Detroit Red Wings
Rink: Little Caesars Arena
Capacity: 19,515
Built: 2017
League: NHL
City: Detroit, Michigan
Home Of: Detroit Red Wings
Games Attended: 2
First Game: April 7, 2024 vs Buffalo
Most Recent Game: October 17, 2024 vs New York Rangers
Unique Arena: #86
NHL Arena: #10
Little Caesars Arena is located in midtown Detroit in what has become a very nice entertainment district. The rink sits just on the north side of I-75 across the interstate from Ford Field, Comerica Park, Fox Theater and a wide range of bars and restaurants. Many people’s first reaction when they think of Detroit is a poor, run-down and dangerous city. While Detroit has had its problems, no doubt things feel like they’re on an upswing right now and the area where the rink sits in is very nice. The actual rink itself is somewhat hidden before an exterior mix of red and yellow brick and lots of windows. It’s almost a structure within a structure. The 100-level concourse is at street level, and once entering the building you feel like you’re still outside with lots of windows allowing natural light in and a skylight like roof over the concourse. It’s like being on a street surrounded by restaurants and patios and is an amazing vibe. Its super wide and easy to navigate.
Your first view of the arena bowl is an impressive one, as there is a massive lower bowl which you enter from near the top at street level. Ice level is some 40 feet down. There is a two-tiered middle deck which has suites and regular seating before you get to the upper deck, which is steep and surprisingly intimate. It gave me a bit of a Bell Centre in Montreal vibe, which apparently was a big inspiration for the construction of this arena. Seats are all very comfortable, as even those of us in the upper bowl have big, padded seats which would be better than club seats in many rinks. Views of the ice are great from almost all the seats. However, one of my very few criticisms is that the suites and the press box that hang down in front of the upper bowl down the sides give obstructed views if you’re sitting any higher than a few rows up along the sides. There are video screens and scoreboards up there so many may not be bothered, but if you like your views with nothing in front of you then don’t buy side seats in the upper bowl.
Everything in Detroit is done just so well. In addition to having great sightlines and a solid construction, the production of a Red Wings game is out of this world. There is a low metal grating system in the rafters above the ice surface and the things they do with lighting and dry ice make the place feel like a futuristic movie theatre. As I said before it just just feels intimate as well. One cool thing is all the banners in the rafters are actually hidden before the event and then are lowered automatically as things start. The Pistons are lowered after the production at the start since during a Red Wings game they aren’t the focus. I assume this is done opposite during Pistons games. One thing about that too is while this is also the home of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons, it feels like the Red Wings home first and foremost. That is mainly because it was originally built for the Red Wings only during the planning and construction phase. It was very late in the game when the Pistons decided to move from The Palace of Auburn Hills. The Pistons aren’t a total afterthought, but it definitely feels like Red Wings central.
Another cool detail that most wouldn’t notice is the camera feed on the scoreboard is from a camera on your side of the rink. So, if you’re on the penalty box side looking towards the benches you get the feed from the normal broadcast camera. But if you’re on the bench side then the videoboard facing you is a feed from a camera on your side of the ice as well, just a ton of little details like that which makes the experience in Detroit top notch.
As of this writing I have only been to 15 of the current 32 NHL buildings but Detroit easily shot to the top of my NHL rink rankings. It’s not a perfect arena, as I mentioned some upper bowl side seating is obstructed view and I did find the upper bowl concourse incredibly cramped and hard to navigate at intermission. But those were the only complaints I had about the building and gameday experience. The fans are passionate; the building truly feels like their home and isn’t a sanitized entertainment venue as they have everything from the teams near 100-year history on display. It’s a new gold standard of what a building should be in the NHL, and I look forward to going back again.
