No Winter Classic If You Live in Canada

[Dobber]

The Chicago Blackhawks have announced the details of the Winter Classic held at Wrigley Field on New Year\'s Day where they play host to the Red Wings.

The tickets will not be sold on a first come, first serve basis. Instead, they have elected to allow you to register via their website for a draw. If your entry is drawn, you will be allowed to buy a \"limited\" number of tickets. Season ticket holders, of course, don\'t have to go through this rigmarole.

It is the criteria for buying...or rather \"entering\", is where things get interesting. You have to reside in the United States. So if you live in Windsor, just four and a half hours from the game, you are out of luck. If you live in Miami, Florida, which is over 21 hours away, you are free to buy tickets.

I spoke with a representative of the Blackhawks and he explained that this is because Canadian law would not allow Canadian citizens to enter an American draw.

Understandable. So is our (and I say \"our\", because I am a Canadian living in Canada) beef with our lawmakers?

Not necessarily. Although, there is obviously something wrong with that law. The Blackhawks, or the NHL (the representative would not say which party made the final decision) decided to do things more fairly this year. Last year, when the Classic was held in Buffalo, it was a free-for-all when the tickets went on sale. It opened the door for scalpers or resellers to abuse the system.

When I asked him if they couldn\'t set aside say 75 percent of the available tickets for this method, but release 25 percent using the free-for-all method so that other countries could partake. He explained that he had nothing to do with the decision making process.

This sport is an international one. Americans who are on the Chicago and Detroit rosters are in the minority as Canadians and Europeans make up the bulk of the players. So why can\'t a Canadian or European access the game without knowing somebody with an American zip code?

The league means well with this new method, but it is a flawed one and was not well though out.


B)

[Kickerz]

I assume 12 people sat down at a board table, and came up with this solution within an hour. They probably felt really good when they did too. What a ridiculous way to do things. I wonder what Americans would say if the held a \"World Series\" or a \"Bowl\" game and had tickets only available only to Canadian citizens. Outcry?

[repenttokyo]

kickerz, could you do something about your mile-long signature?

[regiopolis]

Or how about, have a different, Canada-based draw for 20 or 25% of the tickets? One of the Canadian NHL teams could officially sponsor it, so it gets around this supposed law.

[repenttokyo]

regiopolis wrote:

Or how about, have a different, Canada-based draw for 20 or 25% of the tickets? One of the Canadian NHL teams could officially sponsor it, so it gets around this supposed law.

it\'s a real law. Something else most of you might not know about bc you live outside of Quebec, but many of the contest that occur \'across Canada\' are not actually valid in Quebec, because our province has a gaming board that requires companies to pay a minor fee and prove that their contest is legitimate. Many organizations don\'t bother to do this, and simply exclude the 6 million people who live here - even giants like Campbell\'s soup, for example.

It sucks, but it\'s commonplace. I wouldn\'t feel targeted as a Canadian, I would just feel a victim of the Blackhawk\'s laziness.

[Dutch]

I don\'t see a problem with it. It works the exact same way with Olympic games 2010 tickets, which initially is only open for Canadian residents. There is simply too much demand for an event like this, and therefore it would only make sense to do it in a way such as this. Unless you are willing to pay thousands on ebay for a ticket, this is a pretty fair way of doing things.

[duballstar014]

repenttokyo wrote:

kickerz, could you do something about your mile-long signature?

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:


Back to the winter classic...I feel for you Canucks. This really is a dumb concept and Dobber explains it perfectly. Windsor is 4 and a half hours away and residents cannot even enter to buy tickets? I live in southern California and it\'s probably a 5-6 hour flight to Chicago, but I can enter (and did enter). It\'s obviously a decision that was not well thought out, and the result could get very ugly if Canadians make a big enough fuss about it. Good luck my friends up north. Maybe something can be changed before the tickets are sold.

[Narayan]

Dutch wrote:

I don\'t see a problem with it. It works the exact same way with Olympic games 2010 tickets, which initially is only open for Canadian residents. There is simply too much demand for an event like this, and therefore it would only make sense to do it in a way such as this. Unless you are willing to pay thousands on ebay for a ticket, this is a pretty fair way of doing things.

I agree...

Im sure we will be getting a game in Canada next and then the roles will be reversed.

[quicksilver]

I agree...

Im sure we will be getting a game in Canada next and then the roles will be reversed.[/quote]


I hate to say it but as long as Bettman is in charge I don\'t see the winter classic coming back to Canada. Gotta grow the game in the states ya know...We\'re just lucky he can\'t keep a rink cold in Nashville. Too bad about ticket availablility outside the US...there must be a way around it??

[lanky522]

repenttokyo wrote:

kickerz, could you do something about your mile-long signature?

lol :laugh:

[kriskooz]

So are you telling me that a players family, that resides in and is from Canada, cannot go see their son play in the game?

Or do they make that exception for the all-important players but not the all-important fans?

[repenttokyo]

players always have access to x number of tickets for every game they are playing in.

[lanky522]

It just follows with the way the NHL does things... they don\'t really seem to want to expand into canada. They are trying to make the sport catch on in the U.S. That can\'t be done if canadians come in and buy all the tickets to their single most \"marketable\" game of the season.

Secondly. Nobody has taken into account that Chicago is ridiculously close to detroit, or that Detroit is the stanley cup champs. There will not be any lack of local fans that want to attend this game. They should be given preference.

As far as I\'m concerned, the fans present at this game should be comprised almost entirely of rabid chicago and detroit fans, with \"other\" fans filling in the rest.

Canada will have another winter classic someday (perhaps next year)...

[repenttokyo]

Canada has already had a winter classic.

[lanky522]

repenttokyo wrote:

Canada has already had a winter classic.

noted and edited. good call.