XL Center

Not to be confused with Xcel Energy Center or ExCeL London.

The XL Center (originally known as the Hartford Civic Center) is a multi-purpose arena and convention center located in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. Owned by the City of Hartford, it is managed by the quasi-public Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) under a lease with the city and operated by Spectra. In December 2007, the center was renamed when the arena's naming rights were sold to XL Group insurance company in a six-year agreement. The arena is ranked the 28th largest among college basketball arenas. It opened in 1975 as the Hartford Civic Center and was originally located adjacent to Civic Center Mall, which was demolished in 2004. It consists of two facilities: the Veterans Memorial Coliseum and the Exhibition Center.

XL Center

XL Center logo
XL Center in 2022
XL Center Location within Connecticut Show map of Connecticut XL Center Location within the United States Show map of the United States
Former names	Hartford Civic Center (1975–2007)
Address	1 Civic Center Plaza
Location	Hartford, Connecticut
Coordinates	41°46′06″N 72°40′37″W / 41.76833°N 72.67694°W / 41.76833; -72.67694
Public transit	Hartford 38, 60, 62, 64, 66, 72, 74, 76, Dash
Owner	City of Hartford^[1]
Operator	Oak View Group
Capacity	Concerts: 20,500 Basketball: 15,600 Ice hockey: 14,750 (9,801 with curtain system)
Surface	200 ft × 85 ft (61 m × 26 m) (hockey)
Construction
Broke ground	April 2, 1971^[2]
Opened	January 9, 1975
Closed	1978–1980 (roof collapse, renovations)
Construction cost	$30 million^[3] ($163 million in 2022 dollars^[4])
Architect	Kling & Associates Danos and Associates^[5]
Project manager	Gilbane Building Company^[6]
Structural engineer	Fraoli, Blum, and Yesselman, Engineers^[7]
General contractor	William L. Crow Construction Company^[6]
Tenants
Hartford Wolf Pack^[a] (AHL) (1997–present) UConn Huskies (NCAA) Men's basketball (1975–present)^[b]^[c] Women's basketball (1975–present)^[b]^[c] Men's ice hockey (2014–2023) New England / Hartford Whalers (WHA / NHL) (1975–1997)^[c] Boston Celtics (NBA) (1975–1995)^[b] Hartford Hellions (MISL) (1980–1981) Connecticut Coyotes (AFL) (1995–1996) New England Blizzard (ABL) (1996–1998) Connecticut Pride (CBA) (1993–2000) New England Sea Wolves (AFL) (1999–2000)
Website
Official Website

On March 21, 2007, the CRDA selected the Northland/Anschutz Entertainment Group proposal to operate the arena complex; Northland also developed the Hartford 21 residential tower on the adjacent Civic Center Mall site. It was revealed that Northland will assume total responsibility for the building paying for any and all losses, and will keep any profits. In 2012, the CRDA put the contract out to bid with hopes of combining the operations with Rentschler Field.^[8] In February 2013, Global Spectrum of Philadelphia was chosen to take over both the XL Center and Rentschler Field^[9] with Ovations Food Services taking over all food and beverage operations.

Hartford Civic Center

The Civic Center is the full-time home of the Hartford Wolf Pack AHL hockey team and part-time home of the University of Connecticut (UConn) men's and women's basketball teams and the UConn Huskies men's ice hockey team. Starting in the late 1990s, UConn men's basketball moved most of their important games—including the bulk of their Big East Conference games—to the Coliseum. During the 2011–2012 season, for instance, they played 11 home games at the Coliseum and only eight at their on-campus facility, Gampel Pavilion. This practice continued when the Huskies joined the American Athletic Conference, successor to the original Big East, in 2013. The UConn men's hockey team uses the XL Center as its primary home as the newest men's member of Hockey East.

It was the home of the New England/Hartford Whalers of the WHA and NHL from 1975 to 1978 and 1980 to 1997, and the Hartford Hellions of the MISL from 1980 to 1981, and the New England Blizzard of the ABL from 1996 to 1998, and hosted occasional Boston Celtics home games from 1975 to 1995. One of the most famous shots Larry Bird ever made, although it did not count, took place at the Hartford Civic Center: the shot from behind the backboard.^[10] It was the home of the Connecticut Coyotes and later the New England Sea Wolves of the Arena Football League.

