Civic Arena

Sad day today in Allegheny County (read: the city of Pittsburgh) when Sports & Exhibition Authority voted unanimously to tear down the 49-year-old Civic Arena, home to the city's beloved Pittsburgh Penguins (and once upon a time the Pittsburgh Xplosion).

The structure, nicknamed the Igloo because of its dome shape and the name association with its principle lease holder, has a special place in Pittsburgh's history and is a staple of the city's Hill District.

In 1999, the Pittsburgh Penguins signed a sponsorship deal to rename the building the Mellon Arena. But this is no history lesson. These are Mellon/Civic Arena memories.

(Chills.)

I still remember my first game at the Igloo. It was the first hockey game I ever attended. See, I was in kindergarten, which means that this was January 5, 1996 - over 14 years ago. I had no idea what the game meant, or even what we were going to see that night, but I remember the excitement I had as I went downtown with my Dad and older brother - and I believe we met my 6-foot-9 uncle outside of the arena.

Despite my confusion, this game was a pretty big deal at the time. The Pens were 26-10-3, and the Red Wings were 27-8-3. Pittsburgh's savior, I mean Buries It, I mean Mario Lemieux was back from his first retirement and the Penguins seemed poised to return to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1992.

(Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr n'at.)

This was the dream Cup Final match-up for the 1995-96 season. Instead, both teams were eliminated in the conference finals and NHL fans got Colorado vs. Florida (cough*weak*cough).

I'll always remember the next day. I got yelled at for not shutting up on the bus about the game. It was the greatest thing I had ever seen and that game holds a special place in my heart.

By the way, the Pens won 5-2.



- Jeff Laboon