April 5, 2003
Bell Centre (Capacity: 21,273)
Montreal, QU
Montreal Canadiens vs New York Rangers
Final Score: 5 – 4
* The arena was revisited on November 8, 2014
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Planning an April weekend getaway in beautiful Montreal, we didn’t anticipate the weather being a major issue. Unfortunately, the morning we left, an ice storm struck Central New York and after chipping away at an inch of ice from my car, we crazily left Oswego, NY and somehow navigated closed roads to make it north of the border for sightseeing and a hockey game. Located in the southwest corner of Quebec along the St. Lawrence River, Montreal is Canada’s second-largest city (population: 1.5 million) and it is truly awesome. There is a great deal of culture and entertainment in Montreal and we got a fine taste of Europe in this pre-dominantly French speaking metropolis. Perhaps the most famous part of the area is the hockey team: the Montreal Canadiens. The storied Original Six franchise with the indistinguishable logo has a history full of great players (mostly French-Canadian) and championships, as Montreal’s 24 Stanley Cups make it the most successful team in the NHL. Their last cup came in 1993 and the last decade has been a bit of a struggle with just two playoff series wins. Things were better when I returned in 2014 as the team reached the Conference Finals twice in a recent five year span. Montreal’s home, the Bell Centre, was built in 1996 and replaced the venerable Forum which hosted the Canadiens for over 70 years. This arena is massive (likely too big), but it doesn’t take away from a great atmosphere and terrific fan base that lives passionately by their pro team almost like no other in North America.
Prestige Ranking: 5 out of 5
Location
The Bell Centre is right in the heart of Montreal, located downtown in the business district. A centralized location in this vibrant city is a great fit and while this is not Montreal’s most bustling restaurant section (in a city full of them), there is a fair assortment of nearby places to stop at before or after a game. Nearby, lots of construction is taking place around the arena, mostly consisting of condos that will skyrocket into the sky. Otherwise, the rest of the downtown architecture is attractive and the Cathedral Marie Reine du Monde is a highlight. Within the Ville-Marie Borough, the city’s famed Old Montreal can be considered a long walking distance away as the cobblestoned streets, charming buildings and clustered old shops and restaurants make one feel as though they are in Europe. About a 10-minute drive from the arena is Mont Royal and its panoramic view of the city.
Location Ranking: 9 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Bell Centre has a great transportation advantage in that there is a Metro line that runs to the arena. The Lucien-L’Allier station and the Bonaventure station on the Orange Line (or Line 2) provide easy access as the city’s underground subway is the best way to arrive. Remember that signs are in French, so it can make traversing the Metro challenging for the many that are not well-versed in the language. When it comes driving, it can be quite confusing on Montreal’s roads, especially with some of the highways going underground. Autoroutes from all directions lead to Montreal, while it is AUT-720 that leads to the Bell Centre area. Parking is available, but nothing is dedicated to the arena and surrounding lots are not all that plentiful. Going by car is a challenge and no matter the mode of transportation, preparation ahead of time is imperative given the likely foreign language.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 3 out of 8
Exterior
I was not impressed at all with the outside, as the Bell Centre looked like a tall, square factory building. Lots of brown brick is used and in the middle top portion of each side are glass windows. The main entrances are on the north and west sides. Here, a couple plazas open up for fans, while the rest of the building butts up pretty close to the street.
Exterior Ranking: 3 out of 10
Concourse
There is no grand entranceway into the building and the lower level concourse just shows up when passing the gates. It’s like bumper cars at intermission as the traffic can be choking in spots with barely room to move. Escalators bring fans past the suite and club level to the upper deck, where an even more narrow rounded concourse exists. They are at least decorated fine enough.
Concourse Ranking: 2 out of 5
Food
The Bell Centre has four restaurants and one of them is a sports bar open to all ticketholders (and open to the public on non-game days). Pretty much all of the other food I saw at the concession stands bore the typical stadium food resemblance. For a great food city, not much variety exists here. Tricky to find, Poutine and Montreal’s famed Smoked Meat Sandwiches are the lone representations and while the Smoked Meat is good, the sandwich is tiny and expensive. You can find a decent panini at least that is worth trying. Beer is mainly Molson.
