Knights among most in demand on secondary ticket market

The Knights rank as the fourth most in demand out of the 32 NHL teams on ticket resale marketplace StubHub.

After holding the top spot from 2017 to 2019, the Knights trail the New York Rangers (No. 3), Toronto Maple Leafs (No. 2) and Boston Bruins (No. 1), with the Montreal Canadiens rounding out the top five on StubHub’s rankings.

“Las Vegas is continuing to solidify its status as a central hub for pro sports as the Golden Knights claim the fourth spot in our list of in demand teams,” StubHub spokesman Adam Budelli said. “We’re seeing fans excited for the return of hockey, with the Knights’ home opener against the Blackhawks ranking among our best-selling games of Week 1.”

None of the Knights’ games cracked the top 10 most-in-demand games. The Jan. 2 Winter Classic showdown between the Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins tops that list, with the average ticket price listed at $430.

The Knights missed the playoffs for the first time in the team’s five-year history last season. The organization begins the season Oct. 11 at the Los Angeles Kings.

The Knights’ first home game is Oct. 13 against the Chicago Blackhawks at T-Mobile Arena. The lowest advertised price for two tickets is $109 with taxes and fees included.

Knights president Kerry Bubolz said the amount of support the fans continue to show is something the organization doesn’t take for granted.

“We’re fortunate,” he said. “For a lot of people, five months (the offseason) was probably pretty challenging. … We certainly see in our business that the enthusiasm is still there and hopefully through our offseason — some of our top players getting healthy — we’re looking forward to a terrific sixth season.”

The large turnout at the Knights’ preseason home opener is the perfect example of how much the city backs its home team.

“We had a had a really, really nice crowd,” Bubolz said. “If you look around the league, it’s like, ‘Gosh, we have great fans.’ The night before we were in Denver, and I didn’t see that many people for a team that won the Stanley Cup. To come on a Monday night and to have the kind of crowd we had, we’re fortunate. I think it proves what a lot of people didn’t think, which is this is a terrific sports city. It’s obviously a great hockey town as well.”

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.