Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, colloquially known as The Aud, was a multipurpose indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. Opened on October 14, 1940, it was home to the Canisius Golden Griffins (NCAA), the Buffalo Bisons (AHL), the Buffalo Bisons (NBL), the Buffalo Braves (NBA), the Buffalo Sabres (NHL), the Toronto-Buffalo Royals (WTT), the Buffalo Stallions (MSL), the Buffalo Bandits (MILL), the Buffalo Blizzard (NPSL) and the Buffalo Stampede (RHI). It also hosted events such as college basketball, concerts, professional wrestling and boxing. The venue was closed in 1996 after the construction of Marine Midland Arena, and  remained vacant until being demolished in 2009. History. Planning and construction. The Buffalo Memorial Auditorium was a public works project designed by Green & James to replace the aging Broadway Auditorium and Fort Erie's recently collapsed Peace Bridge Arena. In June 1938, city officials sent a loan and grant application to the Works Progress Administration for funds to build the structure. The approval of the $1.2 million grant was announced in Washington, D.C. on October 7, 1938. Construction at the junction of the Erie Canal and Main-Hamburg Canal began on November 30, 1939. The Auditorium's construction brought  a great deal of activity to downtown Buffalo. On December 31, 1939, "Buffalo Evening News" reporter Nat Gorham wrote: Opening and reception. Built for $2.7 million, Memorial Auditorium's grand opening celebration took place on October 14, 1940. The dedication event was a luncheon attended by 3,000 people, including the mayors of more than 60 local communities. The building was dedicated as a war memorial to those who had perished in World War I. The arena originally seated 12,280 for ice hockey, with an additional 2,000-3,000 seats in the floor area for basketball and other events. Memorial Auditorium 's first event—a rally for Republican Presidential candidate Wendell Willkie—took place on October 14, 1940. In its first seven months, events such as auto shows, roller skating, circuses and dog shows drew nearly one million spectators. All told, the Auditorium's first year attendance was 1.3 million. Alterations. An $8.7 million renovation took place after the 1970–71 inauguration of the Sabres and Braves franchises, making it a more suitable home for the NHL and NBA. The arena's roof was raised to make room for an upper level that increased the arena's capacity from 10,449 for  hockey to over 17,000 for basketball and 15,360 for hockey in 1971–72, to 15,668 for hockey in 1972–73, and to 15,858 for hockey in 1973–74. Other changes to the Aud's original design included: The Aud's seats were mostly made of white ash, but the gold seats were converted to padded cushion seats. From top to bottom (floor level), the seating colors went orange, blue (originally grey), red and gold. In 1974, the city added five seats, increasing capacity for hockey in the 1974–1975 season to 15,863. After the hockey season, the city removed the walls and aisle that  separated the upper gold and red seating sections. The 570 gold seats the city installed in the vacant space raised the arena's capacity to 16,433 for hockey and over 18,000 for basketball. In the late 1980s, the Buffalo Common Council and mayor James D. Griffin scaled back plans to renovate the Aud after the Sabres' owners made it clear the franchise's long-term viability depended upon a new arena. A compromise led the city to agree to build a new venue (Marine Midland Arena) and keep the Aud functional until the new arena was complete. The 1990 renovation  added designated handicap-accessible seating areas (lowering the seating capacity to 16,325 for hockey), new air conditioning and elevators. The money the city borrowed for these improvements was not repaid until 2001, five years after the Aud closed. Closing and vacancy. The Aud closed in 1996, at which time the Sabres, Bandits and Blizzard moved to Marine Midland Arena. After 1996, the building remained vacant, although members of Studio Arena Theatre used the floor as a surface for painting backgrounds. During the 2001–02 season, Sabres officials and the city moved items from the Aud's main concourse to HSBC Arena , including a sign for the "Pour Man's Aud Club" which was reincarnated at the new venue. In 2003, the Sabres filmed a 30-minute infomercial inside the Aud to promote season ticket sales. While the production showed the arena was intact, it was without utilities and the crew had to supply all light and electrical sources. The Aud continued to deteriorate after the 2003 production visit. Water pipes ruptured, moisture began to take its toll and the city's lax monitoring led to graffiti, vandalism and theft of