Yost Ranked 4th Best Hockey Arena in Michigan
Not sure the science behind this study, but Yost is ranked 4th best hockey arena in Michigan. I will say it is nice to see MacInnes get the respect is deserves.
Personal Top 5
MacInnes, Yost, Lawson, Joe Louis (during playoffs), and Van Andel
Feel free to discuss.
http://www.stadiumjourney.com/news/12-11-2012/212/top-12-hockey-arena-e…
Edit: Also for further explination of how teams were ranked, you have to click on the links of each arena.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:35 PM ^
Lawson at #3? It's pretty much a soulless warehouse attached to a campus fitness center.
December 13th, 2012 at 9:58 AM ^
It's been awhile since I have seen a game there, but as a WMU grad, I take umbrage to that statement. It might not be the most impressive facility, but the games there are exciting, the crowd is loud, and the venue was continually ranked one of the toughest places to play by other CCHA teams. I like Lawson's ranking in this list.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:36 PM ^
My response to reading this
Yost is ranked 4th best hockey arena :)
in Michigan. :/
I guess 4th of 12 isn't bad.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:37 PM ^
Hell yeah Grand Rapids represent!
December 12th, 2012 at 7:28 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 7:39 PM ^
I wish he would have listed them #1 because of the $1 beers and hotdogs on Friday nights.
December 12th, 2012 at 9:21 PM ^
Those are always fun nights to work at Van Andel.
/kind of sarcastic, kind of serious
December 13th, 2012 at 12:30 AM ^
December 13th, 2012 at 3:53 PM ^
I'll be there tomorrow night!
December 13th, 2012 at 12:31 AM ^
December 13th, 2012 at 11:46 AM ^
I filmed this for my son's 5th grade video club just last night
December 12th, 2012 at 6:39 PM ^
Judging by the brief write-up, author didn't even attend a game. Hack blogging.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:40 PM ^
If you click on each stadium is gives a more complete break down
December 12th, 2012 at 6:59 PM ^
December 13th, 2012 at 10:25 AM ^
Munn is unremarkable, but comfortable. Oh, and it's uncomfortable.
That's some good writing.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:40 PM ^
Haven't been there in a while, but I always thought Compuware arena was a shithole.
December 13th, 2012 at 10:01 AM ^
I disagree. Played there quite a few times, and it's actually pretty nice. It is perfectly sized as sort of a mini-NHL rink.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:40 PM ^
I've always heard it's just a half-empty warehouse
December 12th, 2012 at 7:33 PM ^
I go to about 7 games a year at Lawson and 2 or 3 at Yost. I think people are thinking of the Lawson from a few years back. It doesn't have the history or the soul of Yost, and never will. It doesn't have the amenities like a cool (or even semi-cool) scoreboard, but the Lunatics are awesome, and with a low, metal roof it gets as loud as Yost. Most of the Lunatics' cheers are copied from Yost or everywhere else in college hockey, but chanting "sausage fest" for the opposing team having two guys in the penalty box is Yost-worthy.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:41 PM ^
Wait is that actually ranked in order or is it just a list?
I can't believe anyone would put Lawson or Ewigleben over the Joe. Ewigbelen doesn't even have bleachers on half the rink
December 12th, 2012 at 6:47 PM ^
In their rankings the Joe got killed for "access" which is pretty terrible. Also on "return on investment" and "extras" the Joe is much lower than the college arenas.
December 12th, 2012 at 6:43 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 6:44 PM ^
Bwa-ha-ha, I guess?
This is the kind of thing that pisses me off about 'modernity.' If we replaced Yost with VanAndel, there are those who would consider it a win. And that would make me want to stab things.
EDIT: Oh sweet lord, they gave Munn 4 stars (out of 5) for "Atmosphere." If that's the case, then the DMV would be a 3.5 and purgatory would be a solid 3.
December 13th, 2012 at 12:29 PM ^
The only time Munn sells out and has atmosphere is when we buy the place out for a Michigan road game against Sparty.
Who came up with this list?
December 12th, 2012 at 6:53 PM ^
If you know hockey, and especially old time hockey you know about the Pullar and the tradition, and all the great players throughout the years. Isnt even close......
I live in Grand Rapids now, and really? Van Andel? Nice place to watch a concert but come on.
December 13th, 2012 at 12:28 AM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 7:02 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 7:12 PM ^
You're at the wrong blog, bro.
December 12th, 2012 at 7:59 PM ^
Throw the records out the window, your team is getting swept this weekend.
Michigan will avenge the title game from last year.
December 12th, 2012 at 8:59 PM ^
Fuck the lunatics. Your punks couldn't hang with the Children for one minute.
