Roaming The Rinks

I have been wanting to post my thoughts on what makes an arena stand out from the pack for a while.  The fact that I am closing in on attending games at 50 different arenas, coupled with the fact that I have been slacking in adding entries to this blog make now as good a time as ever to post this.  There are several key factors to whether or not I enjoy my trip to an arena, and since this is my website I will use some cheesy alliteration to describe them.

In order from least importance to most importance:

-Area- OK you probably haven't figured out the theme of this list yet, but I couldnt think of a synonym for location which starts with A, so we are going with the word area.  By this I mean the importance the physical location of the building plays in whether or not a night at the arena is enjoyable.  I have been to many arenas in downtown settings, as well as suburban areas, and either can work well if designed properly.  The biggest things to consider are parking and ease of access.  Not much ticks me off more than paying $12-15 to park for a minor league game where the ticket costs the same as parking my car in the lot or parking garage.  Downtown arenas can either have a ton of charm based on their setting, or can be a deterrant to attending a game there depending on the surroundings.  Let's put it this way- if I am concerned my car may not still be there when the game is over that is not a good location for an arena.  The suburban arenas often dont have the "bad part of town crime problem", and often offer easier access, but in the early days of the opening of the arena in Wilkes-Barre, PA, when the Penguins franchise started, I attended 1 game there, and only made 1 return in the 10 or so years since as it took over an hour to exit the parking lot that first game.  The area an arena is in will not deter me from attending an arena to document it for this site, but it can certainly have an effect on whether or not the enjoyment factor is as high as it should be.

-Assymetry- I like arenas that have quirks.  There seem to be too many "cookie cutter" arenas popping up where when you walk around the concourse or seating bowl you cannot tell which side of the ice you are on without looking at the location of the benches or penalty boxes.  Sure you can still enjoy a game at an arena where the seating bowl is uniform all the way around.  My call to arena designers would be- Change it up a little will ya!!  I have been to great places in Quebec where one end has seating or standing room which extends high above the rest of the seating area.   Even a classic old building such as the War Memorial in Rochester  has added charm with the balcony on one end which hangs over the ice and offers a unique view.  Even the odd setup is Syracuse with the stage at one end makes for a unique and memorable setting.  Its not that arenas with the generic seating pattern are bad, its just that those with unique features stand out from the pack.

-Ammenities - This catch all category covers everything from whether an arena has a huge video scoreboard and cupholders to whether or not you sit on wooden benches or actual seats.  My views on this may surprise some as I actually prefer the throwback arenas with fewer ammenities.  I dont know if it is because I like to torture myself, or strictly because I like to experience hockey the way it was years ago.  All I really ask for is a place to sit for 2 and a half hours and enough legroom not to get a cramp, although some of my favorite arenas such as Jack Gatecliff Arena where the Niagara IceDogs play had uncomfortable and cramped seating and concourses so narrow it was almost impossible to move around at intermission.  Also- this is hockey, so I expect it to be cold inside the building and get a little peeved when some of these newer arenas want to climate control the building to 72 degrees.  Sure a building where you can sit in luxury is great, I just dont want the creature comforts to overshadow the charm of the sport of hockey.   

-Architecture-  OK, we are getting to the important ones now.  This category cover both the exterior and interior design of the building.  Probably the most important aspect of that is the site lines of the seating.  We purchase a ticket to watch the game, we want to be able to SEE it.  My favorite places have insanely steep seating where you are almost hanging over the ice, and due to the slope can see really well whether you are in the front or back of the seating.  Although having support columns in the way can add charm in an older building I certainly would not put up with that week after week.  For the inside of the building it is simple- give me a place where you can see the action from anywhere in the building and still not seem too far away.  A wide concourse is also a plus, although as mentioned above it really doesnt matter that much.  The exterior of the building should reflect the times it was built, as the older exterior in Shawinigan certainly lets you know the era it was built in.  Many of the modern arenas are starting to look like pole barns from the outside, but some still have a classic, yet current look, such as the John Labatt Centre in London, Ontario, which fits into the neighborhood nicely including using an older period facade for the back side of the building.  Arenas are meant to be the showplaces of the community, and their exterior should reflect that.

-Atmosphere-  This should certainly always be number one in any hockey fan's list of criteria for a good arena.  An example would be Lynah Rink at Cornell.  From appearances it is an old building with wooden bench seating which extends around 3 sides of the ice.  In reality it is a place you can go and scream your lungs out for 2 and a half hours while standing on top of said benches and have a blast.  The atmosphere of an arena can certainly overcome negatives in all 4 of the other categories.  Another example would be Windsor Arena, where crowds packed nightly into this dump of a place to experience hockey like you can at few other locations.  Another example would be just about any older arena in Quebec, whether it be for a QMJHL game or the rough and tumble LNAH.  I cant describe it any more than as something you must experience yourself.  Dont worry, if you forot your airhorn on the trip to Quebec their will be plenty of others in the crowd.  The coolest thing about atmosphere is that it dynamic and can change from game to game, and year to year.  A place where the home fans try their best to make a trip to town a nightmare for opposing players means that the fans who attend the game are almost guaranteed a good time.  Going to a building where the crowd is only at 50% of the building's capacity means it is hard to conjur up that "7th player" vibe that so many (although dying in numbers) places are famous for.

When I go to a new arena, whether it be a Division 3 college game, or an AHL game I still look for the same things in the experience of watching the game.  That is why I have this site, and hope you all will continue to enjoy it.