 

Aerial view of arena exterior.

The arena seats 15,635 for ice hockey and 16,294 for basketball, 16,606 for center-stage concerts, 16,282 for end-stage concerts, and 8,239 for 3⁄4-end stage concerts, and contains 46 luxury suites and a 310-seat Coliseum Club, plus 25,000 square feet (2,300 m²) of arena floor space, enabling it to be used for trade shows and conventions in addition to concerts, circuses, ice shows, sporting events and other events. The graduation ceremonies of Central Connecticut State University and other local colleges are also held annually at the XL Center.

Early history and roof collapse

 

The arena remains a site for popular concerts. October 2007.

As originally built in 1975, it seated 10,507 for hockey, and served as the home of the then–New England Whalers for three years. In the early morning of January 18, 1978, the Civic Center's roof collapsed. Engineering analyses during litigation following the collapse indicated that compression members were overloaded through undersizing and underestimation of the probable loadings, and that lateral bracing of individual members was insufficient. "The roof did not fail due to the heavy snow that fell on that January night. According to the official City investigation, the roof began progressive failure as soon as it had been installed. Contributing factors included design errors, an underestimation of the weight of the roof, and differences between the design and the actual built structure."^[11]

Investigations attributed the design issues to the unprecedented use of and trust in computer analysis. An absence of peer review for the novel structure and design process, and fragmentation of oversight responsibility during construction were also cited as contributing factors. Evidence showed that the roof had started to fail during construction, with bowed compression members. These distortions, and an unpredicted degree of deflection in the structure, were not investigated before the collapse.^[12] There were no injuries due to the collapse. The building was heavily renovated and re-opened on January 17, 1980.

The Arena hosted the Hartford Whalers from 1975 to 1997, when the team relocated to Raleigh to become the Carolina Hurricanes. In 1994, new owner Peter Karmanos pledged to keep the Whalers in Connecticut until 1998, unless they could not sell over 11,000 season tickets. After failed negotiations to build a new downtown arena for the Whalers with then-governor John G. Rowland, on March 25, 1997, Karmanos announced that the team would leave. The New York Rangers franchise, looking to capitalize on Hartford as a potential market, placed its farm team there to become the Hartford Wolf Pack, starting in 1997. After a short stint as the Connecticut Whale, they reverted to the Wolf Pack moniker in 2013.

Current arena and recent renovations

In September 2010, the arena was upgraded with a new center-hung scoreboard with four Sony Jumbotrons and a state-of-the-art sound system.^[13] The Connecticut State Legislature set aside $35 million in funding for improvements to the XL Center that began in early spring 2014 and completed in time for the start of the 2014–15 seasons of the Wolf Pack and UConn men's hockey in October. Improvements included upgrades to the mechanical system, locker rooms and concourse, replacing jumbotrons with a new HD video board, as well as aesthetic improvements such as a new bar area inside the arena and luxury seating in the lower bowl. A portion of the $35 million allocation went towards a study on the arena's long-term viability; either more major renovations or replacing it with a new facility.

Events

The XL Center has held many notable events including:

 

The Veterans Memorial Coliseum as set up for Monster Jam

• The ECAC New England Region tournament, a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's college basketball tournament organized by the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), took place at the Hartford Civic Center on March 3 and 5, 1977. The tournament champion received an automatic bid to the 1977 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.^[14][15]
• The 1982 Big East Conference and 1988–1990 America East Conference men's basketball tournaments were also here, as well as occasional games of the UConn Huskies men's basketball team.^[16]
• Rock group the Grateful Dead performed at the arena 18 times, on 5/28/1977, 5/10/1980, 3/14/1981, 4/17/1982, 4/18/1982, 10/14/1983, 10/15/1983, 10/14/1984, 10/15/1984, 4/3/1986, 4/4/1986, 3/26/1987, 3/27/1987, 4/3/1988, 4/4/1988, 4/5/1988, 3/18/1990, and 3/19/1990. The concerts from May 28, 1977, October 14, 1983, March 18, 1990, and March 19, 1990, were released in entirety on the live albums To Terrapin: Hartford '77, Dick's Picks Volume 6, Spring 1990 (The Other One), and Spring 1990 (album).^[17]
• The PBR (Professional Bull Riders) made their first-ever visit to the XL Center for a Built Ford Tough Series (now known as the Unleash the Beast Series) event the weekend of October 7–9, 2011.^[18]
• The arena hosted the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions in 2016.^[19]
• The arena has hosted many professional wrestling events; including 1990 Survivor Series (which saw the debut of popular wrestling legend The Undertaker), WrestleMania XI, 2000 No Way Out, 2004 Vengeance, and 2019 Money in the Bank. All Elite Wrestling’s AEW Collision July 29th, 2023 episode.

