I got to go into the original Forum in Montreal the summer before it was closed. As a lifelong Habs fan, it was an amazing experience as I was guided by the head of security. Got to see the Habs dressing room door and stood on the bench where LaFleur, Richard, Dryden and other legends sat. Very memorable.
There is a palpable feeling when I visit old stadiums, ballparks, and churches. There is a feeling that transcends time, you can feel the history and events that happened there. I love old ballparks like Wrigley Field and Fenway and the old Chicago Stadium felt the same way, but it's only a memory now. The old Forum, you had to be able to feel the ghosts there, so much history.
I got to Detroit's Olympia for a couple of games in the 1960s, as well as a Moody Blues concert in the '70s. As somebody else mentioned, the upper deck was steeeep - you felt that if you tripped and fell, you could tumble into the seats below!
Cool to see those pictures of Olympia. Along with the Red Wings some great concerts were held at the old barn. The Beatles played there twice and I saw a few great shows such Paul McCartney and Chicago. I was fortunate enough to be around when Gordie Howe and Alex Dalvechio played together. I also went to the first event at their new home, Joe Louis Arena, a Rush Concert. Now the Joe is gone too. More than a few Cups were skated at those venues. I liked Olympia because I could catch the Grand River bus and make it there without needing a transfer. Hard to believe it was so long ago.
So glad I started watching hockey when all these arenas were still around. Home buildings used to have character. Today they’re all the same. Boston Garden, the Igloo, and the barn in Buffalo were awesome…
As a young kid a friend of my Dad's had season tickets for the Leafs games in the 70's. Taking the subway station from Keele Street to Calton street, then walking into Maple leaf Gardens was a magical experience. I could actually feel the history in the arena. Fantastic memories.
The Stampede Corral is another good one, although it was only home to the Calgary Flames for 3 years. It was host to concerts and countless other teams until it was demolished about a year ago to make space for expansion of the BMO centre which is currently ongoing.
@@wolfiethedog76 new arena already approved, I think construction is supposed to start this summer. Not sure if they’re gonna knock down the dome when the new barn is done or not.
I was fortunate to attend games in many of these buildings. 1. The Montreal Forum. First visited in 1986. One eye catching feature was the steepness of the seating areas. Especially the upper bowl blue seats. Another unique feature . On one side of the building, the nearest exit for fans in the lower (Red seats ) closest to center ice was shared by the Canadians players themselves. I was in attendance in one game vs Philadelphia. At the conclusion of the game my buddy said , to "go this way" I was like "we can't go there. That's the players exit".....He said sure we can. I was amazed as other fans filed out alongside the Canadians player leaving the ice. Lastly. I believe, this was the only arena where the playing surface was at street level. The Forum also hosted the 1988 NHL Entry Draft I was there for round One. it was held in the afternoon. No ticket needed. We just walked right in.
I was really glad that you included the "Igloo" in Pittsburgh because not only did I see a lot of hockey and indoor soccer games there, but it was so cool when the roof opened during a game!
Rhe roof was NEVER opened during a hockey game. The most it COULD be open was 3 panels after they added section F to make it a hockey arena because those upper decks were too heavy
@@TechTokOffical Yes, you are correct. I was at the Civic Arena twice when the roof opened. One time, it was for a Pittsburgh Folk Festival and the other time, it opened during a Pittsburgh Stingers indoor soccer game. The Civic Arena was a very cool building for sure!
Chicago Stadium. The balconies were built before modern building codes. The stairs were steep. Only the top of the seat was visible from the row above. So, everyone was closer together. Also, the pipes for the organ ran all around the arena. The Madhouse on Madison.
The original Madhouse on Madison Avenue. That place got to rocking and rolling during hockey season let alone during the First Bulls 3 Peat. The Bulls fed off that energy during the comeback in the 4th quarter. The only time I have ever heard the UC get close was Game 6 2015 when Duncan Keith scored the game winning goal. I was there that night and WE BLEW THE ROOF off the UC.
I remember the GIGANTIC pipe organ at the east end of the old Stadium. When that thing was playing, it was hard to concentrate on anything but the music. Almost as loud as a Led Zeppelin concert I saw there circa 1976. I wonder if it was salvaged?
