Ottawa 67’s
Rink: TD Place
Capacity: 8.655
Built: 1967
League: OHL
City: Ottawa, Ontario
Home Of: Ottawa 67’s
Games Attended: 6
First Visit: October 25, 2009 vs Saginaw
Most Recent Game: May 4, 2019 vs Guelph
Unique Arena: #25
OHL Arena: #21
The Ottawa 67’s play in perhaps one of the most unique arenas in the CHL. No, it’s not above a bowling alley and below another bowling alley, but it is under one of the grandstands for the football stadium that is home to the CFL’s Redblacks. Also unlike the NHL’s Ottawa Senators that play way out of the suburbs some 30 minutes away, the 67’s play in the heart of the city and as such the vibe of the neighborhood is so much better. From 2012-2014 the 67’s we forced out of their long time home to that rink in the suburbs while everything around their arena was renovated, but little in the rink itself was touched. The arena sits in the heart of an entertainment district full of shops, restaurants and movie theatres to name a few. There is also a massive underground parking garage though if my memory is correct, it was a bit pricey.
Thanks to the fact that the rink is below the north grandstand of the football stadium, it means one side of the arena has seats extending high up into the rafters while the opposite side only has seats going up a handful of rows. I’ve never actually sat in the seats on this side, so I am not sure what kind of view they have of the action. Most of the rest of the building has decent enough views of the ice with comfortable seating. There is no scoreboard or video board hanging over centre ice, but instead there are three video boards and two scoreboards across the wall that also houses the team and player banners. If you sit on the penalty box side of the ice under these scoreboards and video boards there are hanging TVs with the score and a video feed.
Not long after the 67s returned, the suite and press box level was deemed to no longer be safe and the press box was relegated to a section of seats high above centre ice, which you can see in the photo above from the 2019 OHL Final. I have not been back to a game in Ottawa since then, but I have been told the actual press box high in the rafters has been fixed to the point it is now safe to occupy again. This was likely also necessitated by the PWHL Ottawa Charge moving in, and with the larger crowds more seats were needed.
The 67s themselves have gone through ups and downs over the years when it comes to crowds and atmosphere. In the 2000’s the team regularly filled the building with 9,000+ fans. But the two year move to Kanata seemed to really crater the fan base coupled with some awful seasons for the team on ice. Some games were getting to Mississauga levels of bad for attendance. The team got much better at the end of the 2010’s and the crowds mostly returned to a healthy number but seemingly gone are the days when they can sell the building out.
Going to a game in Ottawa is bright as hell. If you have a light sensitivity I suggest not sitting on this side of the rink and looking up at those lights. As I said I’ve never actually sat in the seats in the photo above (for a whole game) so perhaps those lights aren’t a big issue.
There are plans in place to replace the old Civic Centre Arena. The plan is to build a new 5,000-6,000 seat conventional arena behind one of the end zones of the football stadium. Once that is completed and the 67s are moved in then the Civic Centre and the north stands above it are slated for demolition. Construction on the new rink keeps getting delayed, so we don’t know how many years the rink has left, but I suggest checking it out while you still can. I want to make at least one more trip up before it meets the wrecking ball.
The Civic Centre as it was originally known was the site of me completing “All 20” in the OHL for the first time, so it will always be special for me in that regard.
