The Golden Knights failed to sell out T-Mobile Arena for the first time in franchise history during their 4-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night. The announced crowd was 15,977, which was 1,390 short of the arena's 17,367 fixed-seat capacity, ending a sellout streak that dated back to the team's inaugural season in 2017 and included 420 regular season and playoff games.
Golden Knights president John Penhollow said there was no single cause for the nonsellout, but noted lower-than-usual turnout from Canadian fans as a contributing factor. He stated, 'There were a few (Canadians) in the crowd … but definitely lower than what we were used to,' and added that the team normally sees significantly more visitors for Toronto games. Penhollow also referenced Canadian Thanksgiving and the early start to the NHL season as possible influences.
Penhollow identified the team's offseason ticketing revamp as a larger factor in the attendance shortfall. The Knights removed unauthorized ticket resellers to protect price integrity and introduced a fan-first strategy offering partial season tickets, half-season plans, and 10-game blocks. He explained, 'We started listening to fans… We introduced them this time. We introduced half seasons, we introduced 10-game plans.' The team also no longer requires season-ticket holders to purchase playoff tickets, a change implemented last postseason.
The Knights are still in the process of reselling tickets previously held by brokers to local fans who had not previously had access. Penhollow said, 'The resellers represented a pretty significant part of the business… So by taking those back, you then have to resell them to our actual fans who are here, they’re local, they just have never had a chance to go. It wasn’t a money thing, they just never had access. So we’ve been providing that access and the team’s done a heck of a job, it just takes time.'
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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