“Come on in and see what’s happeningPay the price, get your tickets for the show”
–Styx
It’s Preseason For Everybody
Something feels different about this season. I’m not sure what it is. It could be good or bad or maybe it’s just me changing seats again, but keep your eyes peeled for changes. It’s preseason game number one. Wilkes Barre is in town.
Tickets
The Phantoms move on from the Comcast axis of evil ticket partner to Ticketmaster this season. Surely there will be some difficulty in the conversion, and surely single game tickets will have fees added. For better or worse it’s different. What they really need to do is divorce themselves from the Comcast catering and concessions folks and get some better food and drink options for arena-goers. Perhaps this is the first step?
Cashless?
PPL Center won’t say. It’s not on their website that I could find, and Phantoms team officials can’t get an answer from arena management for some reason. But, during the rookie game that I attended last month I was unable to use cash at the pizza stand behind section 105. Last season the beer portables did not take cash. It’s the direction most sports venues are going so it’s not really a surprise–but it would be nice if they’d let us know. Also, there should be a workaround for folks who don’t use cards. At baseball we’re able to purchase gift cards with cash and use them for purchases in the stadium. Will that be available for Phantoms fans at the PPL Center?
UPDATE: PPL Center still hasn’t decided about going completely cashless. Tonight, Burger Prime and the Bru Daddy Bar will take cash while most (all?) other stands will be card only. Gift Card status is in the works, but nothing for sure yet.
Parking
There’s been no notice, but then, there never is. Will parking fees go up for hockey? Tickets have gone up, I see. The Allentown Parking Authority Evil Overlords still list $5 for Maple Street and Community/S6th Decks and $10 for the Spiral, Germania, ATC and North facilities–$8 if you pre-pay with Park Mobile. The “orange lot” arena parking deck can be a good option too, and at least there you can back into your spot which makes it safer to pull out following the game. It’s $7 via ParkMobile. The Parking Overlords still want us to pull in so that their robots can monitor our license plates when parking in their facilities. Oh, and it says very clearly that event parking starts 2 1/2 hours prior to event time so use that information wisely.
Oh, Yeah. The Hockey Part.
Lots of season ticket members got a chance to see the team practice Sunday morning, but for many of us this will be our first look at the team. There still may be a player or two to come back from Philadelphia, and many guys out there tonight might end up with Reading. Still, it’ll be good to see them play. Also, don’t know how much we can really learn about Wilkes Barre tonight due to the same kinds of reasons.
Printable Roster: 2024_10_01 Phantoms Training Camp
Media Kit: Phantoms WBS Preseason 1
Get Involved
We’ll get back to our normal format as the season opens. Jack is back behind the lens providing the images you’ll see here on a game-day basis. If you have something to contribute as far as game-day experience, parking, arena issues, or hockey observations please feel free to share in the comment section below. I’ll approve almost anything. Or, to share privately you can email Kram(at)toplevelminors.com or via direct message on the socials.
It’s time to get back to hockey! See you at the arena,
@Kram207