December 12th, 2012 at 11:58 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 7:02 PM ^
NMU's stadium is very nice and has excellent ice, and their old stadium, though uglier than a hedge fence, was still a fun place to play. I also have to say that Munn (yes, that munn) always had good ice but the fans sure didn't like us for some reason....
December 12th, 2012 at 7:07 PM ^
this is one of those lists where if you aren't first, you're last!
December 12th, 2012 at 7:19 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 7:48 PM ^
I can't speak for most of these arenas, but I thought the write up on the Berry at NMU was pretty much spot on. I grew up going to games at the old Lakeview Arena and then the Berry and always had a great time. Also, Marquette is great and everyone should visit.
Seriously, bring us your tourism dollars.
December 12th, 2012 at 7:58 PM ^
I've been to every arena. Besides Van Andel. HOPEFULLY if Michigan makes the tournament, they automatically get put in the West Regional in GR.
JLA is a dump and I'm counting down the days until it's put out of it's misery. Seriously. In the CCHA Playoff Championship game I went to last year I sat down near ice level right behind the net on the Michigan side and the seats we were in were broken. They were like rocking chairs.
Yost is #1 with a bullet. Period. Especially since it has just been updated.
December 12th, 2012 at 8:31 PM ^
but related to college and Michigan hockey and funny. http://www.westerncollegehockeyblog.com/2012/12/5/3731938/mel-pearson-b…
I wish he would have done that (or harsher) while here.
December 12th, 2012 at 9:01 PM ^
yawn, wake me when this douche bag updates his ranking in light of our recent renovations.
December 12th, 2012 at 9:13 PM ^
Let's be real, the only two aspects of an arena that really matter are atmosphere and fans, both of which Yost got a 5 for. The other factors they use are basically meaningless to the experience. Under these guidelines, the United Center would be higher rated than the Old Chicago Stadium, because it is nicer, has better amenities, and is in a better neighborhood. However, anyone who has been to both knows that the atmosphere in the old Chicago Stadium was rivaled only by Yost.
December 12th, 2012 at 9:38 PM ^
December 12th, 2012 at 11:05 PM ^
If not, how'd you get to play on so many 'big' rinks like those?
December 13th, 2012 at 12:22 AM ^
December 13th, 2012 at 10:06 AM ^
Only played there once, but I loved the ice at the Joe. Also, there is something about the sound of the puck off the glass there that I haven't heard at other rinks where I've played. Yost is obviously a great place to skate also, I was playing there every friday for the last few years.
December 12th, 2012 at 10:01 PM ^
Good to see you put Grand Rapid's Van Andel Arena on your list, OP. When I think of being there, I think of dollar beer night on Friday nights and being completely shitfaced by the second period.
EDIT: Oops, I see the dollar beer nights got brought above earlier in this thread.
Also, if you're from Grand Rapids, I enjoy Jolly Roger from some high school and college games. Place gets loud when packed.
December 13th, 2012 at 10:23 AM ^
Jolly roger was a dump in the 90's. They had chain link fence instead of glass at one end, and the locker rooms had walls made of sheet steel. You could push out at the seams and see into the arena to gauge how much time the Zamboni had left. It was a fun dump, though. Very Slapshotish feeling to it.
December 12th, 2012 at 10:31 PM ^
As someone who grew up with season tickets to Lawson for years but went to school in Ann Arbor, I can't imagine putting Lawson above Yost. That's ridiculous. But, that said, I think there's a special kind of hate that comes from the inferiority complex endemic to Bronco fans. When you get 4,000 people in there burning to beat Michigan or MSU, it's a pretty cool atmosphere that you don't usually feel at Michigan just due to the history, entitlement and so on.
I'm not being sarcastic or snide, I really mean this.
December 12th, 2012 at 10:55 PM ^
December 13th, 2012 at 5:38 AM ^
How about Gordie Howe hockeyland? And you want to know the be-all, end-all of places to play (and to watch)? The Olympia. Now just a memory, but at the end of my juniors' year, and before going to play at Mich, we got to play there and I just loved getting on the ice there. Que the organ....
December 12th, 2012 at 11:24 PM ^
Lawson beat Yost by a single point (which is ridiculous considering that Yost is far superior, but that's beside the point). From the detailed section on Lawson:
An extra point is awarded for the opportunity to catch a homecoming doubleheader, with the Broncos taking on Bowling Green in football earlier in the day.
So essentially, Lawson is rated above Yost because the author went to a football game between two crappy teams earlier in the day...
Also, Yost scored higher than Lawson in boh the fan category and the surrounding neighborhood. Lawson made up the difference by having free parking and cheaper tickets. So in terms of the actual experience, Yost ranked higher, as it should. Similarly, when combining the fans and atmosphere categories, Yost stands alone at number 1 in the state, with full ratings in each.
December 12th, 2012 at 11:45 PM ^