Home > Shark Guides > Sports > Hockey > TD Garden

TD Garden

TD Garden is a modern Boston arena that houses both the Boston Bruins hockey team and the Boston Celtics basketball team. The multipurpose venue also welcomes other sports events and shows. Its name has changed several times over the years, but it remains a popular spot for Boston sports fans to cheer on their home teams.

History of TD Garden

The construction of TD Garden came about thanks to the need for a new stadium for the Boston Bruins professional hockey team in the early 1990s. The Bruins had been playing at the Boston Garden, an old arena that did not meet their needs. The original venue was built in 1928, and its hockey rink was small by NHL standards, as it was built before standards were determined. It also wasn’t air-conditioned, resulting in fog on the ice during playoffs, and an odd bench and penalty box arrangement caused confusion for visiting teams. The visitors were also forced to use small dressing rooms with problematic plumbing. The stadium was plagued by power outages in 1988 and 1990 during Stanley Cup finals. These and other issues led to construction of a more adequate facility. The new stadium, which took two years to build, was constructed only inches away from the old Boston Garden, opening on September 30, 1995.

Its original name was the Shawmut Center after a regional bank that purchased the naming rights. However, that bank was acquired by Fleet Bank, which had also been bidding for the rights. The Shawmut Center became the Fleet Center when it opened, with the bank's new logo and colors hastily placed on the seats that were formerly marked with Shawmut.

Fleet merged with Bank of America in 2004, and the following year the bank was released from its multi-year naming rights contract with the stadium. TD Banknorth picked up the naming rights, transforming the venue into the TD Banknorth Garden, shortened to TD Garden in 2009. Boston locals often simply refer to it as, "The Garden."

In the period between Fleet and TD Bank, one-day naming rights were sold several times through eBay auctions. Because of this, the stadium has actually had 33 different names, even though most were short term.

TD Garden underwent a major renovation just before the start of the 2006/2007 season. It received new video advertising panels and a state-of-the-art HD system. It also got a see-through shot clock and a vintage siren to be used for Bruins hockey games. The stadium has two lounges, a bar, and many food concessions to serve hungry patrons.

The Sports Museum of New England is located inside of TD Garden. It encompasses many sports and focuses on local teams like the New England Patriots, the Boston Bruins, Celtics, and Red Sox. It also covers the Boston Marathon.

Location

TD Garden is in the Downtown North section of Boston, near Faneuil Hall, which is a stop on the Freedom Trail. The streets around the stadium back up with traffic on game days, and the stadium itself does not have a parking lot, but other public lots are nearby. The most convenient is the MBTA garage, which is right underneath the building. Instead of driving, you can take public transportation to avoid traffic and parking fees. The Green, Orange, Red, and Blue lines all have stops near the stadium, which is built over the North Station transportation hub.

Events

The TD Center's primary purpose is as a sports arena. It is one of only two stadiums with a distinctive basketball parquet floor for basketball, and has a seating capacity 18,624 for basketball games and 17,565 for hockey games.

Other sports events held in the stadium include figure skating, wrestling, boxing, and gymnastics. It also hosts other events, like concerts, circuses, and political conventions when it is not in use by the sports teams. Singers who have performed there include David Bowie, Diana Ross, Bon Jovi, the Who, and Celine Dion.

Book a Boston Hotel today!

More Shark Guides

FIND HOTELS NOW

TD Garden