many artifacts. A segment aired during the CBC Television "Hockey Night  in Canada" broadcast of the 2008 NHL Winter Classic showed the arena's seating bowl and floor were virtually untouched. Notably, the advertisements on the boards from the final Sabres game in 1996 against the Hartford Whalers and the scoreboard above center ice remained. The door to the Sabres' penalty box was gone, as it had been presented as a memento to notable Sabres enforcer Rob Ray. Demolition. The city abandoned its plans to repurpose the Aud as a Bass Pro Shops store on March 29, 2007 when Bass Pro announced it would construct a new building on the site  after the auditorium's demolition. In December 2007, the city sold the Aud to the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation for $1 in hopes it would lead to asbestos removal and demolition. All salvageable items were to be removed and sold or stored. The sales of these artifacts, especially of seats, would help pay for a memorial to the Aud. The salvaged items include art deco flag holders, limestone eagles, a time capsule as well as a number of blue and orange level seats, which were sold at auction. The city also salvaged ten cylindrical stainless steel "ice tanks  that helped maintain chilly conditions at ice level during hockey season and cooled spectators during warmer weather. In 2007, the city moved them to Shea's Performing Arts Center as part of a $1.5 million overhaul of the landmark theater's heating and cooling system. Asbestos removal and other environmental remediation took place in late 2008 and the expected $10 million demolition of the Aud began in January 2009. On February 9, 2009, the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium" entablature above the main entrance fell and much of the front façade met the same fate soon afterward. The "Farewell Buffalo  Memorial Auditorium Ceremony" took place on June 30, 2009 at 1:30 pm when officials opened the copper box time capsule. The structure's final pieces came down in early July 2009. In February 2010, Bass Pro Shops announced that it was no longer pursuing a store in Buffalo, leaving the site vacant. Legacy. After the Bass Pro Shops decision, the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation began to convert the site (known as the Aud Block) into an extension of Canalside with the junction of the old Erie Canal and Main-Hamburg Canal re-dug (although shallower than the original canals ) and new bridges. The canals that opened in 2014 are frozen for skating and other winter activities by an underground refrigerant plant housed in a rebuilt sub-basement that was part of Memorial Auditorium. In addition, a marker on the canal ice denotes center ice's former location. Across Main Street at LECOM Harborcenter is the one-of-a-kind Tim Hortons restaurant with a memorial to the Auditorium. A statue of the chain's namesake, who played at the arena during his time with the Buffalo Sabres, occupies the corner of the site facing the restaurant. Notable events. Basketball . College. Before the National Basketball Association and National Hockey League came to Buffalo, college basketball was Memorial Auditorium's most popular sporting event. On December 11, 1940, the Auditorium hosted its first college basketball game when Canisius College played the University of Oregon. Interest in college basketball grew after World War II, and the first college basketball sellout crowd occurred in the 1946–1947 season when 11,029 spectators saw Canisius lose to Notre Dame. Ten days later, a record 11,891 watched Canisius defeat Niagara, 52–44. While the teams were typically from Western New York, including Canisius, Niagara University, St. Bonaventure University , the University at Buffalo and Buffalo State College, other teams such as Cornell University took part. Over time, the rivalry among the "Little Three" colleges—Niagara, Canisius, and St. Bonaventure—came to dominate the Auditorium's college basketball schedule. Throughout the 1950s, the three schools were all national powers, and their games at Memorial Auditorium drew strong local and national interest. National Basketball League. The National Basketball League's Buffalo Bisons were the first professional basketball franchise to call Memorial Auditorium home. The team featured center Don Otten and coach Nat Hickey, but on December 27, 1946—only 13 games  into their inaugural season—owner Ben Kerner moved them to Moline, Illinois. After the 1949 merger of the National Basketball League and the Basketball Association of America and stops in Milwaukee and St. Louis, the team became the Atlanta Hawks. National Basketball Association. Professional basketball returned to the Aud in 1970 with the National Basketball Association's