World juniors proving to be a tough sell

Who needs tickets? BUFFALO, N.Y. Apparently no one does at this year’s world junior hockey championship. The tournament, which struggled to fill NHL-size venues in Toronto and Montreal last year, is not off to a great start in Buffalo.

KeyBank Center, with a capacity of more than 19,000, was maybe half-full during Canada’s 4-2 win against Finland on Boxing Day. Later that night, the lack of attendance was so dismal that organizers decided to close off the 300 level for the U.S.-Denmark game and crammed fans together in the lower bowls to give the illusion of a sold-out arena.

“I didn’t know really what to expect,” Team Canada head coach Dominique Ducharme said. “There was a lot of red jerseys. I think that the further the tournament moves on, we’ll get more and more and more. We’re always happy to have Canadians behind us.”

Part of the problem is pricing. Tickets for Wednesday night’s game between Canada and Slovakia began at US$30 and went as high as US$110, while Friday’s outdoor game between Canada and the United States at New Era Field in nearby Orchard Park, N.Y. — the home of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills — started at US$55 and reached US$137.

As of Wednesday evening, there were thousands of seats still available.

While making the tournament more affordable might help, the bigger issue could be exhaustion. After Toronto and Montreal split hosting duties in 2015 and 2017, this is the third time in four years that the same segment of fans in southern Ontario are being asked to pay NHL prices for a junior-level product, this time without a talent on par with Connor McDavid or a Jack Eichel. Canada lacks even a draft-eligible prospect.

The tournament moves to Vancouver and Victoria next year.