NHL Playoff Tickets 2011The first round of the NHL playoffs has been announced. If you’re a hockey fan, this is exciting news. If you’re a ticket broker like me or looking to get into the ticket buying and selling business, then this is also an exciting time. The NHL is unique from other leagues because it doesn’t have a completely national following. About half of the NHL teams exist in “hockey cities”, while others are located in cities with too many other events and activities competing for attention. When you think of hockey, you probably think of cities such as Detroit, Montreal, or Pittsburgh. These are major hockey cities.

The NHL has now released its 2011 schedule for the first round of the NHL playoffs. The match-ups are:

  • Lightning vs. Penguins
  • Coyotes vs. Red Wings
  • Rangers vs. Capitals
  • Blackhawks vs. Canucks
  • Predators vs. Ducks
  • Canadiens vs. Bruins
  • Sabres vs. Flyers
  • Kings vs. Sharks

Now, if you’re looking to buy and sell NHL playoff tickets, you shouldn’t just pick your local team and buy anything you can get. You need to be methodical and make sure you’re buying the right tickets. In general, NHL playoff tickets are very expensive. When someone buys a ticket, they’re largely paying to be there, and not necessarily for the seat. So you need to look at the pricing and determine which tickets to buy. Purchasing the “best” seat, which is often defined by the price of the ticket, is not necessarily the way to go. In many hockey arenas, the real bargains are the tickets up top. While these might not offer you the highest dollar profit, they will offer you the highest return on your money. And with the tight time frame during the NHL playoffs of when you can buy the ticket and when you must sell them, this becomes important. If you have to dump $350 tickets on the day of the game that is going to hurt unless it’s a hot market.

When looking at the the match-ups for the first round of the 2011 NHL playoffs I can tell you that some of these match-ups are going to sell very well, and some will just sell okay. As a ticket broker or ticket reseller, you don’t want to buy the “okay” series until at least the second round. For the first round, you should focus on buying games for only the best match-ups.

Selling NHL Playoff Tickets – 2011If you’re new to buying and selling hockey tickets, you might think that the Red Wings vs. Coyotes would be a good series to buy tickets for. The Red Wings are probably the only team in the NHL that can be considered a dynasty. However, the Coyotes aren’t an exciting opponent and Detroit itself, as you know, has been hit hard economically. With an unexciting opponent and lackluster ticket sales throughout the year, don’t buy this first round series. The Penguins vs. Lightning is a similar series. Pittsburgh has similarly been hit hard economically, and the Lightning is not a team that is going to excite fans to come out. Look for both of these teams to have a second round series worth buying.

So, which 2011 NHL Playoff match-ups should you buy? I think there are three match-ups worth buying anything you can get your hands on. Those three are:

  • Rangers vs. Capitals
  • Blackhawks vs. Canucks
  • Canadiens vs. Bruins

You should look at purchasing any tickets from the above that you can. Selling tickets on Stubhub is likely to be your best bet for reselling. Just make sure to practice your Ticketmaster tricks and skills and get a good set of seats.

I hope you have found this information useful.  Check back here for updates, and if you are wanting to become a ticket broker click here to learn more!

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