The Igloo (Mellon) and St.Louis Arena are my favourites. Their age made them a perfect barn to visit to watch their respective clubs (in general). St.Louis Arena doesn't get enough love.
At one time it was owned by I believe Ralston Purina. Their logo was either red and white or blue and white checkers, and the roof was painted like the logo.
I had the privilege of attending a handful of games at the old Montreal Forum. The hot dogs and smoked meat sandwiches were incredible. I saw Guy Lafleur make his return as a Ranger and that still ranks as my most memorable hockey game. On a trip to Montreal I took a young employee with me and asked if he had a suit. I told him we were going to the Forum and you have to wear a suit. He was just a student and didn't have shoes so I loaned him a pair. When we got to the game, shamefully late, we walked behind the penalty box area to get to our seats. Ian gave the Minnesota player sitting in the box, feeling shame a wink, nod and snap of the fingers. Never saw a kid have such a strut in shoes 2 sizes too big! God bless the old barns!
Fun fact, for like 60 years the Montreal Canadians had exclusive rights to all Quebec born players. It would have an embarrassing failure on their part to not win in that era. Look at them now though..
No love for the Memorial Auditorium, aka The Aud, in Buffalo? When the Sabres started playing in the NHL, the City of Buffalo allotted money to raise the roof and added in 1971 a whole new section, called the Oranges, along with a Press Box. The roof raising was for many years, listed in the Guiness Book of Records as the worlds largest roof raising project.
Chicago Stadium had that monstrous pipe organ. The best venue hockey will ever have had. Never should have abandoned it - would have been a tourist magnet but big money is short sighted.
What a great video .. The Montreal Forum, Boston Gardens and some of the older arenas give goosebumps .. The arena that holds the special place for me is The Spectrum - in addition to the Sixers and Flyers, I got to see so many great concerts there - the most memorable was Rush September 25th 1980 ( the day John Bonham died ) .. That was the first concert that my parents didn't come in with me ( I was 12 years old ) -Rush and Saxon, what a great show ..... The Igloo is special too ... I'd toss in Brendan Byrne Arena aka The Meadowlands in Jersey .. Saw the Nets there all the time, and Darryl Dawkins shattered a backboard once ..Rush,, Ozzy and Van Halen all between '80 and '82 .... Again, thanks for the video
The NHL has lost all of its cathedrals. Arenas used to be very unique and the ice surface was of various sizes and of various qualities. Add that some of them the teams had to walk up a flight of stairs to get to the ice. And of course the legendary Boston Garden and its huge rats and the youth gangs outside of Chicago Stadium, the Canucks took a beating trying to get to their bus
Saying the Olympia was in a declining neighborhood is an understatement. I miss the old red barn. It was a great place to watch a hockey game. The mezzanine was so cool.
Funny, while talking about the omni in Atlanta, the hockey footage of the flames was taken in Buffalo,you can see the Sabre emblems on the ice surface at the "Aud" which is no longer there, and also had a smaller ice size, the last game played there was April 14, 1996 a 4-1 win over the Hartford Whalers, the closing ceremony was capped off by Sabre Captain Pat Lafontaine putting the puck in the open net and skating off the ice, The Sabres opened the 97 season at the new HSBC arena which is now called Keybank arena.
@@ucumari77 The 2003-04 season is when the NHL switched to wearing dark jerseys at home, the still picture that is provided is to blurry to tell who the other team is, but it was at least taken at the Omni because you can make out the "A" at center ice. The live footage was taken in Buffalo, you can clearly see the Sabre emblem at center ice and the home team wore white jerseys in those days. The Flames only lasted in Atlanta for 8 yrs, 1972-80
THe Philadelphia Spectrum and Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum were both designed and built by the same company. The main feature was the very narrow main concourse. In the Nassau Coliseum , the restrooms were on a level of the concourse below the main concourse. Later, the building underwent renovations . One of those was to locate restrooms on the main concourse. The Spectrum actually had "restricted/obstructed view" seats in the upper bowl. Weirdest thing I had ever seen...
