November 25, 2023
LECOM Harborcenter (Capacity: 1,800)
Buffalo, NY
Canisius Golden Griffins vs Air Force Falcons
Final Score: 2 – 2
.
During the long Thanksgiving weekend, a visit to family in Upstate New York included an afternoon spent in Buffalo. This is the second largest city in the state with a population of 275,000 and while it is not the most exciting or vibrant city, recent development has at least added a little character. Snow, wings and the Bills are the what people think of when they hear “Buffalo”. Within the city footprint is Canisius College, a private Jesuit school with a student base of 3,500. They have a relatively young hockey program that began in 1980 and joined Division I in 1998. In their time as MAAC / Atlantic Hockey members, they’ve won the league a couple times, resulting in two NCAA Tournament appearance (2014 and 2023). Games are played at Harborcenter, a $170 million mixed-use building that opened in 2014. It’s attached to KeyBank Center and it was completely financed by the owners of the Buffalo Sabres. The facility is really nice, however the rink is just an odd home for a college team. There are so many different feels as it is also home to youth hockey and it is an NHL practice rink. Plus the urban setting counters the interior woodsy/rural design.
Prestige Ranking: 1 out of 5
Location
Harborcenter is well away from Canisius’ campus as it is located downtown, about four miles away. The location by the Buffalo River and Lake Erie is also near Canalside. This waterfront park includes city displays, a Naval Museum with vessels, a Children’s Museum and a pair of outdoor ice skating rinks open for the public. It’s nice and all, it just doesn’t have the wow factor. Nearby restaurant varieties are lacking and you’ll probably want to drive the short distance to places like the Pearl Street Grill or Chef’s. The Harborcenter itself does have a Tim Horton’s and a large bar and restaurant at ground level. The restaurant has changed ownership several times and is now currently a Southern Tier Brewery. There is also a slots casino within walking distance to the building.
Location Ranking: 6 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Interstate 190, a highway branched off of the New York State Thruway (I-90), is the best way to reach this part of downtown. You can also take Route 33 if coming from 90. Both routes lead to an easily navigable downtown. From Exit 6, via I-190, Swan Street and then Washington Street will get you to Harborcenter. Even more convenient is that there is a parking garage attached to the building. It is a large garage and there are more convenient spaces than others which make it easier to reach the elevator and the arena. Regardless, it still is an easy arrival. Leaving the garage and getting back to the highway of your choice is also straightforward. Buffalo traffic compared to other cities is minimal. Note that the website says there may be nights where this garage is “Permit Only” and when that is the case the attendant at the gate will direct you to the most convenient alternate site.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 8 out of 8
Exterior
If you didn’t know what was inside, you would assume this was just a newer downtown high-rise. Arena it does not look like as the large, 7-story building also has a taller hotel attached to it. Not sure how I feel about the clashing design elements as the bottom half is a non-conforming burgundy brick and red brick, while the top has sleek silver panels. They do have the complex name spelled out in a few areas, something I do like.
Exterior Ranking: 5 out of 10
Concourse
It’s odd. Not bad or wrong, just odd. First you need to take an elevator up to the arena and there is a sign denoting how to reach ice level or the main seating bowl. Level 7 brings you to the corner entrance above the seats and what is weird is that I entered from Washington Street and just walked right past a will call table, never being asked for a ticket. On the other corner is the “box office” and ticket scanner. If you really want to avoid this, you can actually take the elevator to the 6th floor, walk in at ice level and then take the middle staircase up to the seating bowl. That’ll get you in for free because this event is not worth $15 – $20. Back to the concourse, this lower level has a spacious lobby and a good silver/gray look with the floors and walls being clean. Kids may be walking by with their equipment as they use the other rinks. Upstairs, a walkway surrounds the rink and it is the same visual as the large concrete blocks on the walls fit nicely. The entire time the game can be seen and comfortable counter chairs line the sides as most people prefer to grab one of these to watch the game. Bathrooms are small.
