All 30 NHL Venues Ranked – Where Does Gila River Arena Land?
Stadium Journey has released their 2015 rankings of all 30 NHL arenas. These rankings take into account a few different things. They look at the concessions, fanbase, location of the arena, surrounding neighborhood and the overall atmosphere of the games.
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If you’re unfamiliar with Stadium Journey, they are a site and magazine that reviews sporting venues from all over the world. These reviews also span across just about any sport you can think of from the pro level to college. They are striving to compile a database of reviews by professionals and fans in an effort to provide as much information about venues as possible.
Now, I know what you’re thinking, “here comes another article trashing the Coyotes, right?” Well, surprisingly, no. Gila River Arena did quite well actually.
Gila River Arena came in at #5 out of all 30 NHL arenas. The Winnipeg Jets’ MTS Centre came in at #1 and The Honda Center, home of the Anaheim Ducks, came in 30th.
Here is how Gila River Arena scored with excerpts from each category:
Food and Beverage – Four Stars
"“There is a very diverse selection of food and beverage in the arena. All of it is pretty expensive though.”"
Atmosphere – Five Stars
"“The look itself is very sleek and modern. The walls are all sand colored, with the seats being Sedona Red. Very easy on the eyes, and very obvious that this is the home of the Coyotes.”“The entire arena was designed with fan comfort in mind. The seats all angle towards center ice, and are very comfortable, both in the lower and upper bowls.”"
Neighborhood – Five Stars
"“Part of the design of filling Glendale with pro sports was surrounding it with a huge entertainment district. It took a couple of years after the Coyotes moved to Glendale to get this built, but it makes game days an all-day event.”"
Fans – Three Stars
"“Getting the fans to the arena has been an issue, and that issue still remains for weekday games, but weekend games tend to fill up. The Coyotes are doing their best with the ticket packages and deals that they offer for almost every home game, and the team has done their best by being the most successful professional team in the state the last few years.”"
Access – Five Stars
"“Walking around the arena is very easy, even during intermissions. The concourse is very wide, and the food lines never get too long. Plenty of bathrooms keep the walking area nice and clear. Both the upper and level concourses have standing-room areas, but they don’t interfere with the ease of walking around.”"
Return on Investment – Four Stars
"“Tickets for Coyotes games are very reasonable.”"
Extras – Five Stars
"“The entertainment district itself is an extra point. There’s so much to do within walking distance from the arena. You could literally spend an entire day without having to drive anywhere and not get bored.”"
You can click here for the full review of Gila River Arena by Jason Bartel and here for the actual list of all 30 NHL teams.
This review is fair and I agree with it completely. Despite the popular belief by those who don’t live in Arizona that hockey is nonexistent here, Coyote games are always a good time win or lose. It’s refreshing to see credit given where it is due because when it comes to the Coyotes, it’s rare to find a fair and honest story on the web.