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The GFL Memorial Gardens, formerly the "Essar Centre", is a 4,928 seat sports and entertainment centre in downtown
Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie may refer to: People * Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a Native American tribe in Michigan Places * Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ** Sault Ste. Marie (federal electoral district), a Canadian federal electora ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, Canada. It opened on September 29, 2006, replacing the now demolished Sault Memorial Gardens. The new building was constructed directly next door to the former Memorial Gardens and incorporated its most distinctive feature, the Memorial Tower, into its plans. The block surrounding the arena is called "Memorial Square." The Garden's primary tenant is the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the
Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...
.


Structure

The main entrance to the facility is located in the north west corner of the building, adjacent to the Memorial Tower, in the corner where the box office is located.


Concourse level

There are major entrances to the concourse level from each of the four corners of the GFL Memorial Gardens. Located on the concourse level are four main concessions, as well as the Molson Canadian Hockey House restaurant, multiple beer stands, and a coffee vendor. On the west side of the concourse level is the Greyhound merchandise store.


Event level

The event level of the Gardens houses all dressing rooms for players and officials, kitchen facilities, multi-purpose and break-out rooms, as well as technical, storage, and shipping and receiving functions. Also included on the event level is the Greyhounds' dressing room complex which is equipped with coaching and training rooms, weight rooms, showers, and physiotherapy areas.


Suite level

The suite level of the Gardens houses 13 private suites, a VIP room located on the north end, media and broadcasting rooms, and administration offices for both the Greyhounds Hockey Club and City of Sault Ste. Marie staff. Private suites ranging in seating size from six to ten persons. The VIP Room seats 60 people.


Features

The Gardens includes a $500,000 scoreboard with an installed video component with live broadcast (up to five cameras), replay and T.V. capability. Wireless internet access is available throughout the facility. The facility also includes a state-of-the-art $250,000 sound system.


External features

The block on which the Gardens is located is named "Memorial Square," as it is located on the grounds of the former Sault Memorial Gardens, the Greyhounds' former home. Memorial Square features the Memorial Tower, the last standing remnant of the former Gardens; the tower was preserved and refurbished after the previous Gardens was demolished in the summer of 2006. The sidewalk in front of the GFL Memorial Garden's north end (facing Queen Street) features the Sault Ste Marie Walk of Fame, a series of markers honouring those from the Sault Ste Marie area who have made significant contributions to the community or their chosen field of work. The Walk of Fame was formally unveiled on September 30, 2006, during the grand opening weekend.


Naming rights


Steelback Brewery

Naming rights to the new building were purchased by
Steelback Brewery Steelback Brewery was a Canadian brewery located in Tiverton, Ontario, on the shores of Lake Huron. History Beginning The roots of Steelback Brewery begin in September 2002, with businessman Frank D'Angelo looking for expansion space for his ...
of Tiverton for $1.35 million over ten years. The proposal was approved by Sault Ste. Marie's city council on May 29, 2006, in a 9–1 vote. The City of Sault Ste. Marie, in conjunction with Steelback, held an official logo unveiling for the Steelback Centre on Saturday August 26, 2006, at the Roberta Bondar Pavilion in Sault Ste. Marie. There the new logo was officially unveiled, along with a list of upcoming shows. In November 2007, Steelback Brewery filed for bankruptcy protection and defaulted on its second payment of $135,000 to the city. Ward 1 Councillor James Caicco was quoted in the January 17, 2008, ''
Sault Star ''The Sault Star'' is a Canadian broadsheet daily newspaper based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. It is owned by Postmedia. The print edition of Star is published on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with regular news coverage also provided throu ...
'' as saying, "nothing can be done until the court creditors protection process with Steelback Brewery is completed. If Steelback comes out of court protection as a restructured company, then we still have a contract with them. If it declares bankruptcy, options will be presented to city council that include searching for a new naming rights sponsor." Steelback later terminated its deal with the city and the search for a new sponsor commenced.


Essar Steel Algoma Inc.

