Charlottetown Islanders
Rink: Eastlink Centre
Capacity: 3,718
Built: 1990
League: QMJHL
City: Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Home Of: Charlottetown Islanders
Games Attended: 1
Only Game: October 19, 2023 vs Rouyn Noranda
Unique Arena: #68
QMJHL Arena: #17
The Eastlink Centre is a small building in a quiet neighborhood not far from downtown Charlottetown. Attached to it is a casino and horse racetrack. Parking in the immediate area around the rink is for pass holders only, but there is plenty of free parking at the casino a very short walk from the arena. It would be annoying in adverse weather but luckily, we had a nice fall evening. Also, even with horse racing on track and people at the casino there were still plenty of spots to be had. From outside the rink looks like any community rink in Canada and doesn’t exactly scream home of major junior, apart from the giant Islanders logo on the front of it which is always a nice touch.
The Eastlink Centre is not exactly the easiest building to navigate. Once entering from outside there is a long corridor with a couple portals along the right side which is where your tickets are taken, and you enter into the concourse underneath the stands on the penalty box side. It’s pretty narrow and it also is the main pathway for the Islanders players from their dressing room to the ice, as well as the officials. There are ice level openings into the seating bowl that have stairs up to the seats themselves. You cannot walk 360 degrees around the rink in the underneath concourse, as the penalty box side is blocked off completely for the visitor’s dressing room while the Zamboni garage blocks off the end of the ice towards the Islanders room. There is a small moat between the boards and seats in both ends.
The unfortunate flaw of the Eastlink Centre is its very reminiscent of Plymouth, in that the seats are a bit too shallow. It didn’t bother me too badly with my over 6-foot frame but anyone shorter will have issues seeing over the people in front of you. Also, in the seating behind the nets it’s hard to actually see the net itself, with the seats starting a few rows up to accommodate the moat. There is no concourse around the top like many buildings, as the seats just go to the back walls. There are some suites on the penalty box side and what I’m told is a newer press box hanging over top. One recent upgrade as of this writing is a brand-new HD video scoreboard which is used very well. There’s also a live DJ setup in one of the upper corners of the building.
I do have positive things to say about the Eastlink Centre. First of all, the team has made some effort to make the building their own with black and gold paint in the hallways and team logos and photos spread through the building. Also, something different is the goal horn, which is a legitimate foghorn and it is very loud. So loud in fact they stopped using it for a time because it shook the overhead net cams so badly, but it is back in use as of my visit.
However, the absolute best thing about a game at Eastlink Centre is the fans. No, the atmosphere isn’t particularly great. Matter of fact at the game I was at even goals got not much more than polite applause from the half full building. However, all the stereotypes about PEI natives being friendly are 100% true. In the 22 hours I spent on the island everyone was awesome and that included the fans at the game, many of whom we chatted with throughout the night.
The Eastlink Centre is not the best place to watch a hockey game, it’s not even the best rink on the island as the bigger, newer and much better laid out rink in nearby Summerside would be much better suited for major junior. But the people make it a warm and welcoming place. The arena itself is not one I would put on my list of “gotta go there again” places, but PEI certainly is a place I can’t wait to go back to again, and if I can fit in some hockey while I am there, I will gladly go back to see another Islanders game.
