Earl Armstrong Arena

Last updated
Earl Armstrong Arena
Earl Armstrong Arena.jpg
Earl Armstrong Arena
Address2020 Ogilvie Road
Ottawa, Ontario
K1J 7N8
Coordinates 45°26′15″N75°36′05″W / 45.437619°N 75.601328°W / 45.437619; -75.601328
Owner City of Ottawa
Operator City of Ottawa
Capacity 2300 + 1200 standing room
SurfaceMulti-surface
Construction
OpenedNovember 1971
Renovated1984, 2014
Expanded1988
Tenants
Gloucester Rangers
Gloucester Griffins
Gloucester Gators

The Earl Armstrong Arena is an indoor arena in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is used as an ice hockey arena in the winter to house the Ottawa Canadians Jr. team and in the summer uses its slab for lacrosse where the Gloucester Griffins Jr "B" team call home. It is located in the former city of Gloucester, at 2020 Ogilvy Road, adjacent to Gloucester High School. It is named after Reeve Earl Armstrong of Gloucester township. [1]

Contents

The area was host to the first, inaugural World Ringette Championships at the 1990 World Ringette Championships. A Canadian team, Team Alberta, took home the gold medal and the Sam Jacks Trophy whose design was changed in 1996.

History

During the month of May 1971, the Earl Armstrong Arena opens including the Ogilvie Road branch of the Public Library. [2]

Immediately following its opening the Ottawa M&W Rangers moved from the then named Leitrim Arena and finished their regular season and playoff run there. [3] The newly completed arena proves lucky as the Rangers draw record crowds and finish their season in 1st place. They continue to not only win the league championship but the National championship as well which was then known as the Centennial Cup (RBC Cup today).

In 1975, the Gloucester Fair opens for the first time at the Earl Armstrong Arena. It relocated to Rideau-Carleton Raceway in 1997. [4]

On June 18, North Gloucester Branch of Public Library opens at 2036 Ogilvie Road. The former location in the Earl Armstrong Arena closed on May 15, 1984. [5]

On January 15, 1988, the Gloucester "Splash" Wave Pool, the first indoor wave pool in Eastern Canada opens. This was formerly Centennial Pool. [6] [7] The pool is located behind the Earl Armstrong Arena.

In January 1988, the Gloucester Senior Adults Centre opens at Earl Armstrong Arena. [8] [9]

Facilities

Indoor ice hockey rink in 2021 Earl Armstrong Arena Rink 01.jpg
Indoor ice hockey rink in 2021

Today the Earl Armstrong Arena host the Gloucester Rangers Jr "A" hockey team as well as the Rangers minor hockey program. [10] Several other teams from the Gloucester Hockey Association [11] play here between September 1 and April 10 of each year.

In April the ice surface is removed to make way for the lacrosse season ant the Gloucester Griffins Minor Lacrosse Association [12] as well as the Gloucester Griffins Jr "B" program. [13]

Notable events

The first World Ringette Championships took place here, the 1990 World Ringette Championships. The winning team was Canadian.

The Central Canada Hockey League has held its annual draft there for five straight seasons, from 2011 to 2016.

The arena played host to the 1987 Purolator Cup, National Midget Hockey Championships. It was also the home arena for the two most successful Gloucester Rangers minor hockey clubs. In 1989 (1973 births) and 1991 (1975 births) the clubs won the Ottawa District Championships and then went on to capture the All-Ontario Provincial Championships at the Major Bantam AA level (no AAA in Ottawa at that time). That 1989 provincial championship was hosted by the Rangers at the Earl Armstrong Arena.

Great North Wrestling came to the venue on August 8, 2008 in with an event featuring former WWE stars Bushwacker Luke, The Honky Tonk Man and Hannibal. [14] Great North Wrestling returned to the Earl Armstrong Arena on August 8, 2009 in an event once again featuring Hannibal. [15]

Great North Wrestling will be returning to the arena on May 30, 2015 with a card featuring Brutus The Barber Beefcake, Hannibal and Canadian Senator Patrick Brazeau as reported in The National Post. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maple Leaf Gardens</span> Historic building in Ontario, Canada

Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was originally constructed in 1931 as an indoor arena to host ice hockey games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TD Place Arena</span> Architectural structure at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa

