NHL Tickets

When the National Hockey League lost an entire season a few years ago because of labor issues, the sports media was quick to declare the death of the NHL and remove the label of it being a “major sport.” And although the league went through a few bumps after being the first professional sport to ever cancel an entire season, it actually emerged stronger than ever and NHL tickets are now selling at record levels. Just like sales of Major League Baseball tickets bounced back after their strike a decade ago, hockey tickets have seen a similar spike.

A big part of the reason for the renewed interest in hockey tickets is all the young talent in the league. Hockey fans that have yearned for the days of Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux finally got their wish with the emergence of stars like Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. These fresh faces have helped bring back the high-scoring, exciting brand of hockey that was so prevalent in the 1980s, and they’ve helped sell NHL tickets at arenas around the U.S. and Canada.

The 2009 NHL season figures to be the most exciting since the work stoppage, as the Detroit Red Wings will try to defend their Stanley Cup title and the Pittsburgh Penguins will try to avenge their defeat. Just a few years ago, the Pens were on the verge of leaving the Steel City, but now Crosby and Malkin have caused an unprecedented run on Penguins hockey tickets.

Two historic events are also sure to heat up the sales of hockey tickets. NHL All-Star Game tickets are always in demand, but this season will be something special as the event returns to Canada for the first time in a decade and will be played at the Bell Centre, home of the Montreal Canadiens.

And U.S. hockey fans don’t need to worry about being left out, because the 2009 NHL Winter Classic is now set to be played at venerable Wrigley Field in Chicago. An astonishing total of more than 71,000 hockey tickets were sold for last year’s outdoor game at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, and NHL Winter Classic tickets are sure to sell out fast for this year’s game featuring the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings.

The icing on the cake will be the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, which as always will feature the greatest hockey players from the NHL and around the world. It’s a great time to be a hockey fan, especially if you can get great hockey tickets for an upcoming game.