NHL Tickets

Hockey is one of the most popular sports played around the world. In the United States and Canada, the NHL is the professional body that governs hockey, and tickets to NHL games are always hot items. If you’re a hockey fan, getting tickets to a game is always a big deal. This is true whether it’s your very first time going to a game, or if you are a long-time season ticket holder. Here, we will go over some of the things that you will need to know if you’re thinking about getting tickets to a hockey game, along with a few tips on how to save some time and money.

Pick the Team You Want to See Right Below

Buying NHL Tickets

There are a number of ways to buy hockey tickets. Many people will buy directly from the team themselves, and usually, this is the cheapest way to get tickets. You can do this with a quick call to their ticket sales hotline, or even stop in at the box office and purchase tickets in person. This will help you to avoid a lot of the surcharges and additional fees that third parties add on, but you will still have some fees and taxes added on. Unfortunately, that is just the nature of the ticket industry in general.

Some people prefer to press their luck a little and buy tickets from a scalper right before the game begins. This can be beneficial if scalping is legal in your area (it now is in most places, but be sure to check local laws to avoid any issues). The big problem with this is that buying tickets from an individual outside of the arena is unreliable on many levels. For one, you have no guarantee that you will actually be able to get tickets. With popular games, there’s no guarantee that you will be able to purchase tickets, and if you do find tickets, the prices of these will probably be jacked up considerably. This ends up being a waste of money. In other cases, you might not even be buying actual tickets. There are a lot of scams out there, and buying from a scalper exposes you to these with very little protection on your part.

A Better Way

So, let’s say that you want to go to a hockey game, but no tickets are available from the venue. Don’t give up! There are still plenty of opportunities out there for you, without needing to resort to scalpers. We recommend checking out third-party ticket sites like StubHub.

Here’s why.

Most ticket sites play a policing role when it comes to their tickets. One of the issues that we talked about with scalpers is that there’s no guarantee that your tickets will be legitimate. You might find yourself buying a counterfeit product. Not only will this prevent you from getting in to see your favorite NHL team play, but it could expose you to legal problems, too. Obviously, both of these things are bad. SeatGeek and other reputable ticket sites make sure that the tickets that you purchase are at least one hundred percent guaranteed. Not only does this help protect you and your money, but it ensures that you will get the tickets that you expect without issue. That’s something that you cannot do with any other form of third-party purchase.

When you shop around, you can guarantee that you are not paying more than you need to for tickets, either. For example, SeatGeek might have tickets available at the lowest price for one game, but that doesn’t mean that it will always be this way. The next time you want to go see a game, TicketCity might have a better deal. We encourage you to shop around if you have time so that you are not overpaying for great seats. Saving a few bucks here and there can add up over time. The more games you go see, the more money you will save over the long run.

One other consideration that comes with using online ticket sites is that you can buy tickets up until the game itself begins. So, if you are still looking for tickets right before the puck is dropped, you can open up the ticket site apps and do a search. Most sites will have e-tickets available for you, so once you’ve purchased your tickets, you can just download them onto your phone and present the bar code at the entry gate. This way, you can buy last-minute tickets with all of the safety that the ticket sites provide, and have them instantly available as if you had bought them at the box office or from a scalper right outside the door. Depending on the game, this might even save you some cash—but not always.

Bottom line: Buying from a third-party ticket site gives you security with the authenticity of the tickets that you purchase, and gives you a chance to potentially save more money. That’s a win-win in our book!

Other Considerations

There are a handful of other things that you need to think about before you buy your tickets. Have you considered parking? Cities like New York are notorious for having poor parking situations. If you have traveled into the city to see a game, using public transportation is your best bet. This will help you to avoid finding and paying for a parking spot. It can also help you to avoid the crowds that gather after a game.

And don’t forget that if you’re traveling, you’ll probably need something to eat. There is usually food available from vendors at the game, but this can be pretty costly. Scouting out restaurants ahead of time could potentially help you save money. Most arenas will not let you bring food into the game, so don’t try and do this unless you are positive that it is allowed.

Finally, don’t forget about lodging. Hotels can book up around big events, so the sooner you secure a place to stay, the better. There’s nothing worse than trying to find a place to stay at the last minute, and not being successful with this. If you know you’re going to be in a city far from home, book a place to stay as soon as you can so that you are not scrambling around at the last minute. This will ensure that you can relax and have fun at the hockey game, just like you intend on doing.