In an effort to prevent Rangers fans from entering their building for the second round of the playoffs, the Carolina Hurricanes have implemented a "restricted sales area" policy that prevents those outside of the North Carolina area from purchasing tickets.
Those on the Hurricanes website who are finalizing the purchase of tickets to any second round game at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC are met with a disclaimer before the final step that reads:
"Very Important!! PNC Arena is located in Raleigh, NC. Sales to this event will be restricted to residents of North Carolina/South Carolina and Southern 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."
As of Monday afternoon, there was a large amount of Hurricanes-Rangers tickets available at face value (as low as $100.00) from the Hurricanes' website for every potential home game of the series.
The Hurricanes will host Games 1 and 2 this week. Games 5 and 7 (if necessary) would also be hosted by the Canes.
Those attempting to buy tickets for Games 3, 4, and/or 6 at Madison Square Garden on Monday afternoon only had the option of buying pairs of tickets on the resale market, with every face value ticket sold out. The cheapest resale ticket on the website was $392.00 There are no restrictions on the Rangers website when it comes to who can buy tickets.
The stunt the Hurricanes are pulling is rare, but not unheard of.
Most recently, the Los Angeles Rams restricted sales to certain areas in an effort to keep San Francisco 49ers fans out of their stadium for the NFC Championship game last season.
If/when tickets to the Hurricanes' home games for the series against the Rangers hit the secondary market on sites like StubHub and SeatGeek, they will likely be powerless when it comes to preventing Rangers fans from infiltrating the building they're having so much trouble selling out.