Midland Marine Arena
| KeyBank Center | |
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Photo of then-First Niagara Center in 2012
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| Former names | Marine Midland Arena (1996–2000) HSBC Arena (2000–2011) First Niagara Center (2011–2016) |
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| Address | 1 Seymour H. Knox III Plaza |
| Location | Buffalo, New York |
| Coordinates | 42°52′30″N 78°52′35″W / 42.87500°N 78.87639°WCoordinates: 42°52′30″N 78°52′35″W / 42.87500°N 78.87639°W |
| Public transit | NFTA Metro Rail (Special Events Station) |
| Owner | Erie County |
| Operator | Hockey Western New York, LLC |
| Capacity |
Ice hockey: 18,595 (1996–1999) 18,690 (1999–2012) 19,070 (2012–present) Concerts: 18,500 Basketball: 19,200 Wrestling: 16,597 |
| Field size | 700,000 square feet (65,000 m2) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | November 4, 1994 |
| Built | 1994-1996 |
| Opened | September 21, 1996 |
| Construction cost |
$127.5 million ($195 million in 2016 dollars) |
| Architect |
Ellerbe Becket (now known as AECOM) Bergmann Associates PC Hamilton Houston Lownie Architects |
| General contractor | Huber, Hunt & Nichols |
| Tenants | |
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Buffalo Sabres (NHL) (1996–present) Buffalo Bandits (NLL) (1996–present) Buffalo Blizzard (NPSL) (1996–2001) Buffalo Wings (RHI) (1997) Buffalo Destroyers (AFL) (1999–2003) |
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| Website | |
| Official website | |
KeyBank Center, formerly known as Marine Midland Arena, HSBC Arena and First Niagara Center, is a multipurpose indoor arena located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It is the largest indoor arena in Western New York, seating 19,070 fans in its normal configuration, and was constructed primarily for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL), who have called the arena home since 1996, when it replaced the now-demolished Memorial Auditorium. The arena was renamed as KeyBank Center starting with the 2016–2017 NHL season. It is owned by Erie County and operated by Pegula Sports and Entertainment (as Hockey Western New York, LLC).
What was originally known during construction as Crossroads Arena opened September 21, 1996, replacing the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. The construction cost was $127.5 million, (approximately $195 million in 2016 dollars).
Naming rights were sold to Marine Midland Bank, part of the HSBC banking group in 1996, and the building was renamed Marine Midland Arena before the first game had been played. The bank bought the naming rights for 30 years then to expire in 2026. In 1999, as part of HSBC's worldwide corporate rebranding, the arena's name was changed to HSBC Arena, with the official renaming taking place on March 17, 2000. This name change coincided with the playing of the first college basketball tournament game in the arena's history. The press box in the arena is named after former Sabres broadcaster and Hockey Hall of Fame member Ted Darling. In 2011, Buffalo based First Niagara Financial Group reached an agreement to purchase HSBC Bank's upstate New York and Connecticut branch network. While naming rights to HSBC Arena were not included in the sale, First Niagara, HSBC, the Buffalo Sabres and other parties reached an agreement to establish a new naming rights deal with First Niagara. The name of the arena became First Niagara Center' that summer, with the official renaming taking place that fall. First Niagara bought the naming rights for 15 years, approximately the remainder of the time that was left on HSBC's naming rights deal with the arena.KeyCorp announced its plans to purchase First Niagara—and thus also the naming rights to the arena—on October 30, 2015. Although exterior signage was installed during the week of August 11, 2016, the renamed KeyBank Center became official on September 19, 2016.
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