I went to several games at the old Met Center, with my dad when I was growing up in MN in the 80s-90s. What a great experience. So much fun. Talk about nostalgia. As of a few years ago, the place where Met Center stood is currently a parking lot for the Mall of America, and eventually is planned as the future site of additional mall shopping places where Ikea is supposed to be the anchor store.
In the 70's, I started watching Hockey and followed the NYR, Flyers and Sabers. Then playoff time rolled around and they ended up playing the Canadians..oh boy, it was over. I knew it was the end for any team that played them. The TV station zoomed in at the Montreal Forum and the announcer called it "The Cathedral that houses the Montreal Canadiens". Till this day , I can still see Guy Lafleur, Robertson, Shutt, Carbonneau zipping around like poetry and Ken Dryden being a brick wall. These guys made others teams look like Amateurs. Very few teams in all of sports has that special magical Aura that gives a chill down a spine. Win , lose or draw..The Montreal Canadiens will always hold a special in history and beyond.
Pittsburgh Civic Arena....Affectionately known as "The Igloo".....Nearly a one of a kind piece of architecture with its freespan domed roof, It also had a quirky interior. I visited for the first time in 1987 with my wife. The Charlotte Coliseum( original) on Independence Blvd which still stands today and is in use as the home for the AHL Charlotte Checkers. This building is so unique, that it is now on the National Register of Historic Places. As such, the exterior design and appearance nor the basic structure( Domed roof) cannot be altered unless there are extenuating circumstances. A true "minor league sized" building, it seats roughly 9500 for hockey. The building was home to the short lived ABA Carolina Cougars and also played host to the ACC Men's Basketball Tournament many times
Saw my first NHL game at 17 in The Omni (1/78, Islanders-Flames). What a paradise! It was futuristic without trying to be, just amazing. I've lamented its loss at least as much as the others, both mentioned here and not. I also loved the Hartford Civic... it looked like you were walking into a shopping mall! Intimate and beautiful place for a game...
I would have loved to have gone to Chicago Stadium for a Blackhawks game. They were the first team to have a goal horn, the Hawk fans were rambunctious, and they were all on top of the ice. I read that the outside walls of the Stadium were all within 100 feet of the rink; that suffocated opponents.
I don't know about the outside walls being 100 feet from the ice but numerous players have said that when they played at the stadium they felt as though they were a goal down before the game started because of the noise of the crowd.
@@Staszu13 You are correct, Staszu. I had a half share of season tickets from 1991-1994. They kept Chicago Stadium very clean and well maintained right up to its last day. Ironically, the surrounding neighborhood was horrible! Conversely, the St Louis Arena and Boston Garden were in pretty bad shape near the end of their life. I grew up in STL and went to many games at the STL Arena, so I saw that firsthand. I had never been to Boston Garden, but I read many articles that said it was dirty and in bad shape.
@@Staszu13 Yes, that’s what I’ve heard. My company transferred me away from Chicago later in 1994, so I’ve only been by United Center once since then and only get to Chicago every 5 years or so. But yes, the neighborhood looks better now, as long as you don’t stray too far from the immediate area.
MSG, My grandma watched the Rangers in the original Garden and told me their feet used to be freezing from the ice melting under the boards in 1934 ! She was buried with an Adam Graves Jersey 😇
The Penguins never won the Cup in the Civic Arena, nor have they won in their new building; all of their five championships have been won on the road...
In the Twin Cities you had the old Met Centre in Minneapolis and the Civic Centre in St. Paul. The Civic Centre had the plexiglass side boards but the sight lines were so shallow you always had people standing up in front of you to see the action. Then at the University of Minnesota the rink was tucked under the stands for the basketball arena so on that end a puck would occasionally bounce up and hit the overhang causing a play stoppage.
h the Spectrum in Philly. What wonderful memories. It was once the most feared place to play in if you were the opposing team. Once the Flyers left for the Corestates/First Union/Wachovia/Wells Fargo Center it just wasn't the same. I only saw a few Flyers games live(tickets were hard to come by) but saw many a WWF wrestling card or Phantom's game or concert. I never went but they even held the Wing Bowl there a couple of times. I really miss the place. On the spot now is Xfinity Live which is a big sports bar.
