What’s the most you’ve ever paid for a ticket to a game? Last year, some NHL fans forked out over $2,000, while others went even further, paying upwards of $18,000 to watch the Florida Panthers clinch the Stanley Cup. Ticket prices for hockey are now rivaling those for the Super Bowl and NBA Finals — and in some cases, they’ve already surpassed them. Could a Stanley Cup final ticket set a new record for the highest average price ever? At this rate, it seems all but inevitable.

Ticket prices shot up massively for last year’s Stanley Cup finals

If last year’s prices are any indication, an NHL Finals Game 7 in Toronto (if the Maple Leafs make it) can easily shatter all records. The initial ticket prices for all seven games of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals were as follows: 

• Game 1 (Florida): $333
• Game 2 (Florida): $312
• Game 3 (Edmonton): $716
• Game 4 (Edmonton): $987
• Game 5 (Florida): $483
• Game 6 (Edmonton): $1,279
• Game 7 (Florida): $721

By June 23, when it was apparent that a final and seventh game was necessary, the ticket prices soared. By the evening, you could find Canadian Ketchup chips in Florida quicker than finding a Game 7 ticket under $1500. That also would have gotten you a seat at Section 306, which carries a 2.5-star rating on Rateyourseats.com.

Fans who wanted to watch the game without squinting their eyes and relying on the jumbotron had to cough up north of $3,000. And that didn’t guarantee a ticket, as scarcity-selling reached its peak by night. The ticket prices were only par for the course, however: 

• The Panthers already sold out their 12 playoff games at home despite averaging at 102.3% capacity. [Miami Herald]
• The Game 7 viewership went up by 187% (7.7M average viewers) on ABC compared to the 2023 title-decider (5th game). [Walt Disney Company]
• Disney was slated to earn $12.1M more in ad revenue because the finals extended to the seventh game. [Sportico]

Clearly, the Stanley Cup finals have become one of the biggest sporting extravaganzas in the United States. Fans are now willing to open their wallets and spend big bucks inside the rink as they are willing to do the same for the NBA Finals or the Super Bowl. 

NBA Finals vs Super Bowl vs Stanley Cup: a comparison 

That the Stanley Cup hype can be compared to the Super Bowl is not news. Even back in 2014, the minimum ticket price for the Stanley Cup finals was $1,573. A tad bit over the 2013 Super Bowl minimum ticket price. 

Similarly, the resale value of NHL finals tickets for 2018 was higher than the 2018 NBA Finals. For example, the NHL priced game 3, 4, and 5 tickets at $800, $838, and $800, respectively. Whereas, for the NBA Finals, the tickets were sold at $244, $315, and $544. A comparison chart of the ticket prices from last year reveals that the Stanley Cup finals are in no way inferior to the Super Bowl and NBA Finals. 

So, is there a distinct possibility that a Stanley Cup Finals match can indeed become the most expensive in the history of all sports? There are a couple of reasons to believe so. 

Can Toronto break the all-time record? 

For the record, the 2022 Stanley Cup Final (Avalanche-Lightning) saw one of the ten most expensive tickets in sports history. If the Maple Leafs reach the Stanley Cup finals and Game 7 becomes necessary, can we see the average ticket price skyrocket to above $8000?

It’s very likely. 

Firstly, hockey in Canada is a national obsession. And in Toronto, that’s the air they breathe. To put it into perspective, the gap in ticket prices between Edmonton and Florida was as stark as the weather between the two cities. The ticket in Florida cost about $360 and $350 for game 1 and game 2, respectively. Whereas games 3 and 4 averaged around $700 and $950, respectively, in Canada. 

The biggest contributing factor was the Oilers’ lack of presence in the finals–before 2025, their last Stanley Cup final appearance came in 2006. And the Maple Leafs haven’t played the Stanley Cup finals for how long? 

Yes, 59 years. And that will get extended to one more year after their rout against last year’s champion Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 7. They haven’t made it to the Conference Finals since 2002. Yet their fanbase hasn’t dwindled. 

• Average attendance went up to 18,789 last year from 16,386 in 2021-22.
• Around 30% of Leafs fans like to hit the rink, a survey from 2023 showed.
• By the strength of their fan base (1.3M), they are the second-most popular Canadian team.

To top it off, they are also the owner (and apparently very proud) of the dubious distinction of being the most annoying fan base in the NHL. But they are also the fans that fill the arenas, and are likely the ones who will purchase a ticket for upwards of $8,000 to watch their team in the finals (if and when that happens). 

 “That’s something we see across all sports, is the team that hasn’t been there for a while really drives that demand,” Adam Budelli, industry veteran and spokesperson for StubHub, was quoted by The Athletic as saying. So, yes, a Stanley Cup final in Toronto can indeed become the most expensive game in sports history.