Basketball Years Capacity 1975–1979 11,000 1979–1987 15,134 1987–1989 16,016 1989–2014 16,294 2014–present 15,564

Hockey Years Capacity 1975–1979 10,507 1979–1980 14,460^[20] 1980–1982 14,510^[21] 1983–1985 14,817^[22] 1985–1987 15,126^[23] 1987–1989 15,223^[23] 1989–2014 15,635^[23] 2014–present 14,750^[24]

Boston Celtics

Boston Celtics games played at Hartford Civic Center^[25]

Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Game Type	Attendance
November 11, 1975	Atlanta Hawks	L	100–91	RS	10,591
December 17, 1975	Kansas City Kings	W	104–118	RS	11,243
January 13, 1976	Portland Trail Blazers	W	94–106	RS	11,243
March 9, 1976	New Orleans Jazz	L	117–99	RS	11,230
April 6, 1976	Cleveland Cavaliers	L	101–92	RS	11,243
October 28, 1976	Buffalo Braves	W	105–112	RS	10,608
January 11, 1977	Houston Rockets	W	101–105	RS	10,011
February 15, 1977	Detroit Pistons	W	99–109	RS	9,879
March 1, 1977	Golden State Warriors	L	101–94	RS	11,273
March 30, 1977	Chicago Bulls	W	88–90	RS	11,089
April 9, 1977	San Antonio Spurs	W	105–120	RS	10,859
October 25, 1977	Atlanta Hawks	W	103–110	RS	6,590
December 13, 1977	New Jersey Nets	W	108–122	RS	5,518
January 5, 1978	Phoenix Suns	L	121–111	RS	10,019
February 26, 1980	Atlanta Hawks	W	97–108	RS	15,622
March 18, 1980	Indiana Pacers	W	102–114	RS	15,622
October 23, 1980	New York Knicks	L	109–107	RS	12,941
November 9, 1980	Chicago Bulls	W	105–111	RS	8,627
December 7, 1980	Washington Bullets	L	113–103	RS	11,430
January 19, 1981	Detroit Pistons	W	90–92	RS	9,941
March 13, 1981	Indiana Pacers	L	101–94	RS	15,622
November 13, 1981	New Jersey Nets	W	97–11	RS	11,753
December 11, 1981	Atlanta Hawks	W	86–94	RS	13,369
January 10, 1982	Detroit Pistons	W	124–134	RS	15,429
November 30, 1982	Detroit Pistons	L	123–116	RS	11,762
January 31, 1983	Chicago Bulls	W	104–110	RS	12,742
March 7, 1983	New Jersey Nets	W	114–121	RS	15,165
December 9, 1983	Denver Nuggets	W	90–119	RS	13,374
January 20, 1984	Indiana Pacers	W	125–132	RS	13,134
March 2, 1984	Chicago Bulls	W	100–104	RS	14,529
December 11, 1984	New Jersey Nets	W	121–130	RS	13,357
January 29, 1985	Detroit Pistons	W	130–131	RS	15,685
February 22, 1985	Chicago Bulls	W	105–115	RS	15,685
December 10, 1985	Atlanta Hawks	W	110–114	RS	14,493
February 23, 1986	Indiana Pacers	W	98–113	RS	15,124
March 18, 1986	Cleveland Cavaliers	W	96–126	RS	15,134
December 2, 1986	Washington Bullets	L	117–109	RS	15,134
February 23, 1987	New Jersey Nets	W	103–116	RS	15,134
March 24, 1987	Cleveland Cavaliers	W	88–111	RS	15,134
November 23, 1987	Chicago Bulls	L	107–102	RS	15,134
February 22, 1988	New York Knicks	W	93–95	RS	15,134
March 11, 1988	Indiana Pacers	W	112–122	RS	15,134
November 22, 1988	Cleveland Cavaliers	L	114–102	RS	15,239
February 24, 1989	Milwaukee Bucks	W	112–125	RS	15,239
March 13, 1989	New Jersey Nets	W	91–114	RS	15,239
November 14, 1989	Philadelphia 76ers	W	94–96	RS	15,239
February 6, 1990	Milwaukee Bucks	L	119–106	RS	15,239
March 9, 1990	Washington Bullets	L	115–108	RS	15,239
November 26, 1990	Miami Heat	W	101–118	RS	15,239
February 22, 1991	New Jersey Nets	W	99–111	RS	15,239
March 4, 1991	Indiana Pacers	W	101–126	RS	15,239
November 25, 1991	Washington Bullets	W	108–121	RS	14,678
February 21, 1992	Charlotte Hornets	W	110–113	RS	15,239
March 13, 1992	New Jersey Nets	L	110–108	RS	15,239
November 23, 1992	Atlanta Hawks	L	101–97	RS	13,299
February 9, 1993	Milwaukee Bucks	W	92–104	RS	14,137
March 28, 1993	Washington Bullets	W	113–114	RS	15,239
November 22, 1993	Indiana Pacers	L	102–71	RS	13,200
February 17, 1994	New Jersey Nets	L	117–98	RS	12,588
March 27, 1994	Philadelphia 76ers	W	122–124	RS	13,259
November 22, 1994	Milwaukee Bucks	L	116–94	RS	12,829
February 23, 1995	Orlando Magic	W	117–119	RS	15,242
April 15, 1995	Detroit Pistons	W	104–129	RS	12,979
October 14, 2009	Toronto Raptors	W	90–106	PS	10,117
October 16, 2010	New York Knicks	W	84–97	PS	15,138
October 13, 2012	New York Knicks	L	98–95	PS	14,218
October 8, 2014	New York Knicks	W	86–106	PS	8,462