@@YoucantMesurethis The 96-97 seasons, yes. This was also the first season for the Phantoms. Fun Fact: I went to the 2nd home game for the Phantoms(Against Binghamton) and they blacked out the 3rd level. By the time the season ended they were routinely selling out the entire building especially against Hershey.
It's still standing and being used for hockey by the Toronto Metropolitan University. This video is about rinks that don't exist, so the Forum really shouldn't be on the list because it's still in use, just repurposed.
Hi Joey-I'm "young" enough to remember going to a game at the Olympia (I'm a Wing Nut). It wasn't in a great neighbourhood (at the corner of Grand River and McGraw) but it was the place where Gordie Howe became a legend!😄
My dad used to take me and my brother getting standing room only for Sunday matinee games. My other memory is being on the mezzanine once. The third deck behind one of the goals. I have a replica of the Olympia with that third deck before they turned it into suites.
Although they will lose in 4 this year, you forgot to mention Maple Leaf Garden. Also, no mention of Memorial Auditorium...aka "The Aud" in Buffalo? No playoffs for them either, but what other arena can "boast" of a fog game and a bat man in the same game??? Let's not forget it wasn't any game, it was Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.... May 20, 1975.... My grandfather took me to celebrate my 8th birthday... my introduction to hockey. Still loving it!
Maple Leaf gardens..& Forum 2 I went once in each.. the old Boston Arena that's still around and the Aud. which was demolished.. I will always regret I didn't get a chance to go into the Chicago Stadium...Boston Garden Rip
Also Detroits Joe Louis arena and the city of Windsor where the Detroit Cougars played their first season at Windsor arena while the Olympia was being built.
Maple Leaf Gardens. Built in 1931 by Conn Smyth, the arena was constructed within 6 months & became home to the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1931-1999. The team won 11 Stanley Cups from 1932-1967 & where many players like Johnny Bower, King Clancy, Ace Bailey, Bill Barilko & Tim Horton became legends. Outside of the NHL, the arena was home to the NBA's Toronto Raptors for 2 seasons, The NLL's Toronto Rock for the 1999-2000 season aswell as non sporting events like rock concerts, political conferences & religious congreagations. In 1999 the Leafs moved out of MLG for the Scotiabank Arena where sucess has been hard to come by, the building was designated a part of Ontario's Heritage & declared a national historical site of Canada in 2007, since then MLG been converted to a supermarket but hockey is still played there by the Toronto Metropolitan University's Varsity team, keeping the spirit of Hockey alive in one of the most renowned shrines in sport.
@@nrusso967 Technically yes. It's now partially a supermarket, and a athletic centre for a university. But there is still a rink there where you can see the original roof (albeit a lot smaller) Also interesting fact, if you go to the supermarket there is a dot where the original centre ice faceoff spot was!
Great video. This brought back so many memories! The Boston Garden was a treasure. The end zone balcony over hung the end of the ice so the 1st row was directly over the goal and it was amazing to watch a game from there. You could see the other end of the ice better than a regulation ice surface because it was shorter. The rows up there were very steep too, so you could see over the people infront of you. The place had rats the size of cats and the men's bathroom had a trough instead of urinals. 😂😂😂 Glad they tore it down though, it cost the Bruins home Stanley Cup Finals wins and you couldnt see the puck bc it was foggy in May and the NBA floor was slippery because of the ice underneath in the playoffs too. Great memories of the place, though! Chicago Stadium was another short barn and I remember the visiting team had to climb stairs to get to the ice level because the dressing room was under ice level. Talk about home ice advantage!
As someone born in Toronto and grew up in Philadelphia, I want to say Maple Leaf Gardens (you didn't mention) or The Spectrum in Philadelphia. But I would have to say The St Louis Arena is my all-time favorite, just a classic hockey building. I was in the Forum in Montreal in 1976, albeit to view gymnastics in 1976 Olympics. Saw Nadia Comaneci perfect 10, the 1st in Olympic history. A lot of people say the Forum based on all the Stanley Cups, but the building itself was nothing special. When you walked into The St Louis Arena, it was a wow moment.
