{allcanada} RINK TO OPEN AT MAPLE LEAF GARDENS FOR FIRST TIME IN DECADE

 

TORONTO -- For the first time in more than a decade, there's an ice rink at Toronto's storied Maple Leaf Gardens.

Though the ice has not yet been installed, the new addition to Ryerson University's Athletic Centre at the Gardens is open for a preview today.

Named the Peter Gilgan Athletic Centre at the Gardens after a donor, the rink is on the third floor of the renovated arena, with the athletic facility's gym on the second and a big Loblaw's store below.

The Gardens will reopen in the spring for the first time since 1999, when the Maple Leafs moved to the Air Canada Centre after nearly seven decades at the old arena.

Ryerson, a nearby university, plans to use the rink as a home for its hockey team.

It will also be possible to remove the ice so the space can be used for exams and other functions.

The Loblaw's store is slated to open Wednesday morning, along with a liquor store, clothing store and other retail space.

The historic former NHL arena was long known as the Carlton Street Cashbox because it was always full of rabid hockey fans during Leaf games.

The redevelopment costs included millions of dollars from the grocery store giant, Ryerson and government infrastructure and other programs.

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