> As far as losing a sense of hockey history,  moving out of Walker Arena
> had to be devastating.  The noise that could be generated in there
> was deafening.  I hope the bell is still a part of the game.
> It used to be directly behind the opposing goalie during the first
> and third period.  Ken Dryden once said that the worst thing about
> hockey was that damn bell at Clarkson.
>
> If there is anyone out there who has been to games in both Walker and
> Cheel let me know how the "new" building feels.
 
I'm not one to talk about Clarkson tradition, since I never went
to the school!  :-)
 
However, I did see games at Walker Arena for 2 full years when I was
in Potsdam and a handful of games in the years before that.
 
The difference is almost night & day. Walker was a tiny, cramped,
dark, loud arena that visitors didn't like to play in. The crowd was
right on top of the ice, packed into 5 rows on the sides and 10
rows on the end (I think). There was general admission, literally
standing room, around the arena. People leaned against the wall
that stood behind the last row all around the arena and also sat
on the railing behind that, which were always packed. The place looked
like a fire hazard, but you could fit 2000 fans in there. Not being
a visiting player, I can't speak for how intimidating it was to
be an opponent of Clarkson. Although I imagine the opposing
goalie didn't have too much fun.
 
Cheel Arena is the opposite. A large, bright, shiny new place to play
hockey, but nowhere near as intimidating as Walker. Compared to
Walker Arena, Cheel is a palace. It's almost as if Clarkson's program
looked like they got a huge donation when they started play in Cheel.
The seats lead down to the ice, but you don't feel like you're
participating in the game.
 
I'll let the actual alums of Clarkson talk about the bell. It has
been transplanted into Cheel, but doesn't have the same effect as it did
in Walker. I guess Ken Dryden wouldn't be bothered by this bell. :-)
 
Andy
 
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+                                                                     +
+  Andy Weise           Let's Go Tech!                                +
+  SUNY Potsdam '93                     [log in to unmask]       +
+  Union College '95    Let's Go U!                                   +
+                                                                     +
+  Performance Systems International, Inc. (PSI)                      +
+                                                                     +
+  "If you think nobody cares you're alive, try missing a couple of   +
+   car payments."                                                    +
+                                                                     +
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