Hurricanes trying to block Rangers fans from buying playoff tickets
New York Rangers fans hoping to catch the Blueshirts on the road against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Second Round could have trouble scoring a seat.
SNY is reporting prospective customers are met with this message when trying to purchase tickets to Games 3, 4 and 6 against the Rangers at PNC Arena:
PNC Arena is located in Raleigh, NC. Sales to this event will be restricted to residents of North Carolina, South Carolina and southern parts of Virginia. Residency will be based on credit card billing address. Orders by residents outside North Carolina, South Carolina and southern Virginia will be canceled without notice and refunds given.
This tactic to keep Rangers fans outside the arena isn’t without precedent. In fact, back in 2022, the Hurricanes and PNC Arena deployed the same plan when the two teams met in their second-round series.
Based off fan reaction, it wasn’t as successful as either party had hoped, with Rangers fans still found their way into the arena for the four games played in Raleigh. The Rangers won the series in seven games, including the decisive 6-2 victory in Game 7 in Raleigh.
Related: Dave Maloney says Rangers must handle Hurricanes ‘relentless pace’
Rangers fans may find it difficult to attend games against Hurricanes in Raleigh
Rangers fans aren’t the only group having to jump through hoops to get into the building on the road this postseason.
After New York Knicks fans invaded Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia for Games 3 and 4 of that first-round series in the NBA playoffs, the owners of the 76ers announced the organization would purchase up to 2,000 tickets and distribute them to first responders in the Philadelphia area.
A nice gesture, for sure. But clearly one that also had the intent to keep Knicks fans outside, not inside, the arena.
With so many options to purchase tickets on the secondary market, coupled with so many former New York, New Jersey and Connecticut residents now calling Carolina home, it will be interesting to see how effective the Hurricanes plan is.
Plus, Rangers fans are known to travel as well as any team in the League, something coach Peter Laviolette has commented on many times this season.
New York won 1-0 in its only trip to PNC Arena this season on March 12. Adam Fox, whom the Rangers acquired in a trade with Carolina in April of 2019, scored the game’s only goal.
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