Arenas with specific quirks

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Im starting this thread to detail the ways in which the vintage rinks of the NHL, usually those of the MLG, Forum, Chicago Stadium, Era and earlier differed from the standard NHL rink and discussion of the impacts of those quirks. Some of these are well known, such as the compressed surfaces of the Boston Garden, Buffalo Auditorium, and Chicago Stadium.

One example that Ive never heard discussed is the ice surface of the Montreal Forum, which has always appeared to me to have been slightly bigger than modern NHL rinks. Specifically, the corners of the rink seem much smaller than current NHL standard (ie if you drew a circle including the curve of the corner boards, the one drawn by the Forum boards would be much smaller than that of the equivalent boards at the Bell Centre)

For comparison, the Forum Ice and the Bell Centre:

The Forum Ice appears to have a shape very close to a rectangle when compared to its replacement. Note how the curve of the glass in the Bell Centre heading towards centre ice appears to fully straighten at about the hashmarks, whereas the Forums boards did the same thing almost at the bottom of the circles.

Discuss

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[Nerowoy nora tolad]

The Detroit Olympia, noted for having an unusually large amount of playing area behind the net in some sources:

Im not fully familiar with this section of the rules, but Id guess that the league simply set down a set distance that the rink should be from goal-line to goal-line, and the staff at the Olympia laid it out that way with no regard to how disproportionate it looked. Its hard to see, but the distance from the back of the goal to the end boards looks like its almost double what it would be in a modern rink?

 

[ICM1970]

I recall reading about how that funny old (and likely in some respects unsuitable to the point of being dangerous for it to be a major pro league facility) place that the WHA's Jersey Knights played in in their one season of existence in 1973-74 had a centre ice that rose that little bit so one could wind up from there with a slapshot and make the puck do all sorts of crazy things (as opposed to a more normal, standard type of ice surface).

 

[Michael Farkas]

Does the time that Jacques Plante called out the New York, Boston, and Chicago nets for being two inches shorter than the rest of the league nets count...?

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

I recall reading about how that funny old (and likely in some respects unsuitable to the point of being dangerous for it to be a major pro league facility) place that the WHA's Jersey Knights played in in their one season of existence in 1973-74 had a centre ice that rose that little bit so one could wind up from there with a slapshot and make the puck do all sorts of crazy things (as opposed to a more normal, standard type of ice surface).

Cherry Hill Arena, brief home of the WHA New Jersey Knights.

Have a link!

You're welcome, Sir, you may have another!

If I ever do one of those All-Time-Draft things, I'd consider coming on board as the Cherry Hill Knights of Ni.

Cherry Hill: where "The Ice Is Tilted" is MORE than just a metaphor.

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Does the time that Jacques Plante called out the New York, Boston, and Chicago nets for being two inches shorter than the rest of the league nets count...?

Absolutely. Im tempted to look up the particulars of when they discovered that and do an analysis of whether it gave them an actual competitive advantage.

Although, in the version of the story Ive always heard, the funny money nets were only in Chicago, and the smaller net was only on the side of the ice that the Hawks defended for the 1st and 3d periods (effectively giving the home team a serious advantage)

 

[Primary Assist]

Bit of a crossover episode here, but the old Boston Garden had an issue with steam coming off the ice and warping the Celtics playing surface.

Celtics players knew where the "dead" or bad spots of the court were and would deliberately bait opposing players into dribbling there and losing control of the ball.

 

[JMCx4]

Brief mentions of older NHL ice surfaces in this 2009 feature piece from NHL.com.

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Bit of a crossover episode here, but the old Boston Garden had an issue with steam coming off the ice and warping the Celtics playing surface.

Celtics players knew where the "dead" or bad spots of the court were and would deliberately bait opposing players into dribbling there and losing control of the ball.

Thats hilarious

On the topic of the Boston Garden, the book on it for hockey was that it was very small (191 x 83 ft). That put it as bigger than the Buffalo Aud, but smaller than Chicago Stadium, which was also non-regulation size.

From my vague impressions of watching vintage games from those rinks, Chicago Stadium only appeared slightly smaller than usual (comparing it to a standard modern NHL rink), but the Boston Gardens looked very small. Ive also heard rumours I cant place right now that the boards were also asymmetrical, egg shaped.

 

[tony d]

Yeah, the Boston Garden was very small, also didn't the power go there during a Stanley Cup finals game?

 

[Inkling]

Not sure it can be termed a 'vintage arena' but the Calgary Corral was definitely an NHL arena in the past and if I recall correctly it had really high boards, higher than a typical arena. I think the benches were two levels as well; they weren't long enough to accommodate the full team so some players had to sit on a second bench behind.

 

[Big Phil]

Yeah, the Boston Garden was very small, also didn't the power go there during a Stanley Cup finals game?

Twice, 1988 and 1990. In 1990 they continued the game after a 30 minute delay in the triple overtime game where Petr Klima scored. 1988 they cancelled it and made it up in Edmonton.

