The 'Montreal Forum' was an
indoor arena located in
Montreal,
Quebec,
Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by
Sporting News[ The end of an era. (the Montreal Forum) ], it was home of the
National Hockey League's
Montreal Maroons from 1924 to 1938 and the
Montreal Canadiens from 1926 to 1996. The Forum was built by the
Canadian Arena Company in 159 days.
Located at the corner of Atwater Avenue (next to
Atwater metro station), the building was historically significant as it was home to 24
Stanley Cups (22 of the Canadiens and two of the Montreal Maroons, for whom the arena was originally built). It was also home to the
Montreal Roadrunners and
Montreal Junior Canadiens.
The Forum opened on November 29, 1924 at a total cost of
$1,500,000 with an original
seating capacity of 9,300. It underwent two renovations, in 1949 and 1968
[ Montreal Forum ]. When the Forum closed in 1996 it had a capacity of 17,959, which included approximately 1,600 in standing room.
The Montreal Forum hosted
Memorial Cup games in 1950, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973 & 1976, with the Junior Canadiens winning on home ice in 1970.
In 1972 The Montreal Forum hosted game 1 of the famous "
Summit Series" between Team Canada and the USSR, the USSR won the game 7-3. The Montreal Forum hosted 5 events in the
1976 Summer Olympics: Gymnastics, Handball, Basketball, Volleyball, and Boxing.
In 1981, Canadian rock band
Rush filmed (and recorded parts of) their 1981 concert film and album "Exit Stage Left" here on their Moving Pictures tour. That same year,
British rock band
Queen recorded and filmed their concert film ''We Will Rock You'' at this venue (to be re-released as Queen Rock Montreal in 2007).
The
Calgary Flames became the only visiting
NHL team to ever win a Stanley Cup on Forum ice during the 1989 Stanley Cup Finals.
On
March 11,
1996, the Montreal Canadiens played their last game at the Montreal Forum, beating the
Dallas Stars 4-1 on a Monday night. The game was televised on
TSN and
TQS in Canada, and on
ESPN in the
United States. After the game, many previous hockey greats were presented to the crowd. The largest ovation of the night was left at the end for legendary Canadiens star
Maurice "Rocket" Richard - at over 16 minutes in length.
After hockey
After the Canadiens left the Forum, the building was used to film arena sequences for the
Brian de Palma film ''
Snake Eyes''
[ Stephen Burum - Snake Eyes ]. It was then completely gutted and converted into a downtown entertainment centre called the Pepsi Forum. Centre ice has been recreated in the centre of the complex while original stands are scattered throughout. On the Saint Catherine Street entrance there is a Quebec Walk of Fame consisting of
Céline Dion and Maurice Richard. Both were on hand for their bronze star's respective unveiling. The Atwater street entrance has a large bronze Montreal Canadiens logo surrounded by 24 bronze
Stanley Cup banners cemented into the sidewalk. Inscribed in French are the words "Forever proud". The entire building is themed after the Forum's storied history with special emphasis on the Montreal Canadiens.
References
External links
★
Farewell to the Montreal Forum