TD Place Arena, originally the Ottawa Civic Centre, is an indoor arena located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Opened in December 1967, it is used primarily for sports, including curling, figure skating, ice hockey, and lacrosse. The arena has hosted Canadian and world championships in figure skating, curling, and ice hockey, including the first women's world ice hockey championship in 1990. It is also used for concerts and conventions such as Ottawa SuperEX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto Marlboros</span> Canadian ice hockey club

The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was an ice hockey franchise in Toronto, Canada. Founded in 1903, it operated junior ice hockey and senior ice hockey teams in the Ontario Hockey Association and later the Ontario Hockey League. The Marlboros were a farm team to the Toronto Maple Leafs and one of the dominant junior teams in history, winning seven Memorial Cup championships. The senior team competed for the Stanley Cup in 1904, and won the Allan Cup in 1950. After decline from the late 1970s, the sale of the franchise, and a move away from Toronto, it became the Guelph Storm in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brock Badgers</span> Athletic teams representing Brock University

The Brock Badgers are the athletics teams that represent Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario. To date, the Badgers have won 47 National Championships and 94 Ontario Championships, and are members of the OUA, U Sports, CUFLA, CURC, OIWFA and OUBHL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in Canada</span>

Sports in Canada consist of a wide variety of games. The roots of organized sports in Canada date back to the 1770s, culminating in the development and popularization of the major professional games of ice hockey, lacrosse, basketball, baseball, soccer, football and cricket. Canada's official national sports are ice hockey and lacrosse. Golf, baseball, tennis, skiing, ringette, badminton, cricket, volleyball, cycling, swimming, bowling, rugby union, canoeing, curling, squash, and the study of martial arts are widely enjoyed at the youth and amateur levels. Great achievements in Canadian sports are recognized by Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, while the Lou Marsh Trophy is awarded annually to Canada's top athlete by a panel of journalists. There are numerous other Sports Halls of Fame in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Canada Hockey League</span> Canadian ice hockey league, founded 1961

The Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) is a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey league operating in eastern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by Hockey Eastern Ontario and Hockey Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The winner of the CCHL playoffs competes for the Fred Page Cup — the Eastern Region championship of the Canadian Junior Hockey League — with the winners of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League and the Maritime Junior A Hockey League. The winner of the Fred Page Cup then moves on to compete for the national Centennial Cup.

The Ottawa Jr. Senators are a junior-age men's ice hockey team from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Their home arena is the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre in south Ottawa. The club is in the Robinson Division of the Central Canada Hockey League, a Junior "A" league. The team is not affiliated with the NHL Ottawa Senators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloucester Griffins</span>

The Gloucester Griffins are a Junior "B" box lacrosse team from Gloucester, Ontario, Canada. The Griffins play in the OLA Junior B Lacrosse League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ringette</span> Team sport played on ice

Ringette is a non-contact winter team sport played on an ice rink using ice hockey skates, straight sticks with drag-tips, and a blue, rubber, pneumatic ring designed for use on ice surfaces. While the sport was originally created exclusively for female competitors, it has expanded to now include participants of all gender identities. Although ringette looks ice hockey-like and is played on ice hockey rinks, the sport has its own lines and markings, and its offensive and defensive play bear a closer resemblance to lacrosse or basketball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in Hamilton, Ontario</span>

In 1930 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada was the site of the very first Commonwealth Games, then known as the British Empire Games. The Games came to Hamilton as a result of the efforts of Melville Marks Robinson, and were Canada's first major international athletic event, and bid unsuccessfully for the Commonwealth Games in 2010, losing out to New Delhi in India. On 7 November 2009, in Guadalajara, Mexico it was announced that Toronto will host the 2015 Pan Am Games after beating out two rival South American cities, Lima, Peru and Bogota, Colombia. The city of Hamilton will be co-hosting the Games with Toronto. Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger said "the Pan Am Games will provide a 'unique opportunity for Hamilton to renew major sport facilities giving Hamiltonians a multi-purpose stadium, a 50-metre swimming pool, and an international-calibre velodrome to enjoy for generations to come.'"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in Markham, Ontario</span>

Most sports in Markham, Ontario are amateur or recreational:

In Ottawa, Canada, ice hockey clubs date back to the first decade of recorded organized ice hockey play. The men's senior-level Ottawa Hockey Club is known to have played in a Canadian championship in 1884. Today, Ottawa hockey clubs are represented in all age brackets, in both men's and women's, in amateur and professional.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Ringette League</span> Semi-professional ringette league in Canada

