residents of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
This is nothing new, and other teams, including the Hurricanes and Rangers, have taken similar steps, but Carolina has a unique problem.
Because there are so many New Yorkers who have moved to the area, geoblocking is only half the battle at best.
“I will stand firm against anyone who has a New York area code or billing address and is trying to buy an away ticket at PNC Arena in Raleigh,” said the Long Island native who moved to Charlotte in 2019. said Ryan Somerville. post.
Ranger fans are expected to fill 24 percent of the seats at PNC Arena for Game 3, according to Vivid Seat’s Julia Young.
As of Wednesday, no one had taken him up on offers for this series, but Somerville has been successful in procuring people tickets to past Rangers-Hurricanes games.
“Quite a few people have actually contacted me directly,” he said. “On a more personal level, family and friends, I’ve had friends from high school call me and say, ‘Is there any chance we can work this out?'” I said, “Yes, of course.” said.
“People Travel. Don’t Underestimate the Cost of Spirit or Frontiers” [budget airlines]. People go to Raleigh because the prices are so low. I think that was the initial impetus for many New Yorkers to move to the Carolinas. But the fandom will follow, right? ”
Watching a game at PNC Arena is relatively affordable, especially compared to the exorbitant prices at Madison Square Garden.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the lowest ticket price on VividSeats for Game 3 of the series was $127.
The minimum price to attend Game 5 in New York was $322, and most tickets were listed for more than $400, even for the Upper Bowl.
Two years ago, when the Rangers and Hurricanes played seven games in the playoffs, despite similar geo-blocking measures in place, there was a noticeable presence of away fans in Raleigh throughout the series, especially when the Rangers played seven games in the playoffs. This was especially noticeable in Game 7, which they won by an overwhelming score of 2-2.
The home team won each of the first six games of that series.
Vincent Trocheck won Game 2 on Tuesday night in overtime, and the Rangers now have a 2-0 lead going into the game.
Carolina is known for having one of the loudest atmospheres in the NHL, but there are concerns in the fan community about keeping the building red.
A thread leading to the series on the Hurricanes’ Reddit page had more than 100 comments criticizing people who were reselling tickets.
The original poster wrote: “I really appreciate them doing their best to remove our home crowd advantage for a few extra bucks.”
While tickets sold directly by Carolina are geographically restricted, the same does not apply to tickets on the secondary market.
But for those who want to buy at face value, there’s always a middleman like Somerville in Game 4.
“When I see Rangers fans walking through the grass, [parking] If you wear a lot of jerseys and hats and things like that, you’re going to get a lot of boos, but that’s what you want,” Somerville said. “That’s what rivalries are all about. You expect that kind of warm welcome.”