Concourse Ranking: 4.5 out of 5
Food
The beer selection is pretty good thanks to the nearby Southern Tier Brewing Company restaurant attached. That relationship leads to concession stands that have IPAs and their “Haze” beer, along with canned cocktails. Food is better than expected as well and the amount of youth activity happening in the morning means that breakfast sandwiches are available for day games. Burgers, Wraps and Pizza slices were the other choices.
Food Ranking: 5 out of 8
Interior
Here we are in a modern downtown building and yet the interior design of the rink features plenty of wood. It looks nice, but this is something more in the style of a game at Clarkson or St. Lawrence in the North Country. The light-colored wood paneling of the roof has an added complexity of silver beams and heating ducts. Meanwhile, the actual seats are bleachers in the form of three wooden slabs, making for wide arrangements. It almost feels like you’re sitting on the floor watching a game. For such a small rink, sightlines are good as the rows go up steeply and they also start above the ice and benches. There are 7-9 rows that go along the sides and they curve a bit in the corners before giving way to seat-less ends.
Interior Ranking: 6 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard is up at the south end of the rink, where a video screen sits separately from a traditional score display to the left. There’s also an advertising board nearby. The video screen is ok for size and generally clear enough. At the other end, there is only a game clock above the goal.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2.5 out of 4
Displays
Canisius related honors are limited as team achievements get banners in the upper corner of the rink. These display the years of conference championships and there is also a listing of player honors through Atlantic Hockey. There are also a few school logos on the end wall, however the team doesn’t get the center ice circle as the Sabres get those honors. At the other end of the rink are trophy cases for the Jr. Sabres (Canadian league) and wall displays promoting the facility.
Displays Ranking: 1.5 out of 6
Cost
Tickets are $15 – $20 and these are on the higher end for Atlantic Hockey (and it feels higher than it should be). The school does offer a good amount of promos and discounts to lower the cost and as I mentioned in the Concourse section, you can likely find a way to get in free. No, I don’t feel guilty for doing that to Colleges and Universities (I wouldn’t do that for minor league franchises trying to survive). Parking is $5 and Food is high with a cheeseburger costing $9 and a hot dog $6. Beer isn’t bad at $7.
Cost Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Canisius ranks towards the bottom of NCAA Division I Hockey attendance and the announced number of 728 was not close to the actual people in the house (more like 300). This was for a Saturday Afternoon game Thanksgiving weekend. Despite the often low turnouts, the school still does have better support than at least four others in Atlantic Hockey. In 2023, Canisius had a heckuva run through the postseason tournament and they got to host all games despite being a 4 seed. The Quarterfinals and Semifinals featured a sparse crowd of 500 or less, however the championship game did really well and it was a legit sellout of 1,800. The media also latched on and covered the event.
Fan Support Ranking: 3 out of 8
Atmosphere
There’s not much in here as the sounds of the game dominate. Breaks in play bring on music through the PA as well. Otherwise, just goals get an applause and it seems this is the case for the majority of the regular season (maybe rivals Niagara bring a slightly better atmosphere).
Atmosphere Ranking: 3.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
In addition to the rink with spectator seating, there are other hockey rinks in the complex and all of them get plenty of use. In addition to Canisius and the Jr Sabres, there are a ton of adult leagues and travel tournaments that take place here. In fact, there’s been an occasion or two where the Griffins game gets delayed because something from earlier in the day ran long…..LECOM has the naming rights and the acronym stands for Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine……I just loved this tweet after their semifinal conference tournament win in 2023. It’s not all the big programs and sports that matter.
Game
A goal in each of the first two periods put the Golden Griffins up 2-0 and “the most dangerous lead in hockey” indeed led to bad news for the home side. Air Force tied it up and the second goal came with just 42 seconds left in the game as Clayton Cosentino wristed one home. It felt deserved as the Falcons outshot Canisius 43-19. Nobody scored in overtime, which means that the game officially goes down as a tie, even though they have a shootout for an extra point in the league standings (Air Force took that).
Stadium and Arena Visits 
