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Bell Centre
Location	1260 De la Gauchetière Ouest Montreal, Quebec H3B 5E8
Broke ground	June 22, 1993
Opened	March 16, 1996
Owner	George N. Gillett Jr.
Construction cost	C$270 million
Former names	Molson Centre (1996-2002)
Tenants
Montreal Canadiens (NHL) (1996-present) Montreal Rocket (QMJHL) (2001-2003) Montreal Express (NLL) (2002)
Capacity
Hockey: 21,273 Theatre: 5,000 to 9,000 Full Capacity: 14,000 to 21,500 Hemicycle: 2,000 to 3,000

The Bell Centre (French: Le Centre Bell), formerly known as the Molson Centre, has been the home of the Montreal Canadiens since March 16, 1996 when they hosted the New York Rangers (a game which they won 4-2). The team departed from the historic Montreal Forum after their last game on March 11 of the same year. Construction began on the site on June 22, 1993, 13 days after the Canadiens defeated the Los Angeles Kings at the Forum for their 24th and most recent Stanley Cup. The name of the arena initially reflected Molson, Inc., a brewing company which owned a large share of the Canadiens at the time. Molson elected not to keep the naming rights when they sold the team, and the name officially changed on September 1, 2002 after Bell Canada acquired the naming rights.

Contents 1 Arena information 2 Events 3 Retired jerseys 4 External links

The building covers an area of 15,680 square metres (168,778 sq. ft). It is located in downtown Montreal, connected to Lucien-L'Allier and Bonaventure metro stations and to the underground city; the Lucien-L'Allier commuter train station is incorporated into the building. It has the largest seating capacity of any amphitheatre in the NHL.

Capacities of the Centre are:

• Arena 21,273
• Amphitheatre 10,000-14,000
• Theatre 5,000-9,000
• Hemicycle 2,000-3,500

The public address announcer for the Canadiens' games is Michel Lacroix.

The final two games of the 3-game 1996 World Cup of Hockey championship series were held at the Bell Centre (the USA won both games, defeating Canada in the series 2-1). The Bell Centre was also host of one Quarter-Final game in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. The Bell Centre will host the 2009 NHL All-Star Game and the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

The Bell Centre has also held several WWE events, including the 1997 Survivor Series where the infamous Montreal Screwjob took place, as well as other Pay-Per-Views including 2003 No Way Out.

The following numbers are retired by the Canadiens (positions in parentheses) and hang from the rafters:

• 1 Jacques Plante (G) October 7, 1995
• 2 Doug Harvey (D) October 26, 1995
• 4 Jean Béliveau (C) October 9, 1971
• 5 Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion (RW) March 11, 2006
• 7 Howie Morenz (C) November 2, 1937
• 9 Maurice "The Rocket" Richard (RW) October 6, 1960
• 10 Guy Lafleur (RW) February 16, 1985
• 12 Dickie Moore (LW) and Yvan Cournoyer (RW) November 12, 2005
• 16 Henri Richard (C) December 10, 1975
• 18 Serge Savard (D) November 18, 2006
• 19 Larry Robinson (D) November 19, 2007
• 29 Ken Dryden (G) January 29, 2007

More numbers will be retired during the next 3 years until the team's centennial anniversary.

On October 18, 2005, the Canadiens also raised the following numbers on a single banner in honour of the former MLB team Montreal Expos, who left the city for Washington, D.C. after the 2004 season. The Nationals unretired the numbers, so the Canadiens raised a special banner honouring these baseball players:

• 8 Gary Carter
• 10 Andre Dawson and Rusty Staub
• 30 Tim Raines

Ironically, Jackie Robinson, whose number was retired twice (#20 because of his minor-league playing days in the city, and #42 as required by MLB), was not given a banner.

• Official site
• Bell Centre on Images Montreal IMTL.org

Preceded by Montreal Forum 1926—1996

Home of the Montreal Canadiens 1996—present

Succeeded by current

Coordinates: 45°29′45.67″N, 73°34′9.66″W

v • d • e Montreal landmarks
Buildings	1000 de La Gauchetière · 1250 René-Lévesque · 1501 McGill College · Bell Centre · Biodome · Biosphère · Bonsecours Market · Canadian Centre for Architecture · Complexe Desjardins · Montreal Casino · Christ Church Cathedral · Grande Bibliothèque du Québec · Habitat 67 · Montreal Museum of Fine Arts · Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral · McCord Museum · Montreal City Hall · Notre-Dame de Montréal Basilica · Olympic Stadium · Palais des congrès de Montréal · Place des Arts · Place Ville-Marie · Pointe-à-Callière Museum · Redpath Museum · Saint Joseph's Oratory · Tour de la Bourse · Windsor Station · World Trade Centre Montreal
Neighbourhoods	Chinatown · The Gay Village · Little Italy · Mile End · Old Montreal · Outremont · Park-Extension · The Plateau · Quartier international de Montréal · Quartier Latin · Underground City · Westmount
Nature and parks	Jardin botanique de Montréal · Lachine Canal · Mount Royal · Old Port · Parc Jarry · Parc Jean-Drapeau · Parc Lafontaine
Islands	Île Bizard · Island of Montreal · Île Notre-Dame · Nuns' Island · Saint Helen's Island
Transportation	Agence métropolitaine de transport · Central Station · Montreal Metro · Montreal Transit Corporation · Station centrale d'autobus · Trudeau Airport
Events	96th Grey Cup · Canadian Grand Prix · Divers/Cité · Fantasia Festival · Festival du Nouveau Cinéma  · Francofolies · Just for Laughs · L'International des Feux Loto-Québec · Montreal International Jazz Festival · Montreal World Film Festival

v • d • e Current arenas in the National Hockey League
Eastern Conference	Air Canada Centre · BankAtlantic Center · Bell Centre · HSBC Arena · Madison Square Garden · Mellon Arena · Nassau Coliseum · Philips Arena · Prudential Center · RBC Center · St. Pete Times Forum · Scotiabank Place · TD Banknorth Garden · Verizon Center · Wachovia Center
Western Conference	American Airlines Center · General Motors Place · HP Pavilion · Honda Center · Jobing.com Arena · Joe Louis Arena · Nationwide Arena · Pengrowth Saddledome · Pepsi Center · Rexall Place · Scottrade Center · Sommet Center · Staples Center · United Center · Xcel Energy Center