Arena: Climate Pledge Arena

Location: Uptown Seattle, Washington

Game Attended: January 1, 2023 vs New York Islanders

Game Result: (Release the) Kraken 4, Islanders 1

Seat Location: Upstairs Corner, Shoot 1x End

Overall Impression: Old Meets New in a Wonderful Way

Everybody told me Seattle was going to be a fun trip. Mom and Dad, other relatives, friends, coworkers; they all said that I’d have a great time in Seattle. And they were right. But not for the usual reasons. 

No, it wasn’t the Space Needle or the fish flying across the aisles at Pike Place Market or the good seafood or the picturesque views of Mount Rainier. All those great things had their place, of course. But I think one of the coolest things about Seattle was the theme of the weekend: the old meeting the new. 

To kick off the final season of the Tour de NHL, I recruited best friend Craig once again. He agreed to join me for a double dose of hockey with some New York Jets fandom sprinkled on top; they played the Seahawks on New Years’ Day. We were also joined by Sam and her boyfriend Alex. Sam was one of my best friends in the three years she lived in Charlotte, and had recently moved to New Mexico with Alex for a career change. 

My best friend that introduced me to hockey meeting newer, but still valued friends. Sharing laughs and jokes and Simpsons re-runs and commiserating about football woes. 

Old meeting new. 

Seattle itself is a wonderfully diverse and cultural city. A rich history dating back hundreds of years to native nation lands and the first European settlers who established themselves in Pioneer Square. It’s a cultural melting pot where West meets East in a wonderful, and delicious for you foodies, way. A city where the fishing and logging industries have made way to technology and commerce. 

Old meeting new. 

Seattle actually has a rich hockey history that even predates the National Hockey League. Back in 1915 (in the pre-NHL days), the Seattle Metropolitans became the second American team to join the old Pacific Coast Hockey Association (the first being the fiercely intimidating Portland Rosebuds). The Metropolitans had great success in their nine PCHA seasons, winning five regular season titles and the 1917 Stanley Cup over Montreal. In fact, the Metropolitans were the first American team to win the Cup; if not for a pesky Spanish Flu epidemic, they may have won the 1919 Finals too. 

The Metropolitans folded in 1924, and professional hockey left Seattle for over 90 years. But in December 2018, the NHL announced that a new 32nd expansion team would be granted to Seattle. They’d begin play in 2021, becoming the newest NHL team. A 97-year drought would be over, and there would once again be hockey in the Emerald City. 

Old meeting new. 

The Kraken play their hockey games in Climate Pledge Arena, located in the shadow of the Space Needle, Pacific Science Center, and Museum of Pop Culture. And, you guessed it, we’ve got another “old meeting new” story. Climate Pledge Arena is technically the oldest and one of the newest buildings in the league. 

The building was constructed in 1962, and was known as Key Arena for many years when the NBA’s Seattle Supersonics played there. But after the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City, the arena was used rarely other than for WNBA games. When the new ownership group got their expansion team, they announced a $700 million renovation to bring the old barn up to modern standards. In fact, the only remnant of the old Key Arena is the pyramid-shaped roof. 

Old meeting new. 

Well, they got it right with their renovation. Although it’s small, the new building is everything you’d expect from a modern state-of-the-art arena. Tons of natural light with glass windows all around the concourse. Bright, engaging LED video boards. Premium concessions with local food and drink options (including local salmon for you Seattle seafood purists). 

Inside the arena itself, the Kraken have differentiated themselves with not one, but two video boards overhanging the ice. Given some wonky sight lines in parts of the upper deck, I think this design is a wonderful idea. And the team had an amazing pregame intro video with tons of cool on-ice graphics!

But the name itself epitomizes how cool the arena really is. Amazon purchased the naming rights to the arena and named it Climate Pledge Arena. The name is designed to bring attention to The Climate Pledge, a global sustainability initiative encouraging companies and individuals to “go green”. To that end, Climate Pledge Arena uses recycled rainwater to make and maintain the ice. They use 100% renewable energy to heat and cool the building. And they use biodegradable food and drink containers in an effort to be “zero waste”. They even had a full-size green wall and interactive displays on the lower concourse to educate fans further!

If there was one criticism I had, it would be the energy of the fans. Perhaps it was their hangovers from New Years Day or the quick turnaround from the Seahawks game or the lack of significant team history, I don’t know. But the fans just weren’t loud at all. I mean, football fans know how loud Seahawks games are in Seattle. Sam and Alex attested to that firsthand. But that energy and vigor didn’t translate to the Kraken game. Not even for goals. 

In fact, I was so underwhelmed with the fan atmosphere in the building. That is, until I goaded Craig into a second intermission tour of the lower concourse. And we were promptly greeted by the Kraken’s marching band, The Red Line. And they brought the JAM! I love live music and bands at games. 

And the fans somewhat made up for themselves during goals. The Kraken’s “foghorn” goal horn wasn’t deafening, but it did bring the crowd to their feet. And the entire building chanting “Let’s Go Kraken” after goals, while simplistic, was fun. They even showed some love for Matthew Barzal after he scored the Islanders’ lone goal. He played his junior hockey in Seattle for the WHL’s Thunderbirds, and naturally, old met new again. 

But overall, Seattle is a wonderful city and with time, it will become a wonderful hockey town. The team will grow and succeed more on the ice; their draft selections of Matty Beniers and Shane Wright should ensure that success. And with any luck, they may have a second Stanley Cup banner hanging from the rafters at Climate Pledge Arena. 

The 1917 Seattle Metropolitans and the 20?? Seattle Kraken. 

Old meeting new, once again. 

Oh, and stop by Dick’s Drive In for burgers and fries after the game, it’s a tasty Seattle staple!

Building: 4.5 / 5

Atmosphere: 3.5 / 5

Neighborhood: 3.5 / 5

Overall: 4 / 5