The Calgary Hitmen and the Red Deer Rebels' played a historic game at Stampede Corral April 1.
The Calgary Hitmen and the Red Deer Rebels' played a historic game at Stampede Corral April 1.
The Hitmen lost a tough 2-0 Western Hockey League playoff battle, but the event was extra special not only because it was the first junior hockey game the 66-year-old arena had hosted since the 2008 playoffs, but because it could well be the very last game played in the 6,400 seat building.
Playing for the Hitmen that night was 17-year-old Cochranite and rookie forward Andrew Fyten, while on the opposite side of the spectrum stood 20-year-old Canmore native and Rebels captain Luke Philp.
Neither had played in the arena before, and as things stand now, probably never will again.
“It was a lot of fun, ” Philp said. “It was a good atmosphere which we were expecting for the game. It was a bit different compared to other arenas we've played in before, especially with the squared off corners, but it was great and we got the result we needed. ”
“We've practised here before - which was the first time I'd ever been in the place - but this was our first game here, ” Fyten said. “It was a really exciting occasion, and the atmosphere was great. The ice surface was a bit smaller than we're used to, and the boards were a kind of bouncy and not predictable, but it was a great experience. ”
The Corral was constructed in 1950 for $1.25 million to replace the Victoria Arena - situated where the Saddledome currently resides - but age and the need for more space to accommodate the BMO Centre means the Calgary Stampede board is looking to demolish the old girl.
“We're proposing an expansion of the conference and event facilities that we have at Stampede Park, ” said Kurt Kadatz, director of community engagement and communications at the Stampede. “Potentially the project is a couple of years away, but when people hear about it, they think it's imminent.
“There's still going to be events hosted there next year. I know a lot of people felt nostalgic about the game on Friday, but the truth is the facility doesn't meet modern needs. It doesn't have a lot of the bells and whistles required for present-day arenas. It's early days for the project though, and it's all dependent on funding and approvals being put in place. ”
The Corral has been home to numerous hockey teams such as the Stampeders, Centennials, Cowboys, and Wranglers, as well as the Flames when they first relocated to the city from Atlanta in 1980. Even the Hitmen played games there during the franchise's inaugural season (1995) and the 2008 playoffs.
It was the place to be, especially in the early years before Calgary became a National Hockey League (NHL) city, when junior hockey, Stampede Wrestling, and the Calgary Stampeders football team were the only shows in town.
A who's who of future stars such as Lanny McDonald, John Davidson, Danny Gare, Mike Rogers, Bob Nystrom, Mike Vernon, and Kelly Kisio (to name a few) have graced the ice there, and no matter what happens, for those who played there, the memories they have will long outlast the building itself.
“It was a great place to play under fantastic tutelage with a lot of great people, ” said John Davidson, former Centennials goalie and current president of hockey operations for the Columbus Blue Jackets. “When the Centennials played there, we filled the place, and the rivalries - in particular with the Edmonton Oil Kings and Medicine Hat Tigers - were awesome. The fans got their money's worth, in every aspect.
“Even as a kid, I remember going there with my dad and bringing a baseball mitt, in case we caught a puck. For me, the Corral will always be a special place, and it was a special time when I was able to play there. ”
Davidson who made a name for himself in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues and in particular the New York Rangers, played in some storied rinks over the course of his career, but the high and hard boards of the Corral as well as the intimate setting are two of the many aspects he feels gave the Corral a completely unique character.
“The boards were super high, ” he remembered. “If you jumped off the bench over the boards, it was a road trip to hit the ice. I know when the NHL played there a lot of players talked very openly about that.
“Also, it wasn't a big, cavernous building, so it always felt like the fans were part of the game, which is something that is missing today. ”
Cochranite and former Centennials player Russell Wiechnik feels that while it's a shame to see the Corral go in the name of progress, nothing can take away the memories he has of a time when junior hockey was the talk of the town.
“It was electric to play there. We set a record for attendance the first year I played there because we were rated the best junior team in Canada at that time, ” he said. “Every night it was wild, we used to always sell out, with standing room only. When visiting teams came, it was always a lot tougher for them to play there.
“We were the number one team in town, and everyone knew us. We thought it was the best place to play in western Canada, and at the time it was one of the biggest. ”
Another veteran of the Corral, longtime Philadelphia Flyers scout and former Wranglers and Lethbridge (now Swift Current) Broncos head coach John Chapman is sad to see the arena go, but like many, has a treasure-trove of memories.
“It was a great building, with a terrific atmosphere, ” Chapman said. “The fans were right on top of you like in the old Montreal Forum. Both the team benches used to be right beside each other and there was no glass separating them. I'd be running my bench and the opposing coach would literally be three feet away. There were always a lot of shenanigans going on.
“It was way more exciting back then compared to now. ”
One memory he looks back on fondly was in 1974 when Calgary hosted the Memorial Cup. Chapman was asked by legendary Centennials head coach and general manager Scotty Munro to help him run his bench in a game against the New Westminster Bruins where a massive brawl broke out.
“Back then there were line brawls and brawls in the warm-up, it was a whole different animal than today, ” he laughed. “Right from the get-go when they dropped the puck, there was a five-on-five brawl. Of course the benches cleared, and the New Westminster guys were going around the ice shooting the Centennials' gloves up into the stands. As fast as they went up, the fans were throwing them back. ”
Just because something is bigger doesn't always make it better.
Multiple generations of fans took in an atmosphere Friday night the likes of which won't be seen again in Calgary, and that alone is priceless.
So, this is goodbye to the Corral as a hockey venue.
Soon to be gone, but never forgotten.
