NHL Arenas That No Longer Exist

Which of these arenas was your favorite?

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!

Great vid, but forgot Joe Louis Arena & Buffalo Aud !

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.

The Winnipeg Arena is gone, nicknamed The Barn, we used to have the Bombers football stadium right beside each other but they're both gone now 😔

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…

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.

The Flyers left the Spectrum in 1996.

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.

Fun fact: The Montreal Canadiens are the franchise with the most Stanley Cups won inside the Boston Garden.

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.

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!

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.

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 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.

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.

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.

Was in the St. Louis stadium in the mid 70 was an awesome experience

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!