Buffalo Braves. The Braves were a modest success but often found the competing interests of the Sabres and the Little Three college teams made it difficult to schedule home games. The Braves moved to San Diego in 1978 and then to Los Angeles  in 1984, where they are now the Los Angeles Clippers. The NBA retained a presence at the venue by staging an annual series of preseason exhibitions called the NBA Classic: World University Games. The basketball events of the World University Games were held at the venue in July 1993. USA defeated Canada in the Gold Medal game 95–90 before a crowd of 11,000. Hockey. American Hockey League. The American Hockey League's Buffalo Bisons played 30 seasons at the Memorial Auditorium, beginning with the 1940–41 season. The Bisons won five Calder Cup championships, with the last coming in 1970 during  the franchise's final game. The team folded in 1970 after the National Hockey League awarded Buffalo an expansion team. On May 15, 1973, the Cincinnati Swords, then the Sabres' AHL affiliate, played the final game of the 1973 Calder Cup Finals at the Auditorium. The Swords won the Calder Cup with a 5–1 win over the Nova Scotia Voyageurs in front of 15,019 fans—the largest playoff crowd in AHL history at the time. The Rochester Americans also played several games at the Aud after they became the Sabres' affiliate, including several during their 1987 Calder Cup championship season . National Hockey League. The Buffalo Sabres made their Memorial Auditorium debut on October 15, 1970 in a game attended by NHL President Clarence Campbell that began with a ceremonial faceoff between Sabres captain Floyd Smith and Montreal Canadiens captain Jean Beliveau. The Sabres' Roger Crozier made 53 saves in a 3–0 loss. The arena hosted games three, four, and six of the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals, where the Sabres faced the Philadelphia Flyers. Eventually, the Flyers would win their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship in game six at the arena. This was the only Stanley Cup Finals appearance made at  the Auditorium. On January 4, 1976, the Sabres played Krylya Sovetov as part of the "Super Series" of exhibitions between the Soviet Union's two best club teams—CSKA Moscow and Krylia Sovietov (named "Red Army" and "Soviet Wings" respectively, during the series) and eight of the NHL's top teams. The Sabres' 12–6 victory over the 1974 Soviet league and European Cup champions was the worst defeat ever for a professional Soviet hockey club. Memorial Auditorium hosted the NHL All-Star Game on January 24, 1978. Two members of the Sabres' "French Connection" line—Gilbert Perreault and Rick Martin —played for the Wales Conference. Both had a significant impact: Martin scored a goal with 1:39 remaining in regulation to tie the game at 2–2 and force overtime, and Perreault scored the game-winning goal 3:55 into overtime to defeat the Campbell Conference 3–2. The Edmonton Oilers' Wayne Gretzky made NHL history at the Aud on February 24, 1982, when he scored a natural hat trick during the game's final seven minutes to help defeat the Sabres 6–3. Gretzky broke Phil Esposito's record for goals in a season (76) with the hat trick's first goal, his 77th  of the season. In March 2009, Gretzky visited Buffalo as the Phoenix Coyotes' head coach and recounted his memories of Memorial Auditorium in an interview with "Buffalo News" hockey reporter Mike Harrington: The venue hosted the 1991 NHL Entry Draft, notable for Eric Lindros being selected first overall by the Quebec Nordiques and refusing to sign with the team. The Sabres occupied the Auditorium through the 1995–96 season, when they moved to nearby Marine Midland Arena. Michael Peca scored the last in-game goal at the Aud while Pat LaFontaine put in a ceremonial goal after the 4–1 win over  the Hartford Whalers. It was the last arena where the ice sheet fell short of the league-mandated by size (though Maple Leaf Gardens had irregularly shaped corners). College. College hockey made its modern debut at Memorial Auditorium on January 23, 1972, when the University at Buffalo Bulls met the Central Collegiate Hockey Association's Ohio State University. Ohio State won the game 5–2. Roller Hockey International. Roller Hockey International's Buffalo Stampede called the Aud home from 1994–1995, winning the league championship in their first season. Lacrosse. Major Indoor Lacrosse League. The Buffalo Bandits of Major Indoor Lacrosse League  played in the Aud from the 1992 season until the arena's closure. Winners of the MILL title in 1992, 1993, and 1996, the Bandits are now a member of the National Lacrosse League and play at KeyBank Center. Soccer. Major Soccer League. Major Soccer League's Buffalo Stallions