The Boston Garden was built with boxing especially in mind. It was supposed to host the Ali-Liston rematch, that ended up in Lewiston Maine. Anyway, the balcony seats all around the rink were absolutely amazing for watching hockey games.
For those who are saying that Maple Leaf Gardens and Inglewood Forum aren't in the video,they're not demolished. MLG is still used,they reduced the capacity for a college team and Inglewood Forum is now used as a theatre
The Montreal Forum has not been demolished - it is similar to Maple Leaf Gardens in that the exteriors of the old arenas remain because they were both declared historic sites. For the most part, MLG is now a grocery store, the flagship store of Canadian chain Loblaw’s. The extreme upper level was converted into Mattamy Centre, a small arena which is the home rink for nearby Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University). TMU is a university, not a college, which in Canada has higher academic standards than colleges. Kindly get your facts straight…
Another note about the Civic Arena: Its roof was designed to be retractable. For some events, the roof would be fully or partially opened. (Never for NHL games, though). After 1995, the roof openings stopped almost altogether. Before its demolition in 2011, the last time the roof was fully opened was 2001.
The memorial Auditorium, fondly know as “the Aud”, was a disaster. It had seats that you would pay for that literally you could not sit, or stand in front of, due to posts right in front of your seat. You literally could not walk down a row of seats without running into a post in places. I felt bad for anyone using the seating chart, especially visitors that didn’t know, because those posts spanned three seats in a row (at least) and were not labeled on any seating chart. Box office personnel apparently didn’t know, either. Before many a game, fans that paid for such seats were found to be dumbfounded on what to do once they reached their “seats”. Locals that frequented the Aud knew those seats and would watch the reactions to those ticket holders. Not to mention the famous game where the fog off the ice was so bad that not only could you not see the puck but the players had a hard time seeing each other. Goalies never saw that puck coming that game.
Loved the Aud....up close and personal, every seat was great, nice small ice surface, and who can forget the Jim Shoenfeld/Wayne Cashman fight where they crashed through the boards and continued fighting in the concourse !
It was to be the Shawmut Center when it opened but Fleet Bank bought Shawmut Bank before it opened. After it was the Fleet Center, Toronto Dominion Bank bought the rights which they own to this day.
Great facility. Although it was only from 73 to 96 Caps, Bullets great sight lines. Tons of iconic bands said it had some of the best acoustics at the time.
Note: the Civic Arena was not the site of the final game of the 91-92 season. The pens won the cup in Minnesota. Pittsburgh has never won a cup in their home rink, winning in Minnesota, Chicago, Detroit, San Jose, and Nashville
I’m a lifelong Sabres girl, but sadly my only memory of the aud is going to its demolition when I was about 6. My dad used to tell me and my little brother bedtime stories about the Sabres and the old aud
You missed the Los Angeles Forum, which housed the Los Angeles Kings from 1967 through 2000. While the building still stands, it now serves as an entertainment venue. Jack Kent Cooke, who also owned the Los Angeles Lakers, built the Forum to house both his teams and became a relic for both leagues in the 1990's. With cramped locker rooms and other issues with the facility, both teams moved to the much more up to date Staples Center.
The Forum doesn't count because as you said, it's still standing. It has not been demolished and hopefully never will, even with the nearby Intuit Dome opening in 2024,
They only won two cups there. 2000 was won on the road in Dallas. And I think it was called the Continental Airlines arena in '03, but still I agree. Should have been included.
True 1996 Flyers moved into new building, loved the electrifying atmosphere at the old Spectrum in Philadelphia! Along with Chicago Stadium, Maple Leaf Gardens, and The Forum in Montreal, all my personal favorites.
The Let’s Go Flyers chant somehow changed when they moved across the parking lot. It went from a distinctive high-high-low-high (“LET’S GO fly-ERS”) to the completely inferior and generic high-low-high-low (“LET’S go FLY-ers”). I still don’t understand why and how it happened. It’s devastating.
