Stanley Cup tickets more expensive in Philly

Plenty of tickets are still available to see the Flyers and their quest for Lord Stanley's Cup, but just know - it's gonna cost you.

While prices are roughly $26 cheaper on average for games in Chicago, fans are shelling out as much as $812 per seat on online ticket sites for the potential three home games in Philadelphia, according to FanSnap. By comparison, tickets on average are going for as much as $786 per seat in Chicago.

Joellen Ferrer, StubHub's corporate communications manager, says a few factors play into the price difference.

Philly fans have had a great couple of years in pro sports with the Phillies, Eagles and now Flyers. Conversely, Chicago has waited nearly 2 decades for the Blackhawks to make the Cup. The series begins in Chicago and could potentially end there in a Game 5 (Sunday, June 6) or a Game 7 (Friday, June 11).

"We've seen tremendous growth for NHL playoff tickets this year," said Ferrer. "Flyers tickets were the hottest of the conference finals, and, without question, we're seeing heightened demand for the Stanley Cup."

Ferrer also noted the increased demand in NHL tickets as a whole following USA Hockey's gold-medal run in the Olympics earlier this year.

According to FanSnap, a search engine that analyzes trends in the online ticket market, standing-room-only stubs for Game 3 at the Wachovia Center are averaging $345. That number goes up to $381 for Game 4.

FanSnap did note lower level tickets are cheaper in Philadelphia. A pair of tickets on the glass in Chicago range from as low as $5,000 to $10,000 per seat, while a much more relaxed range of $2,500 to $4,000 exist here at home.

Fans wary of such astronomical numbers need to know that ticket prices tend to fluctuate significantly about 24 to 48 hours before game time as sellers looking to dump tickets tend to depart from their earlier ballooned asking prices. As Ferrer explains, for fans looking for a specific section the best time to buy is now, but if you are just looking to get in the door, playing the waiting game is never a bad choice.

"Selection is vast right now, so it's the best time for fans looking for either the widest range of tickets or for a particular section," Ferrer said. "But given that the Flyers won't be home until next week, I expect there will be fluctuations in pricing as the market settles."