Canes watch party at Lenovo Center for Game 6 sells out fast; Ticketmaster responds to AG Jackson

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The hottest ticket in town sold out in less than an hour as fans rushed to secure seats for a Game 6 Stanley Cup Final watch party at the Lenovo Center on Sunday.

The Carolina Hurricanes will return to Las Vegas for Game 6, and local fans eager to witness a potential championship moment were quickly overwhelmed by ticket availability for the watch party. Tickets opened to the general public at 3 p.m., but demand was immediate and intense.

Among those trying to secure a spot was Raleigh resident Emma Mathes, who tracked her place in the online queue. She had more than 16,000 people ahead of her when she spoke with ABC11.

"I wasn't super tuned into the watch parties happening until the finals. I typically prefer to watch with friends at home, but I was like, for possible winning the Stanley Cup game, I gotta try to get tickets," she said.

Efforts to purchase tickets proved difficult for many. Logging on about 10 minutes before the general public sale, one attempt found more than 14,000 people already ahead in line once sales began.

The high demand follows concerns raised by North Carolina Attorney General (NCAG) Jeff Jackson after some Hurricanes season ticket holders reported issues obtaining seats during presales for Stanley Cup Final events.

Ticketmaster responded to the attorney general's office, saying that season ticket members did have access to tickets, but availability was limited.

The company said in part: "Any Hurricanes Season Ticket Members (STMs) who had difficulty acquiring additional seats during the STM Cup offer is likely due to limited availability and the general process and promotion for gaining access for an opportunity to secure the additional seats made available by the team to their selected fans."

Ticketmaster also said its systems did not detect any technical issues during the sales process, despite the surge in demand. The company added that it blocked tens of thousands of potential bad actors identified by its system during the sale.

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