Industry News

Only 96 tickets made available in Leafs general sale

Only 96 tickets were put on sale for the general public for the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs’ first home playoff game next week, an investigation by CBC and the Toronto Star reveals. 

With high demand for the game, fans noticed how quickly tickets sold out for the post-season game against the Boston Bruins on Monday at the Air Canada Centre.

On fan said on Twitter: “Leafs playoff tickets that released at 3pm went so fast it feels like they didn’t even release any. #ITried”

CBC/Toronto Star monitored the Leafs’ online box office to see precisely how many tickets were released through Ticketmaster to the general public.

On Monday, there were two presales giving priority to Leafs insiders, while season ticket holders got the next bunch at 1pm. At 3pm Leafs Nation fan club were granted access to just over 100 more tickets using a promotional code.

In total, 672 tickets were put up for sale on Ticketmaster before opening it up to the general public yesterday (Tuesday), in which 96 seats remained.

The leftover tickets cost between $175 and $754 per seat, with many near the back rows, with obstructed views or single seats – with only two pairs on offer.

Fans took to Twitter to express their anger with the NHL club: “Tried to get tickets to the Leafs first home game and pre-sale sold out in 1 minute. Arg. Anyone want to sell theirs?”

Another said: “Leafs playoff tickets are ridiculous………….. 350$ to sit in the nosebleeds……..”

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment acknowledged the issue with the fact that season ticket holders, corporations and scalpers hold 90 per cent of all tickets for the 17,929-seat Air Canada Centre.

“We have worked to create additional access for fans by giving away 200 free tickets per game through the Ford Fan Deck and contests as well as one of the best fan viewing experiences in the league with Maple Leaf Square [outside the ACC],” wrote MLSE spokesman Dave Haggith in an email.

Image: Mark Watmough