The National Ringette League (NRL) (French: Ligue Nationale de Ringuette, LNR) is the premier league for the sport of ringette in North America and Canada's national league for elite ringette players aged 18 and up. The NRL is not a women's variant of a more well-known men's league or sport like professional women's ice hockey or bandy; one of ringette's distinctive features is that all of its players are girls and women. As such, the NRL is the continent's first and only winter team sports league whose entire athlete roster is made up of women and non-binary athletes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Turbos</span> National Ringette League team in Cambridge, Ontario

The Cambridge Turbos is a ringette team in the National Ringette League (NRL) competing in the Eastern Conference's Red Division. Founded in 2003, the is team based in Cambridge, Ontario. The Turbos home arena is the Hespeler Memorial Arena, a facility which is a twin sheet arena with two Olympic-sized sheets of ice.

The history of Canadian sports falls into five stages of development: early recreational activities before 1840; the start of organized competition, 1840–1880; the emergence of national organizations, 1882–1914; the rapid growth of both amateur and professional sports, 1914 to 1960; and developments of the last half-century. Some sports, especially ice hockey, lacrosse, curling, and ringette enjoy an international reputation as particularly Canadian. Although typically thought of as American, the origin of the sport of baseball began the Canadian town of Beachville, Ontario, and American football was initially developed by Canadians at McGill University before two different playing styles emerged, American football and Canadian football. Canadian sports attract large numbers of participants and huge audiences; hockey, played by 1.4 million Canadians, has become part of the national identity.

The World Ringette Championships (WRC) is the premier international competition in ringette and is governed by the International Ringette Federation (IRF). Unlike most international competitions, all of the WRC's elite athletes are female rather than male, one of the sport's distinctive features. Competing nations include: Canada, Finland, United States, Sweden, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, with Team Canada and Team Finland having emerged as the sport's top two competing nations. The 2023 World Ringette Championships were held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and was the sport's 60th anniversary.

The Rockland Nationals are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Rockland, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The Rockland Nationals began play in 2017–18, after the Gloucester Rangers relocated to Rockland after nearly 50 years in Gloucester.

The 1990 World Ringette Championship was an international ringette tournament and the first World Ringette Championship in history. Three countries took part: Canada, Finland, and the United States. The tournament was organized by the World Ringette Council, the precursor to the International Ringette Federation (IRF). The event was held in the Canadian city of Gloucester, Ontario from January 29 to February 3, 1990, with eight competing teams at Earl Armstrong Arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ringette in Canada</span> Nation-based article dealing with the team sport of ringette

Ringette in Canada began in 1963 when it was first conceptualized by Sam Jacks of North Bay, Ontario, in West Ferris. The sport of ringette is played in all 10 Canadian provinces and the Northwest Territories and involves an average of over 31,000 registered players every year. Canada is the location of ringette's origin where it is also recognized as a national heritage sport. The sport is governed nationally by Ringette Canada. Canadian provinces and territories have their own individual governing bodies in their respective jurisdictions.

Ringette Canada is the national governing body for the sport of ringette in Canada. It was established in 1974 with June Tiessen as its first President and has its current headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario. It is responsible for the organization and promotion of ringette on a nationwide basis and organizes Canada's semi-professional ringette league, the National Ringette League (NRL) which was established in 2004, with the league functioning as a committee under Ringette Canada.

References

  1. "Surplus in Gloucester", The Ottawa Daily Citizen, p. 2, November 3, 1967, retrieved July 29, 2014
  2. "Gloucester History".
  3. "Rangers Open In New Arena Against Hull", The Ottawa Evening Journal, p. 22, January 21, 1971, retrieved July 29, 2014
  4. "Gloucester History".
  5. "Gloucester History".
  6. Ottawa Citizen, April 2, 1988 p.A14
  7. "Gloucester History".
  8. Ottawa Citizen, January 13, 1988 p.C2
  9. "Gloucester History".
  10. "Home - Gloucester Rangers Minor Hockey Association".
  11. "Gloucester Hockey Association - Home".
  12. "Gloucester Minor Lacrosse Association - Powered by LeagueToolbox". Archived from the original on 2014-04-05.
  13. "Gloucester Griffins".
  14. "The timid need not apply - Football - Sports - Orléans Star". Archived from the original on 2011-04-05.
  15. "Toronto Sun".
  16. "Latest Breaking News, Headlines & Updates | National Post".