All tickets for the NHL All-Star Game at Philips Arena on January 27 have been sold, with "most going to local fans," according to Tim Tucker of the ATLANTA CONSTITUTION. Atlanta Spirit Exec VP & CMO Lou DePaoli said that the NHL took 6,500 tickets "for use by the league, its teams and business partners," but the Thrashers sold the remaining 12,000-plus tickets. Thrashers' season-ticket holders "got first shot at the seats," and then the tickets were offered to season-ticket holders of the Hawks, the Thrashers' sister franchise. The remaining seats went to non-season-ticket holders. Tucker notes unlike the NFL and NBA, the NHL "leaves most tickets for its all-star game in the hands of the host city." DePaoli: "The NBA takes the vast majority of seats, while the NHL takes about a third." But Tucker notes "ticket revenue goes to the league." The team "bears the expense of staffing and operating the arena for the all-star events and receives a percentage of sales of suites, concessions and merchandise." DePaoli: "What we try to do at worst is come out of this at break-even. We'll definitely hit break-even." DePaoli also said 89 of the 92 Philips Arena suites have been leased for All-Star weekend. The Thrashers last year proposed an outdoor fan festival in Centennial Olympic Park, but DePaoli said, "That didn't work out for various reasons, primarily cost and (unpredictable) weather" ( ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 1/17 ).
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