Max Bell Centre (Calgary)

Max Bell Centre
Max Bell Centre (December 2006)
Map
Location1001 Barlow Trail SE, Calgary, Alberta
CapacityIce hockey: 2,121 sitting, over 3,000 standing
Tenants
Calgary Canucks (AJHL) (1971–present)
Calgary Rad'z (RHI) (1993–1994)

Max Bell Centre (commonly Max Bell Arena) is an ice hockey arena in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, in the community of Albert Park/Radisson Heights. It seats 2,121 for hockey, with a standing room capacity of over 3,000. It is named after Max Bell, a philanthropist who was a prominent businessman in Calgary.

It hosted curling and short-track speed skating events at the 1988 Winter Olympics, both demonstration events.[1] Presently, the arena is home to the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and the primary facility for the Northeast Calgary Athletic Association's minor hockey teams. The arena also hosts Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League games.

Late December, it serves as the primary venue for the Mac's AAA midget hockey tournament. It is home to the Mac's Tourney's "Wall of Fame" featuring every tournament alumnus who has gone on to play in the National Hockey League.

In 2007, the arena completed construction to add a second sheet of ice as the city of Calgary attempts to keep up with demand for ice time in a rapidly growing city. Max Bell Arena 1 in which the Canucks play was renamed the Ken Bracko Arena in 2017[2] as a tribute to Ken Bracko, the founder of the Midget AAA World Invitational Tournament (formerly the Mac's Midget Tournament) as well as the 18U Alberta Elite Hockey league (AEHL). Bracko also served as president of the Canucks for 32 years until his death in 2015.

In 2022, the city of Calgary completed $14 million in renovations on the arena.[3]

The area surrounding the building hosts the annual electronic music festival Chasing Summer.

  1. ^ 1988 Winter Olympics official report Archived 2011-01-14 at the Wayback Machine Part 1. pp. 165-6.
  2. ^ "Max Bell 1 rink renamed to honour hockey volunteer, former Canucks president Ken Bracko".
  3. ^ Gilligan, Melissa (January 7, 2022). "'A better and more accessible experience': Max Bell Centre's $14M renovation complete". CTV News Calgary. Retrieved 2022-10-04.