International basketball games

Date	Opponent	Result	Home	Game Type	Attendance
January 27, 2020	United States	79–64	UConn Huskies	Exhibition	13,919

International hockey games

Date	Away	Score	Home	Attendance
December 27, 1976	Soviet Union	2–5	New England Whalers	—
August 28, 1987	Finland	1–4	United States	8,508
September 4, 1987	Soviet Union	5–1	United States	14,838
January 7, 1989	CSKA Moscow	6–3	Hartford Whalers	—
December 27, 1989	Krylya Sovetov Moscow	3–4 (OT)	Hartford Whalers	—
January 3, 1991	Dynamo Moscow	0–0	Hartford Whalers	—
December 14, 2019	Canada	1–4	United States	7,126 ^[26]

UConn Huskies

The XL Center serves as the second home for the University of Connecticut's men's and women's basketball programs. At the start of the 2014–15 season the UConn men's ice hockey program moved to the XL Center as a condition of its joining Hockey East.^[27] In September 2018, the UConn Board of Trustees approved a plan to build a new 2,500-seat arena with 500 seat-backs in Storrs with the option to expand to 3,500 seats if necessary. Though Hockey East requires arenas to hold at least 4,000, UConn received a waiver for the project since the expectation is for the Huskies' men's hockey program to continue to play some of its games at the XL Center in Hartford. The target construction date is April 2021 with substantial completion wanted by October 2022. If everything stays on track, the arena would open in December 2022.^[28]

UConn Hockey Attendance Records

Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
February 9, 2019	Merrimack	W 5–0	8,211^[29]
November 15, 2014	#3 Boston College	W 1–0	8,089^[30]
November 22, 2014	#3 Boston University	L 2–5	7,712
February 16, 2018	#20 Boston University	W 5–4^OT	7,372^[31]

Exhibition center

The Exhibition Center consists of a 68,855-square-foot (6,397 m²) exhibit hall, a 16,080-square-foot (1,494 m²) assembly hall that can divide into two meeting rooms, plus seven meeting rooms totaling 7,390 square feet (687 m²) and two lobbies totaling 6,100 square feet (570 m²). It is used for trade shows, conventions, banquets, meetings and other events.

The surrounding shopping mall was torn down in 2004 and was replaced by street-level retail shops and a 36-story residential tower named Hartford 21 which opened in 2006 and is the tallest residential tower between New York City and Boston.

