Skip to content

City hopes to attract NHL events with $90k glass upgrade at Essar Centre

An estimated $90,000 upgrade to the glass at the Essar Centre will increase player safety but also aid the city in bids to hold NHL-level events, says the commissioner of Community Services.

An estimated $90,000 upgrade to the glass at the Essar Centre will increase player safety but also aid the city in bids to hold NHL-level events, says the commissioner of Community Services.

Commissioner Nick Apostle was responding to a SooToday story earlier this week in which Ted Baker, VP of the OHL, said the upgrade to acrylic glass is welcomed but not necessary to comply with league rules.

The tempered glass system currently surrounding the ice surface at the Essar Centre is fully-compliant with current Ontario Hockey League (OHL) standards.

Existing facilities, such as the Essar Centre, are grandfathered in and not required to retrofit.

In a phone interview Wednesday, Apostle responded by saying OHL safety rules were only one component in the decision.

“Sport tourism is another major component, of which NHL games [are] also a sub-component,” said Apostle.

He said after the retrofit, bidding on NHL-level events would be possible.

“Traverse City holds a rookie camp and there are NHL preseason games we are looking actively at,” said Apostle.

The NHL Prospects Tournament has been playedat the 1,500-seat Centre Ice Arena in Traverse City  for the last 17 years as part of their Detroit Red Wings training camp.

Apostle said added player safety by spending the money on acrylic glass is just a bonus.

“You don’t want to be the arena that doesn’t have the standard of safety for the players,” said Apostle.

The World Under-17 Hockey Challenge will be held October 28 to November 6, 2016 and will not require the upgrade, but will benefit from added safety, says the city.

Apostle said the existing tempered glass that will be removed from the Essar Centre will be reused in the McMeeken and John Rhodes arenas.

“One [rink] at John Rhodes is the exact same size as the Essar Centre. So the pieces will fit in where we can in between the three rinks,” said Apostle.

The tempered glass cannot be cut, but the size of the panes is built to a standard.

“There are several sheets that are standardized four feet by eight feet and four feet by six feet. Those will be able to be used. There may be some waste,” said Apostle.

The retrofit to acrylic glass at the Essar Centre will be done to NHL standards, at a cost estimate of $80,000 to $90,000.

The city approved the retrofit at Monday's council meeting.

One supplier was consulted for a cost estimate prior to the report to council.

“It’s like we do in a lot of instances, we will get a budget information from a supplier and then we go to a competitive tender,” said Apostle.

Baker said — because the teams within the league do not own the facilities they play in — the league cannot force any changes.

Instead, the league requires new or refurbished facilities to adhere to the current standards — in terms of seating, lighting, glass, etc — as written in the league’s facility manual.

(FILE PHOTO: Marks seen on tempered glass at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie. The city is considering retrofitting the arena to acrylic glass at a cost of $90,000. Kenneth Armstrong/SooToday)

Previous SooToday coverage of this story:


What's next?


If you would like to apply to become a Verified reader Verified Commenter, please fill out this form.




Kenneth Armstrong

About the Author: Kenneth Armstrong

Kenneth Armstrong is a news reporter and photojournalist who regularly covers municipal government, business and politics and photographs events, sports and features.
Read more