Rink Review: Colgate's Starr RInk

Next up on Rink Review is a rink that I visited twice this year, but just once for a Colgate hockey game, Starr Rink, home of the Colgate Raiders.

Here is what Wikipedia says about Starr Rink:

Starr Hockey Rink is a 2,600-seat multi-purpose arena in Hamilton, New York. It is home to the Colgate University Raiders men's and women's ice hockey teams. It is named for John Howard Starr, the coach of the hockey team from 1936 to 1950. It takes up the western half of the William A. Reid Athletic Center, which it shares with Cotterell Court, the home of the basketball and volleyball teams. The athletic center, is located in the southwestern part of campus, near Andy Kerr Stadium, the school's major outdoor venue. Portions of the Paul Newman hockey classic, Slap Shot were filmed in Starr Rink.

You can learn more about the arena on the Colgate Athletics Website.

Here's my evaluation:

Atmosphere:
While Colgate's travel partner has the most raucous rink in the league, the Raiders have the exact opposite. I'd have to say that besides the Colgate pep band, which does 99% of the cheering, the atmosphere at Starr is non-existent. Going from Cornell one night to Colgate the next night, felt like I went from Game 7 of the Stanley Cup to a youth hockey game. And I was there on Colgate's Senior Night! They were honoring Austin Smith, and there wasn't much excitement. I've seen louder and bigger celebrations for an empty net goal. The Raiders were also fighting for a first round bye, and the place wasn't even close to a sell out (and the place isn't that big). Sorry Raider fans, but that's just how I felt. I've heard many other people say the same thing. But, props to the small amount of students and the pep band for coming out that night.

My guess is that Starr only sells out for Cornell games.

Tradition:
I was actually very, very pleased with the tradition at Starr. There is a good amount of Colgate memorabilia around the entrance and concourse of the rink. It was like they had their own little Colgate Hockey museum right there in the concourse. There was a program timeline, a mural of Colgate All-Americans, and a display case with NHL jerseys of players who previous played at Starr. I really enjoyed seeing Dan Fridgen's Hartford Whalers jersey, along with other great Raiders who were lucky enough to play in the NHL. Also, like most ECAC rinks, there was a team picture from every year the program had hockey, and championship banners hanging from the rafters. I also liked how on the big walls of the rink, one had the school seal and the other had "Colgate Hockey" in big letters. It's just a reminder that you're in Colgate's rink. There were also little "signs" (don't know what to call them) on the ceiling of the concourse that had pictures of Colgate greats. I think sometimes people forget that Colgate has a strong hockey tradition. I mean, do younger ECAC fans realize Colgate went to the national championship game in 1990?

The outside of the rink is very bland, and looks like a hangar

Functionality and Amenities:
I was told by many people how they didn't like Starr. They said it's small and not appealing to the eye. They were right. It wasn't "easy" to go from one side of the rink to the other, and the place looked dreary and worn out. Besides the fold up seats on one side of the rink, I didn't find any else to be too redeeming about the place. Because there are only a few rows around the rink on both sides (maybe 5-6 tops) you can't get a great vantage point from most seats in the rink, maybe besides the top row in the middle of the the fold up seats. And even if you're in the front row, you're not right on the glass. I also didn't like how the press box was all the way at one end, but did like how they had a big center ice scoreboard. The concession stand is located in the lobby of the athletic center. Didn't eat anything, but from what I can remember, they had your typical rink food.

View from the tall bleachers opposite the press box

Other Thoughts:
Speaking of the athletic center, I really liked that part of the building. Even though it is technically a lobby for the rink and basketball arena, I thought this was by far the nicest part of the rink. The lobby was big, but I liked the stuff in the lobby the best. There were trophy cases with Colgate hockey memorabilia (jerseys, pictures, trophies), a banner with all the school's All-Americans, and a big welcome mat with the Raider logo when you walked into the building. I also noticed a room to the right when you walk in, which looked like a nice study lounge.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that they had a mascot. He's supposed to be a Raider, but he looked like Lord Farquaad from Shrek to me.

Here are some other pictures that I took:

The All-American mural

Sign in concourse directing to sections with a picture of Colgate legend Mark Dekanich

Dan Fridgen's Hartford Whalers jersey

Mike Milbury's jersey

Thanks to these people for making one of the best museum's in the league

Colgate Hockey Timeline

View of the video press box from the home bench

The 1990 Colgate Hockey Team

One of the original Colgate hockey teams

Center ice logo from the video press box

Colgate's school seal

I love how big "Colgate Hockey" is written

This was about 25 minutes before game time

A fuzzy picture of the Colgate mascot. Doesn't he look like Lord Farquaad?