On July 23, 2008, the City of Sault Ste. Marie, along with Essar Steel Algoma executives held a press conference to announce that Essar Steel Algoma Inc. had purchased the naming rights to the new downtown entertainment facility. This deal had been rumored for weeks, but only confirmed a day before by a source to the Sault Star. The deal was worth $1.5 million for 10 years, and unlike the first contract with
Steelback Brewery Steelback Brewery was a Canadian brewery located in Tiverton, Ontario, on the shores of Lake Huron. History Beginning The roots of Steelback Brewery begin in September 2002, with businessman Frank D'Angelo looking for expansion space for his ...
, the amount was paid upfront in a lump sum, instead of yearly payments. Essar also paid for all new signage for the facility as part of the deal. Jamie Caicco, councillor and chair of the sports and entertainment committee for the facility told reporters that 6–7 companies showed interest in becoming the new naming rights sponsor when the invitation was first sent out looking for a new name.


GFL Environmental Inc.

In May 2018, it was announced that
GFL Environmental GFL Environmental Inc. (an initialism of Green For Life) is a Canadian waste management company, with headquarters in Vaughan, Ontario. Founded in 2007, GFL operates in all provinces in Canada and much of the United States, and currently employ ...
had signed a 10-year, $750,000 deal for the naming rights, beginning August 1, 2018. The arena was renamed GFL Memorial Gardens.


Notable events

On October 11, 2006,
Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...
commissioner David Branch announced that the 2008 OHL All-Star Classic had been awarded to the Greyhounds and the City of Sault Ste. Marie. The game was played at the Steelback Centre on February 6, 2008, with the Eastern Conference squad defeating the West in a shootout, 8–7. The Essar Centre hosted the
2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women's national curling championship, was held from January 30 to February 7 at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The event was described as having a weaker field than normal, as ...
, Canada's women's curling championships. In January 2010, The Essar Centre was a part of the
Olympic Torch Relay The Olympic torch relay is the ceremonial relaying of the Olympic flame from Olympia, Greece, to the site of an Olympic Games. It was introduced at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, as a way for Adolf Hitler to highlight the Nazi claim of Arya ...
. The Centre hosted the torch as it made its way across Canada and the world on its way to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. The Essar Centre hosted the CARHA world cup in March 2012. The tournament features the top recreation hockey teams from around the world and is held every four years. The GFL Memorial Gardens has played host to a number of popular musical acts including
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, Bachman- Cummings in '07, and
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in '14. In April 2013, the arena hosted the
Telus Cup The Telus Cup is Canada's national Minor hockey, under-18 ice hockey club championship. It is an annual event, held by Hockey Canada each April. From 1979 to 2003, the national championship was sponsored by Air Canada. The current champions ...
, Canada's midget hockey championship. On October 5, 2016, the Essar Centre hosted an NHL preseason game between the
Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...
and the
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, which the Hurricanes won by a score of 3-2.


Gallery

Image:Steelback-Ctr-SSM-ON-040107.jpg, Interior of GFL Memorial Gardens, showing
hockey rink An ice hockey rink is an ice rink that is specifically designed for ice hockey, a competitive team sport. Alternatively it is used for other sports such as broomball, ringette, rinkball, and rink bandy. It is a rectangle with rounded corners an ...
. Image:Steelback_Inside.JPG, Inside the GFL Memorial Gardens on Wednesday September 27, 2006, two days before Grand Opening Ceremonies. Image:Basketball sbc.jpg, Interior of GFL Memorial Gardens, setting up for
Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
. Image:SteelbackCentreMemorialTower.JPG, Memorial Tower. Image:ClergueWOF.JPG, Francis Clergue's marker on the Walk of Fame. File:Essar Centre - Exterior.JPG, Exterior of the Gardens


References


External links


GFL Memorial Gardens Official WebsiteWalk of Fame information from the Sault Ste. Marie Downtown Association
{{Coord, 46, 30, 49, N, 84, 20, 13, W, type:landmark, display=title Indoor arenas in Ontario Ice hockey venues in Ontario Ontario Hockey League arenas Sports venues in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Music venues in Ontario