attracted 11,028 to their home debut at the Aud against the Philadelphia Fever on December 7, 1979. The team played in the venue until 1984. Soccer legend Eusébio notably finished his career playing for the Stallions in their inaugural season. National Professional Soccer League. The Aud was home to the Buffalo  Blizzard of the National Professional Soccer League from 1992 to 1996. Tennis. World Team Tennis. In 1974, the Toronto-Buffalo Royals of World Team Tennis called the Aud home for one season. Figure skating. Ice Capades. The Aud was one of the original venues that hosted Ice Capades in 1940. Ice Follies. Ice Follies made its debut at the venue in 1941, and continued making regular stops after becoming Disney on Ice in 1981. SABAH. The annual pageant to benefit the Skating Association for the Blind and Handicapped (SABAH) was staged at the venue from 1979 to 1996. Torvill and  Dean. Torvill and Dean, famed Olympic ice dancers, brought their touring show to the Aud on November 8, 1986. Skate America. The venue was host to the 1990 Skate America competition. Stars on Ice. Stars on Ice began making regular stops at the venue beginning in 1991. Combat sports. Professional wrestling. The first sporting event at the venue was a Great Lakes Athletic Club professional wrestling card on October 18, 1940 that was headlined by Ed Don George defeating Joe Savoldi. Great Lakes Athletic Club owner Jack Herman continued booking shows at the venue before selling the promotion in 1947  to Ed Don George, who changed the promotion's name to Upstate Athletic Club. WBEN-TV would regularly broadcast Upstate Athletic Club's cards from the venue in 1948. Don George would later sell the promotion to his matchmaker, Ignacio "Pedro" Martinez, in 1955. Ilio DiPaolo, the son-in-law of Martinez, was the promotion's biggest star. WGR-TV broadcast Upstate Athletic Club's cards from the venue in 1956 as "Wrestling from War Memorial Auditorium". Martinez would continue booking shows at The Aud until 1968, when he ran into financial trouble and was forced to promote outside the  area. He returned in 1970 with his National Wrestling Federation, but the promotion folded in 1974. Jim Crockett Promotions debuted at the venue on July 19, 1980 with a show headlined by Ric Flair and Sweet Ebony Diamond defeating Greg Valentine and The Iron Sheik. The Honky Tonk Man defeated Ricky Steamboat to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship during a "WWF Superstars of Wrestling" taping at the venue on June 2, 1987. The inaugural Ilio DiPaolo Memorial Show was held at the venue on June 7, 1996 and was headlined by The Giant defeating Sting to retain the WCW World  Heavyweight Championship. DiPaolo had died the previous year after being struck by a car. It was the final sporting event at the venue, and set the venue's all-time record for professional wrestling attendance with 14,852. Boxing. The auditorium hosted many boxing matches, most notably: Mixed martial arts. UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo was held at the Aud on September 8, 1995. It would be the final UFC event in the state before mixed martial arts was banned by New York State in February 1997. UFC would not return to New York State until UFC 205 in 2016 . Concerts. In addition to sporting events, the auditorium hosted concerts by many famous artists: Special features. Tributes. The Buffalo Sabres retired the numbers of all three members of The French Connection – Gilbert Perreault (11) in 1990, René Robert (14) in 1995, and Rick Martin (7) in 1995. The number of Tim Horton (2) was retired in 1996. Banners for all four individuals were hung in the rafters of Memorial Auditorium, and later moved to the rafters of Marine Midland Arena after the venue closed. Championship banners were hung at the venue for the Buffalo Sabres (1975, 1980 and 1981 Division  Champions & 1975 and 1980 Prince of Wales Champions), Buffalo Bandits (1992 and 1993 World Champions), and the Buffalo Stampede (1994 World Champions). Banners were also hung to recognize postseason appearances by the Canisius Golden Griffins basketball team, and commemorating the venue hosting the 1993 World University Games . Only banners for the Sabres and Bandits were relocated to Marine Midland Arena after the venue's closure. Eateries. At the time of its closing in 1996, the Aud's concessions included: Delaware North handled all concessions for the venue through its Sportservice subsidiary. The company's founder, Louis Jacobs, was the original  operating manager of Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. Transportation access. The venue was served by Auditorium station of Buffalo Metro Rail, which still stands and now services both KeyBank Center and LECOM Harborcenter.