Toronto's iconic Weston Lions Arena is slated for demolition next year. The decision has upset Hockey Hall of Famer Eric Lindros, who believes there's a way to preserve the historic rink and provide highly valuable ice time for the city's hockey community.
One of the most iconic hockey arenas in Toronto – and in the hockey world, for that matter – is slated for demolition only a few short months from now.
And the looming end for Weston Lions Arena has angered one of the greatest hockey players of all time.
"It's horrible," former NHL superstar and Hockey Hall of Famer Eric Lindros told TheHockeyNews.com Thursday regarding the fate of Weston Arena, which is slated to be demolished and redeveloped. "This pisses me off. It's a beautiful arena. This is Canada – what are we doing? This deeply upsets me."
Full disclosure: Weston Arena is where this writer grew up playing and watching hockey. And from our perspective, you're not going to find a more picturesque rink in the world. The rink's blue and red seating makes it easy to spot, and its massive wooden tresses give it a picturesque look few arenas can match.
Indeed, Weston Arena has been a focal point of the hockey community since it was built in 1949.
Legendary Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe helped build it. And from that point on, the arena has been the setting for countless commercials and movies.
The 2010 film Score: A Hockey Musical filmed its hockey scenes there. Iconic singer and actress Olivia Newton-John was there, as was Canadian superstar singer Nelly Furtado. Wayne Gretzky has been there. And countless elite players born and raised in Weston – including Edmonton Oilers star defenseman Paul Coffey, St. Louis Blues goalie Mike Liut, and Washington Capitals star Adam Oates – have skated on the rink.
Lindros himself played there as a youngster, and his oldest son, Carl Pierre, played at Weston Arena every Saturday morning at 7 a.m. In his post-playing days, Lindros has also coached at Weston Arena. So you can understand why Lindros doesn't mince words when describing his feelings on the topic.
He understands that there's value to the proposal, which has been made by Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment's MLSE Foundation. He also has no problem with providing free recreation programs to area youth, a plan that MLSE has sold Toronto council on when deciding Weston Arena's fate.
However, Lindros believes there's a better way to serve youngsters while preserving a piece of hockey history – and a valuable rink at a time when ice time in Canada's biggest city is nearly impossible to find.
"This bewilders me," Lindros said of the decision to demolish Weston Arena, which was finalized by Toronto City Council in mid-November. "Surely there must be a compromise solution. But this makes me question which direction we're going in Canada. This is a great facility, and it's a beautiful arena. You'll never replace the trusses. There's no other rink like it.
"If (MLSE and Toronto council) pivots (and says Weston Arena is) a decrepit building, then fix it. This is Toronto – what are we doing here? There's no ice (available) in the city. Talk to the head of (east-end Toronto league) Leaside Hockey. They're playing up in (north-Toronto suburb) Markham. You take away one (arena), it puts more pressure on the rest."
The tract of land Weston Arena is built on includes a massive park featuring a tennis court, an outdoor swimming pool, and a football/soccer field. So there's plenty of room to build MLSE's recreation facility and still keep the hockey rink intact. There's a petition right now to save Weston Arena – you can find it and sign it at this link – but at this stage, it may be too late to have the building designated as a heritage building and preserved as such.
That said, in a recent Toronto Sun story on the fate of Weston Arena, MLSE executive Keith Pelley said the organization is open to all ideas for the revitalization project.
"While design concepts are still in the formative stages, the (Weston Lions) project will be incorporating feedback and exploring all options to ensure it is fully responsive to the community's needs today and in the years ahead," Pelley said. "We look forward to sharing plans publicly early in the new year and to this partnership helping transform the community and changing lives."
As it stands, the rink is slated for closure on March 31, 2026. But Lindros holds out hope that the public outcry over the impending closure of Weston Arena will lead to the rink avoiding the axe.
"Come up with alternatives," Lindros said, offering valuable advice to those who want to save Weston Arena. "There's a million benefits (to preserve the rink). But this should not happen in Canada. This is what we’re good at. Yes, there's other sports we're good at, but hockey is part of who we are."
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