See also

•  Connecticut portal

• List of convention centers in the United States
• List of NCAA Division I basketball arenas

References

1. (PDF). The Connecticut Development Authority. p. 36. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 12, 2008. Retrieved March 30, 2008.
2. "Ground is Broken For the Civic Center". Hartford Courant. April 2, 1971. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
3. Swift, Mike (January 9, 1995). "A Quiet Hartford Civic Center Turns 20 Today". Hartford Courant. Retrieved September 21, 2011.
4. 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved May 28, 2023.
5. Modern concrete: Volume 40. Chicago: Pit & Quarry Publications. 1976. p. 20.
6. "XL Center". Emporis. Retrieved September 21, 2011.^{[dead link]}
7. . Materials Education and Research Pathway. Archived from the original on August 1, 2010. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
8. Jacobs, Jeff (February 3, 2013). "Secrecy On XL Center, Rentschler Plans Isn't Helping Matters". Hartford Courant. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
9. Gosselin, Kenneth R. (February 7, 2013). "Philadelphia Group Picked To Run XL Center, Rentschler Field". Hartford Courant. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
10. Arace, Michael (November 21, 1993). "BIRD HAD RIGHT TOUCH IN HARTFORD". Hartford Courant. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
11. Gammell, Ben (January 18, 2020). "Almost a Tragedy: The Collapse of the Hartford Civic Center".
12. Martin, Rachel. . University of Alabama at Birmingham. Archived from the original on January 8, 2008. Retrieved November 20, 2009.
13. Jacobs, Jeff (October 5, 2010). "XL Center Gets New Video Boards". Hartford Courant. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
14. "ECAC Men's Basketball Tournaments". Varsity Pride. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
15. "1977 ECAC Men's Basketball Tournaments". Varsity Pride. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
16. "XL Center (Hartford, CT)". University of Connecticut Department of Athletics. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
17. Catlin, Roger (November 3, 1996). "'83 Hartford Show Latest "Dick's Pick"". courant.com. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
18. Broun, Sara (October 6, 2011). "PBR Built Ford Tough Series Visits Hartford for First Time". Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
19. "2016 Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions takes center stage beginning Sept. 15". usagym.org. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
20. "1979-80 Hartford Whalers Results and Schedule". Hockey Database. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
21. McGowen, Deane (March 22, 1981). "Duguay Gets 2 Goals As Rangers Win, 6-4". The New York Times. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
22. Berlet, Bruce (February 13, 1984). "Whalers Drill Oilers, 11-0, Flood Record Books". Hartford Courant. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
23. Jacobs, Jeff (March 27, 1992). "Playoff Sales Are Down". Hartford Courant. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
24. Clinton, Jared (February 20, 2015). "Hartford Looking at Upgrades for XL Center – Could the NHL Come Back?". The Hockey News. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
25. Basketball Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/BOS
26. "U.S. Women's hockey beats Canada 4-1 in first game of the Rivalry Series in Hartford". December 15, 2019.
27. "Connecticut joins Hockey East". Associated Press. June 21, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
28. "UConn hockey's future home to seat 2,700 fans; construction starting in April 2021". SB Nation. September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
29. "Evans Scores Twice as Huskies Shutout Merrimack, 5–0". UConn Huskies. February 9, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
30. "Huskies Knock Off #3 Boston College, 1–0 in Front of XL Sellout Crowd". UConn Huskies. November 5, 2014. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
31. "Huskies Win Seventh-Straight on Letunov's OT Winner". UConn Huskies. February 16, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2019.

Notes

1. Known as the Connecticut Whale from 2010–2013.
2. Part-time.
3. Tenure interrupted in 1979 by roof collapse.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to XL Center.

• XL Center

Events and tenants
Preceded by Boston Garden Springfield Civic Center	Home of the New England / Hartford Whalers 1974–1978 1980–1997	Succeeded by Springfield Civic Center Greensboro Coliseum
Preceded by Madison Square Garden	Home of the New England Sea Wolves 1999–2000	Succeeded by Air Canada Centre
Preceded by Olympic Saddledome	Host of NHL All-Star Game 1986	Succeeded by St. Louis Arena
Preceded by Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena	Home of the Hartford Wolf Pack/Connecticut Whale 1997-Present	Succeeded by Current Arena
Preceded by Madison Square Garden	Host of WrestleMania 1995	Succeeded by Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim