With our apologies to the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Manhattan's Madison Square Garden is North America's most glamourous hockey cathedral. Filled with history and character, MSG has seen its share of New York Rangers highs and lows.
New York Rangers Stadium
Sporting the nickname of "The World's Most Famous Arena," this New York City landmark has served as the home rink for the Rangers since 1968. (The arena before that? The previous version of Madison Square Garden, of course.) This historic building has been the site of some incredible hockey moments. Gretzky's retirement? That happened here. Mark Messier lifting the Stanley Cup after busting NYR out of a miserable championship drought? That was MSG too. Henrik Lundqvist blanking the Habs to pull the Rangers into the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals? Another Madison Square Garden memory.
For all the praise we've heaped on MSG, it's worth noting that the Rangers weren't exactly masters of the home ice advantage last season. In 2014-15, the Rangers had three more road wins than home wins. Things appeared to turn around in the playoffs with the Rangers winning the majority of their MSG-set clashes in rounds one and two, but the Bolts won three of four games in Manhattan in the Eastern Conference Finals to dispatch New York in seven. Fans have flocked to see the Rangers over the past half-decade. The building's been 99.5% full or fuller in each of the team's last five seasons. After a few close calls in the '10s, the pressure's on for King Henrik and the Rangers to secure a new Stanley Cup banner to be raised in this arena's afters.
Arena Vitals
Date Opened: 1968
Construction Cost: $123 Million
Architect: Charles Luckman Associates, Brisbin Brook Beynon Architects
Capacity Attendance: 18,006
Has A Stanley Cup Final Been Played There: Yes
Previous New York Rangers Arenas
Madison Square Garden (the third edition)
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