Food Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Interior
This is the biggest arena in the NHL and you can tell right away as there are a ton of red seats in the lower bowl. It is a shame that the only affordable seats come in the upper level and they are less than ideal since that area is so high up and secluded with the majority of seats having blocked scoreboard views. The overall design is nothing special with three levels that circle the hockey rink. The second deck, Club Desjardins, is specialty seating only with club access, while the third deck is split between the white 300s and gray-blue 400s. Even though both of the upper sections are significantly smaller, they still have a healthy amount of seats. Our 400 section felt every bit like nosebleeds and to help with the steepness of the sections, there are railings between each row. Suites can be found between each seating deck. Seats themselves don’t have any cupholders and they are a bit tighter than what’s found in other arenas. I do like how sloped the rows are and this does create a better environment in the lower bowl. Still, sheer size is the Bell Centre’s defining feature and while things are good in the 100s, it’s the sections higher up sitting in diminished light and obstructive views that make me frown on this interior.
Interior Ranking: 7.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard got an upgrade before my second visit and it is pretty nice. Not absurdly big, the board features four large video screens and all of the game can info can be found at the bottom of the image.
Scoreboard Ranking: 3.5 out of 4
Displays
Coinciding with the team’s 100th anniversary, a Centennial Plaza was created outside with statues, honors and bricks. By far the greatest display is the Canadiens Hall of Fame inside the arena. Though there is a separate charge, it is well worth coming a few hours before the game to check out the impressive history and displays. Inside the concourse, there are several displays as well as plenty of pictures, recognitions (including one for the QMJHL) and an entire Centennial Club are great features of this building. Inside, the banners don’t disappoint as above the rink are many (and I mean many), including all 24 of their Stanley Cups. In the middle of those Cup banners are the displays designed to look like a Habs jersey for the team’s retired numbers. Some of the names bring goosebumps to fans, like Richard, LaFleur and Beliveau.
Displays Ranking: 6 out of 6
Cost
In what is generally expensive city, a Canadiens game experience unfortunately matches that. For my second trip in 2014, I spent over $80 on the secondary market for a terrible seat in the blue 400s. Individual prices through the team are lower, but the tickets for the entire season sell out so darn fast, you have to be lucky at the opening day sales lottery to snag a game. Even still, the lower bowl can not be had for less than $100. Tickets are at least a little lower than what is seen in Toronto. Parking can run $20 – $30 and concessions are high too ($9 for a little smoked meat sandwich).
Cost Ranking: 3 out of 8
Fan Support
Montreal fans are very passionate about their team and that can be seen not just in the Bell Centre, but in arenas across the Eastern US and Canada, where fans of the visitors show up in waves. Back home, the team usually leads the league in attendance (thanks to the large building size) and sellouts are quite frequent. Hockey is a religion in these parts.
Fan Support Ranking: 8 out of 8
Atmosphere
The history with Montreal makes this place special regardless of what the atmosphere is like. Thankfully, the fans add immensely to that and make this a building worthy of the historic team that plays in it. The Bell Centre was remarkably loud for games I’ve attended, even when one of them featured a squad out of playoff contention. The pre-game introductions are electric, with the torch having significance and game time is fun too. Throughout, there are several “Go Habs Go” chants and the noise/excitement after goals was awesome. During the playoffs, many believe that this the most raucous building in the league, as it has a European football match feel to it. The “Ole, Ole” chants are awesome. While there are times that the Bell Centre can be subdued if fans are not happy with how their team is playing, this is still consistently one of the loudest buildings in the NHL. It’s a different vibe as I saw a tremendous ovation when Guy LaPointe had his number retired. In 2003, fans showed their class by giving linesman Gerard Gauthier a respectful and warm standing ovation after it was announced that this was last game, ending a 32-year career.
Atmosphere Ranking: 14 out of 14
Other Stuff
Quite often, the Canadiens are referred to as the Habs. This is short for Les Habitants, which is the most popular nickname for the team and has the meaning of French settlers in the St. Lawrence River Valley…..One of the best rivalries in hockey is Montreal-Boston. Thanks to division and playoff alignment, these teams met frequently and still today the intensity is increased big time for games, especially from the fan bases…..One thing I found unique at the game was having everyone around speak French. It was a strange feeling in the stands not knowing what anyone was saying, but I quickly learned to embrace it…..Bell Centre’s goal horn is real strange as it sounds like a work whistle as opposed to the more typical horn…..Initially, Montreal’s new arena was known as the Molson Centre before the beer company sold the team in 2002.
Game
Both Montreal and the Rangers were already eliminated from playoff contention in this, their final regular-season game, so it took a little bit of the luster out of the matchup. However, both teams provided an entertaining game that the home side ended up winning 5-4. Montreal had three goals in the second period, two by Yanic Perrault and then a late goal with just a few minutes left by Stephane Quintal gave the Canadiens the lead for good.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
