| Bell Centre | |
|---|---|
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| Location | 1260 De la Gauchetière Ouest Montreal, Quebec H3B 5E8 |
| Broke ground | June 22, 1993 |
| Opened | March 16, 1996 |
| Owner | George N. Gillett Jr. |
| Construction cost | C$270 million |
| Former names | Molson Centre (1996-2002) |
| Tenants | Montreal Canadiens (NHL) (1996-present) Montreal Impact (NPSL) (1997-2000) Montreal Rocket (QMJHL) (2001-2003) Montreal Express (NLL) (2002) |
| Capacity | Hockey: 21,273 Theatre: 5,000 to 9,000 Full Capacity: 14,000 to 21,500 Hemicycle: 2,000 to 3,000 |
The Bell Centre (French: Le Centre Bell), formerly known as the Molson Centre, has been the home of the Montreal Canadiens since March 16, 1996 when they hosted the New York Rangers (a game which they won 4-2). The team departed from the historic Montreal Forum after their last game on March 11 of the same year. Construction began on the site on June 22, 1993, 13 days after the Canadiens defeated the Los Angeles Kings at the Forum for their 24th and most recent Stanley Cup. The name of the arena initially reflected Molson, Inc., a brewing company which owned a large share of the Canadiens at the time. Molson elected not to keep the naming rights when they sold the team, and the name officially changed on September 1, 2002 after Bell Canada acquired the naming rights.
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Arena information
The building covers an area of 15,680 square metres (168,778 sq. ft). It is located in downtown Montreal, connected to Lucien-L'Allier and Bonaventure metro stations and to the underground city; the Lucien-L'Allier commuter train station is incorporated into the building. It has the largest seating capacity of any amphitheatre in the NHL. Capacities of the Centre are:
- Arena 21,273
- Amphitheatre 10,000-14,000
- Theatre 5,000-9,000
- Hemicycle 2,000-3,500
The public address announcer for the Canadiens' games is Michel Lacroix.
Events
The final two games of the 3-game 1996 World Cup of Hockey championship series were held at the Bell Centre (the USA won both games, defeating Canada in the series 2-1). The Bell Centre was also host of one Quarter-Final game in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. The Bell Centre will host the 2009 NHL All-Star Game and the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. The Bell Centre has also held several WWE events, including the 1997 Survivor Series where the infamous Montreal Screwjob took place, as well as other Pay-Per-Views including 2003 No Way Out. The Bell Centre will be home to the first UFC event to take place in Canada on April 19th. The show will be headlined by a rematch between Welterweight champion Matt Serra and the man he beat and Montreal native Georges St. Pierre.
Records
Concerts by Celine Dion for August 15 and 16, 2008 were sold out within 6 minutes. The next day, Dion's management added two more concert dates on August 18 and 20, 2008. 80,000 tickets for the four concerts sold out in only 35 minutes, setting a record in the history of the Bell Centre as well as Canada. A few days later, a fifth concert has been announced for Montreal on August 23, 2008. This was then followed by another date being added on August 25, 2008, bringing the total to 6 shows and 120,000 spectators, the largest audience on the tour. These last two shows sold-out in less than 35 minutes as well. On August 22, 2008, Dion will join the concert for the 400th anniversary celebrations of Quebec City.
Retired jerseys
The following numbers are retired by the Canadiens (positions in parentheses) and hang from the rafters:
- 1 Jacques Plante (G) October 7, 1995
- 2 Doug Harvey (D) October 26, 1995
- 4 Jean Béliveau (C) October 9, 1971
- 5 Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion (RW) March 11, 2006
- 7 Howie Morenz (C) November 2, 1937
- 9 Maurice "The Rocket" Richard (RW) October 6, 1960
- 10 Guy Lafleur (RW) February 16, 1985
- 12 Dickie Moore (LW) and Yvan Cournoyer (RW) November 12, 2005
- 16 Henri Richard (C) December 10, 1975
- 18 Serge Savard (D) November 18, 2006
- 19 Larry Robinson (D) November 19, 2007
- 29 Ken Dryden (G) January 29, 2007
More numbers will be retired during the next 3 years until the team's centennial anniversary. On October 18, 2005, the Canadiens also raised the following numbers on a single banner in honour of the former MLB team Montreal Expos, who left the city for Washington, D.C. after the 2004 season. The Nationals unretired the numbers, so the Canadiens raised a special banner honouring these baseball players:
- 8 Gary Carter
- 10 Andre Dawson and Rusty Staub
- 30 Tim Raines
Ironically, Jackie Robinson, whose number was retired twice (#20 because of his minor-league playing days in the city, and #42 as required by MLB), was not given a banner.
External links
| Preceded by Montreal Forum 1926—1996 |
Home of the Montreal Canadiens 1996—present |
Succeeded by current |