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

Memorial quotation of a 'Canadiens1958' post:

This mention of the Ottawa Arena in the time of Nighbor, et al

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Not sure it can be termed a 'vintage arena' but the Calgary Corral was definitely an NHL arena in the past and if I recall correctly it had really high boards, higher than a typical arena. I think the benches were two levels as well; they weren't long enough to accommodate the full team so some players had to sit on a second bench behind.

I looked it up

Stampede Corral - Wikipedia

Im guessing the really high boards were meant for the rodeo?

 

[tarheelhockey]

Duquesne Gardens, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1920s, had an absurd 262’ x 90’ ice sheet.

This photo is not of an NHL game, but gives a sense of the dilemma this created... either they left silly amounts of space behind the nets, or the nets were a silly distance apart.

Edit: according to an old thread, they reduced the length of the sheet when the Pirates started playing there. I don’t know whether this is true or to what length it was shortened.

 

[Big Phil]

It would be weird for a modern arena today, but in old Maple Leaf Gardens the staircase for the seats behind the bench went all the way to the bench. Maybe that's what made it so cozy all of the time.

Also, I've said this before, but older arenas (Boston Garden, Maple Leaf Gardens, Forum, Joe Louis arena even, Spectrum) were the sort of buildings that were good viewing for TV. Sure someone's head got in the way from time to time in front of the camera but you could constantly see the tops of people's heads when they were standing up (for example when a fight started or a scoring chance happened or when a goal was scored) and it gave you this sense of being in the arena more than anything else.

 

[JMCx4]

Duquesne Gardens, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1920s, had an absurd 262’ x 90’ ice sheet.

This photo is not of an NHL game, but gives a sense of the dilemma this created... either they left silly amounts of space behind the nets, or the nets were a silly distance apart.

View attachment 324853

Rumor had it that the Ancient Roman Sports Commission (ARSC) was briefly in talks with the Pirates & Duquesne arena management to co-schedule chariot races with the hockey matches in the space. But the deal fell through when the charioteers union found out the Pirates had locked up exclusive rights to first kill on game nights.

 

[Theokritos]

Duquesne Gardens, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1920s, had an absurd 262’ x 90’ ice sheet.

Interesting. The ice rink in Milano, Italy, where the 1924 European Championship was held, reportedly measured 75 x 45 m (246' x 148 '). And they did really play on that sheet of ice.

 

[Robert Gordon Orr]

Interesting. The ice rink in Milano, Italy, where the 1924 European Championship was held, reportedly measured 75 x 45 m (246' x 148 '). And they did really play on that sheet of ice.

Palazzo del Ghiaccio, Milan
I like the fact that you could have dinner along the boards, or just order a nice drink/coffee at the bar.

....but this is one takes the prize.
The old Durham Riverside Rink in England.
You had to keep your head up with that post holding the roof !

 

[Beerfish]

Buffalo arena fogging up.

"Due to unusual heat in Buffalo in May 1975, and the lack of an air conditioning system in the auditorium, portions of the game were played in heavy fog. During stoppages of play, rink employees skated around the arena ice carrying bed sheets in an attempt to dispel the fog."

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Some exact numbers on the rink dimensions of the league in 1970 courtesy of the Esso NHL Powerplay Album

 

[Danny46]

I hate the arenas of today, they all look the same (except the Garden), i love the old gridy mystique, it gave a great war feeling, contrary to the corporate feeling of the arenas today...

 

[tarheelhockey]

Some exact numbers on the rink dimensions of the league in 1970 courtesy of the Esso NHL Powerplay Album
View attachment 355014 View attachment 355015

In case that photo link ever gets broken:

Boston Garden
191' x 83'
Capacity: 14,880

(Buffalo) Memorial Auditorium
196' x 85'
Capacity: 10,331

Chicago Stadium
188' x '85'
Capacity: 17,100

(Detroit) Olympia Stadium
200' x 83'
Capacity: 13,500

Los Angeles Forum
200' x 85'
Capacity: 16,005

(Minneapolis) Metropolitan Sports Center
200' x 85'
Capacity: 15,095

Montreal Forum
200' x 85'
Capacity: 16,500

(New York) Madison Square Garden
200' x 85'
Capacity: 17,250

Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena
200' x 85'
Capacity: 12,500

Philadelphia Spectrum
200' x 85'
Capacity: 14,618

Pittsburgh Civic Arena
205' x 85'
Capacity: 12,580

St. Louis Arena
200' x 85'
Capacity: 17,776

(Toronto) Maple Leaf Gardens
200' x 85'
Capacity: 16,115

(Vancouver) Pacific Coliseum
200' x 85'
Capacity: 15,564



Non-standard
Boston - 9 feet short, 2 feet narrow
Buffalo - 4 feet short
Chicago - 12 feet short
Detroit - 2 feet narrow
Pittsburgh - 5 feet long

 

[JMCx4]

I hate the arenas of today, they all look the same (except the Garden), i love the old gridy mystique, it gave a great war feeling, contrary to the corporate feeling of the arenas today...

Multipurpose buildings get multipurpose personalities. Hockey is no longer king in "hockey arenas."

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Multipurpose buildings get multipurpose personalities. Hockey is no longer king in "hockey arenas."

Every single one of the O6 arenas was multipurpose from day 1.

Hell the Rangers had to defer to the Circus back in the 40s