'We love them': Tickets sell out in minutes for Cape Breton Eagles’ third-round playoff games
Cape Breton Eagles fans were lined up at the Centre 200 box office Thursday morning in Sydney, N.S., in hopes of securing tickets for the team’s third-round QMJHL playoff series.
“This is the most exciting team that we’ve had in Cape Breton in a long time,” said one fan.
The Eagles swept their second-round series against the Chicoutimi Saguenéens with an 8-5 victory Wednesday night. The win propelled the team to the third round, a playoff spot they haven’t reached since 2007.
Centre 200 was sold out for the two home games the Eagles played against the Saguenéens and, with the series sweep, excitement around the team is at a whole new level.
"Because they're doing awesome, and we love them,” said a fan who went to the J.A. Douglas McCurdy Sydney Airport to greet the team when they arrived home Thursday.
Fans line up at the Centre 200 box office in Sydney, N.S., on April 18, 2024.
Within a matter of hours, tickets were sold out for all three home games for the upcoming round. The ticket frenzy marks a major turnaround for the Eagles, who went from selling 1,500 seats a game in the fall to 15,000 in one day on Thursday.
"Literally eight minutes (after the tickets went on sale), I got a text from my billets showing me how many tickets were left, and it was literally just the upper bowl,” said Nicolas Ruccia, Cape Breton Eagles goalie.
"There's a reason we've been so successful at home, and a huge credit for that is the fans."
Now, the team’s focus is shifting to their third-round opponent.
"We're always ready for a challenge and we can compete with anyone, so we'll be ready for next week,” said Cape Breton Eagles forward Jacob Newcombe, who set a new Eagles record for points in a playoff game with six.
Games three and four of the Q-league semifinals are set for April 29 and 30 at Centre 200, with a game six in Sydney, if necessary, on May 4.
For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump returns to his campaign facing a warning of jail time if he violates a trial gag order
Donald Trump on Wednesday will use a one-day break from his hush money trial to rally voters in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan, a day after he was held in contempt of court and threatened with jail time for violating a gag order.
Ontario woman surprised after 20-year-old fines suddenly tank credit score
An Ontario woman says that she was shocked when provincial fines from 20 years ago suddenly tanked her credit score last week, but the situation may not be as unusual as it seems, according to at least one debt expert.
Anger can harm your blood vessel function, study shows
Stress and anger can have a negative impact on cardiovascular health, studies have shown. New research points to just how the mechanism may work.
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Newfoundland fisherman says police broke his leg during protest that delayed budget
Richard Martin is spending this year's fishing season on land after he says a Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officer broke his left leg in three places during a protest last month that shut down the provincial legislature.
A 98-year-old in Ukraine walked miles to safety from Russians, with slippers and a cane
A 98-year-old woman in Ukraine who escaped Russian-occupied territory by walking almost 10 kilometres (six miles) alone, wearing a pair of slippers and supported by a cane has been reunited with her family days after they were separated while fleeing to safety.
Will an 'out of sight, out of mind' cellphone policy make a difference in Ontario schools?
Ontario’s cellphone ban in schools has been met with mixed reaction, with some teachers concerned about constant policing of kids and experts applauding the change as necessary for student learning.
A Utah couple accidentally shipped their cat with an Amazon return. A week -- and 3 'miracles' -- later, they were on a plane to meet a stranger
The Amazon returns employee wasn't at work the day one of her colleagues at a California warehouse found a small, furry stowaway in a box mailed six days earlier from Utah. But Brandy Hunter got the call anyway.
Duelling protesters clash at UCLA hours after police clear pro-Palestinian demonstration at Columbia
Dueling groups of protesters clashed Wednesday at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. Hours earlier, police burst into a building at Columbia University that pro-Palestinian protesters took over and broke up a demonstration that had paralyzed the school while inspiring others.