Patrick Arena
The modern game of hockey was
significantly shaped in this historic Oak Bay building

Dwyer / Image D-07151 courtesy of Royal BC Museum, BC Archives.....
PATRICK ARENA, 1911–1929
Empress Street (Epworth) at Cadboro Bay Road


The Patrick Arena was built in 1911 to house Victoria's entry into the newly-formed Pacific Coast Hockey Association created by the Patrick family — brothers Lester and Frank and father, Joe. The three-team league included the Victoria Senators, the Vancouver Millionaires and the New Westminster Royals. Lester ran the Victoria franchise out of the Oak Bay arena while Frank managed the Vancouver franchise out of the new Denman Street arena.
Six lots were purchased along Empress Street (Epworth) at Cadboro Bay Road in 1911 and building commenced on the Patrick Arena in late April of that year. The arena cost $110,000 to build and could accommodate 4,000 spectators.
The arena officially opened with public skating on Christmas Day, 1911, and the first hockey game was played on January 2, 1912. It was a historic game because it was the first hockey game in Canada played on artificial ice.
Many hockey "firsts" happened in this building, including:
Introduction of the forward pass
Introduction of the bluelines
Introduction of the penalty shot
Introduction of changing on the fly
Introduction of recording assists
Elimination of rule requiring goalie to stand upright
Introduction of numbers on jerseys
Introduction of post-season playoffs
Introduction of the farm system
And it was in this historic Oak Bay building that Lester Patrick's Victoria Cougars won the Stanley Cup by defeating the Montreal Canadiens in 1925.
The Patrick Arena was destroyed by fire on Remembrance Day, 1929.

SPECIAL THANKS
Dave Unwin and the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame


PHOTOGRAPHS


Leila Garland photo courtesy of Patricia Johnston . . .
PATRICK ARENA FIRE — November 11, 1929
Hours after the pre-dawn fire
Click on photo to view panoramic enlargement — 348K

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