Carnegie Centennial Centre - North York Rangers
- Dave Cottenie
- 3 hours ago
- 6 min read
Photos by Dave Cottenie, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.00
Herbert H. Carnegie Centennial Centre
580 Finch Ave W
North York, ON M2R 3P9
Year Opened: 1966
Capacity: 1,500
Herb’s Rangers
Herb Carnegie is a hockey legend. He was presented with the Order of Canada and the Order of Ontario and was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, Ontario Sports Hall of Fame and in 2022, he was posthumously inducted in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Carnegie is widely viewed as one of the greatest players to never play in the NHL and should have broken the colour barrier in the NHL in 1938, well before Willie O’Ree did in 1958. In the most infamous incident of Carnegie facing racism, Toronto Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe allegedly said that he would pay anyone $10,000 if they could turn Carnegie white so that he could play for the Leafs. Carnegie had a significant professional career and played many years with the Quebec Aces with Jean Beliveau and for Punch Imlach. Carnegie went on to found the Future Aces Hockey School, one of the first, and pushed for more equity in hockey. He even ended up with Spider-Man in the pages of a Marvel comic book. Carnegie was a Toronto native and grew up in what is currently known as North York. One of his first teams was the Toronto Young Rangers. In 2001, the North York Centennial Centre was renamed the Herbert H. Carnegie Centennial Centre.
It is most appropriate that the OJHL’s North York Rangers call the Carnegie Centennial Centre home. The Rangers were established in 1969 as the Richmond Hill Rams and moved to North York in 1992. The original North York Rangers were the Woodbridge Rangers and moved to North York in 1967 and bounced between Junior A and B. The Rangers won 3 OPJHL titles and the 1983 Dudley Hewitt Cup and Centennial Cup. They folded in 1985. The current Rangers have had a mix of success, with 2018-19 being their best season.
Food & Beverage 3
There is one concession stand at the Carnegie Centennial Centre. Concession options include hot dogs, grilled cheese, nachos, bagels, candy, pretzels and Jamaican Patties. Country Style Coffee and Pepsi products are the main beverages available.
Atmosphere 3
The Herbert H. Carnegie Centennial Centre has a very unique look to it and is definitely a love letter to the accomplishments of Herb Carnegie. The exterior is unique with a tilted roof and a combination of white and blue corrugated siding. At the time of writing there was plenty of construction going on at the Centennial Centre to make the building more accessible. The main entry is at the south on the street side and fans are immediately brought into a very small breezeway. The ticket table is actually inside the arena area which is unique to this facility. Taking a left turn after entering will bring fans to the trophy cases. A couple of them are dedicated to Herb Carnegie with a wonderful display. A number of Carnegie artifacts are on display, including his “Skating on Thin Ice” Spider-Man comic book, complete with cover by iconic comic book artist Todd McFarlane. Other artifacts include a number of awards and trophies and his Hockey Hall of Fame plaque. There are articles and a full description of his Future Aces creed here as well. In this area, there are also team pictures from Ranger teams of the past, award plaques and pucks from key Ranger moments. Throughout the concourses of the Centennial Centre there are a number of Carnegie murals, including one with all of his achievements over the years, and some old-timey NHL hockey player murals.
The ice surface is north-south oriented with the scoreboard found at the south end. Two levels of seating are found on the west side. The strangely sloped roof finds its high point on the west side and slopes down to the east. Above the benches on the east side hang banners from Rangers of the past including Tom McCarthy, Gerry O’Flaherty, Ron Lalonde, Bernie Nicholls and Paul Coffey. Seats are traditional plastic arena seats. Championship banners hang on the north end, including the 2019 OJHL South Division Championship and a memorial for Brant Snow, who passed in 2017. Snow was one of the OJHL’s longest serving members of the Board of Directors and the OJHL award for best regular season record is also named in his honour.
The gameday production at a Rangers game is very simple. The sound system at the Carnegie Centennial Centre is very poor and it is difficult to understand announcements.
Neighbourhood 4
The Herb Carnegie Centennial Centre is located in the Branson neighbourhood of North York, a former city and current district in Toronto. There are a few options for pre and post game food and drinks in the immediate area. These include Moon Restaurant, Eisenergs, Belle Bar and the Mandarin. North York is close to other OJHL teams including the Toronto Patriots, Markham Royals and St. Michael’s Buzzers. North York is also where York University is found, home of the Lions who play football, hockey and basketball on campus along with other sports. Toronto FC II and York United FC also can York University home. North York is close to some tourist options including Canada’s Wonderland, Legoland, The Village at Black Creek, Casa Loma and Toronto Botanical Garden. North York also has a number of parks and walking trails. Heading south toward Harbourfront will bring fans to the tourism centre of Toronto. Options here are plentiful including the CN Tower, Ripley’s Aquarium, Roundhouse Park, Hockey Hall of Fame and Royal Ontario Museum. Just about any sporting event that a fan could want is found Downtown including Toronto Blue Jays, Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC, Toronto Argonauts, Toronto Sceptres and Toronto Marlies. Hotel options near the Carnegie Centennial Centre include Novotel North York and Holiday Inn.
Fans 2
Fan support of the North York Rangers is not very strong. For the 2024-2025 season the Rangers attracted just under 100 fans per game. This ranks the Rangers near the bottom of the league in attendance. This is definitely a friends and family crowd. The Rangers play on Sunday afternoons and Tuesdays. The weeknight games begin at 4:30, which is a pretty terrible time to start a hockey game if fans are expected to be a part of the experience.
Access 3
Herb Carnegie Centennial Centre is located in the Branson neighbourhood of North York. It is on the north side of Finch Avenue between Bathurst and Dufferin. This is a busy part of the city. It is 5 km north of Highway 401, 7 km east of Highway 400 and 5 km south of Highway 407. Getting to this arena will be a bit of a challenge due to the reality that is Toronto traffic. There is plenty of parking behind the Centennial Centre. For fans wishing to take public transit, there are TTC bus stops along Finch Ave. Fans should consult the TTC website for fares, schedules and maps. The arena is very cold, however, the gas heaters over the seating area were in use. There are plenty of stairs in the arena, but getting around is not that difficult due to the few spectators. The washroom facilities are adequate for the facility, but definitely on the older side.
Return on Investment 4
Tickets for the North York Rangers are $15 with discounts for seniors. Children six and under are free. Parking is free and concession prices are decent. The action on the ice is generally a high quality, and fans will have a good time. A bigger crowd would definitely enhance the return and overall improve the return on investment.
Extras 2
An extra mark for all of the Herb Carnegie artifacts and touches, which makes this venue worth exploring.
An extra mark for the link to the Rangers name that Herb Carnegie also has, once playing for the Toronto Young Rangers and he also once had a tryout with the New York Rangers where he was offered a chance to play in their minor league system to start.
Final Thoughts
The opportunity to see the North York Rangers play at the Herb Carnegie Centennial Centre is one that fans should not pass on lightly. The venue is a love letter to the hockey legend that was Herb Carnegie and there is plenty to explore when there. The Rangers offer a good product on the ice and fans will definitely have a good time.
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