Drake Arena’s 50th anniversary evokes nostalgia from history
November 6, 2017
For 50 years, the Dr. Carl B. Drake Arena has been home to hockey players from SPA and all over the Twin Cities, and the history in this landmark is cause for celebration. The arena has been a part of countless victories, and losses, by both the Boys and Girls Hockey Teams. Hundreds of students have taken gym classes on this rink. On many days during the weekends, the arena is open to the community, so a variety of people can come and enjoy the rink.
“This arena has historic value. So many people who grew up in this community and learned to skate here or learned to play hockey come back,” Assistant to Ice Arena and Properties Manager John Cole said.
Update: The story inaccurately credited Harry M. Drake with donating the money for the Arena, but it was actually from the estate of the late Dr. Carl B. Drake.
The early years
The Drake arena was a bequest from the estate of the late Dr. Carl B. Drake, and the remaining funds were donated by a small group of alumni and friends.
“Dr. Drake was a physician in St. Paul and his son Carl Drake Jr. was the head of what was then St. Paul insurance companies,” Bill Levin, Building Futures Campaign Officer and class of ’68, said.
Dr. Drake donated $185,000 to the school for any purpose, and the school chose to build the rink for The Boy’s Hockey Team.
“There used to be two rinks, one was around where tennis courts are now and the other was where the portable classrooms are. They consisted of two sheets of ice and wooden boards. The smaller rink was not lit, but the varsity rink was. Also, there were no places for spectators so if parents or friends wanted to come watch they would have to stand in the snow and there would be no protection from flying pucks,” Levin said.
The old rinks were maintained mostly by students.
“We would use this old fire hose, which was super heavy and drag it out to the rinks and flood them. We would also put a lot of effort into shoveling the rinks,” Levin said.
“In addition to the Spartan boy’s hockey team, this arena has been home to many teams. The University of St. Thomas used to play here and this used to be their home rink. Hamline University also used to play here, and I believe this was also their home rink at one point. Now Drake is home to St. Kate’s. This arena serves all the needs of students here at SPA, and also other organizations in the St. Paul metro area very well. This is a rink all people can count on,” Ice Arena and Properties Manager Eric Edhlund said.
The arena also has countless unique features to its structure.
“We were one of the first, if not the first, North American rinks to have a battery powered Zamboni. Air quality in ice arenas has been a hot topic for years, and we set the trend as one of first in the country to help reduce emissions in the building,” Cole said.
However, before the batter powered Zamboni, the school used ammonia in the Zamboni for refrigeration.
“In 1970 the Husky [Zamboni] was in this little garage and the ammonia tank exploded and blew the doors right off the garage,” Levin said.
When the rink was first built, there were no refrigeration pipes.
“We poured water in the rink inside the boards, opened doors and let it freeze,” Levin said.
However, this method did not always work.
“Sometime in ’67-’68, we had really cold weather and then all of a sudden warm temperatures. As a result, we actually had a hockey game that was canceled on account of rain. The outside temperature had gotten warmer and water had condensed inside the curved inside ceiling of the arena and dripped down and so it was actually raining outside the arena,” Levin said.
This was one significant piece of motivation to obtain refrigeration pipes, which the school did in ’68.
After 50 years, the arena has maintained some of its original features.
“The floor is probably the most significant piece of the arena that is original. The original refrigeration pipes from ’68 are steel pipes. Newer rinks have polyurethane, which is like plastic, so just the fact that these pipes have lasted for 49 years with no significant leaks or structural breakdown is pretty amazing. Also, our floor doesn’t have sub-floor heating, which most rinks do to prevent frost from moving around. It’s kind of like having an outdoor sheet of ice with four walls and a roof around it,” Edhlund said.
In 1994, a new set of renovations occurred; one of the biggest changes that occurred was the addition of bleachers.
“Sometime prior to 1994 new boards and glass were put in. Originally, there used to just be fencing, like backyard fencing, instead of glass,” Cole said.
The community’s arena
The Drake Arena was built in 1967, and houses many memories for hockey players, alumni, and community members alike.
The rink is open to the public when practices are not in session, so the arena has become a community staple.
“One of the things that are neat about the arena is that it has impacted so many lives. This is where they’ve learned to skate, and played in high school, college, or even adult league games. It has been a community rink and something people have counted on as always being here,” Cole said.
“It’s also always neat when alumni come back and can reminisce. They’re also excited to see the improvements that have been made, they even notice the small things, because it looks and feels different then when they were here,” Edhlund said.
The Drake Arena has also been a part of many community events, such as the Spartan Cup.
“The Spartan Cup was a tournament held right after Thanksgiving. Four teams would play in Drake, and SPA would usually be in the championship game. It would always draw big crowds, including both students and alumni, and was something all people would always talk about and enjoy. It was also usually the first week of the boy’s hockey season, so it would be a great kickoff to the season,” Cole said.
The Spartan Cup tournament ended around 2012, but many community members and alumni remember the event.
“[One] could say ‘Drake Arena’ and a lot of people don’t even know that it’s associated with SPA. They may remember some events that have happened here that relate to the school, like the Spartan Cup or big hockey games, but the community really just thinks of the arena as ‘Drake,’ not SPA’s ice arena,” Cole said.
Additionally, the Drake Arena was host to a small independent film in 2008 – Killer Movie.
“[The movie] wasn’t very mainstream, but it was still really cool for our community. They shot the movie in the ice arena as well as in Briggs gymnasium. They also had a couple other locations around the Twin Cities. The movie was about a hockey team, so they needed a nice arena and they liked the look of ours so they shot a lot of the movie in here,” Edhlund said.
‘Home’ for the Spartan and United hockey teams
![The Boys Hockey team huddles in Drake. “For [the Boys Hockey team], it’s kind of like a collection of memories," Boys Hockey captain Adam Zukowski said.](https://www.rubiconline.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/2.jpg)
The Boys Hockey team huddles in Drake. “For [the Boys Hockey team], it’s kind of like a collection of memories,” Boys Hockey captain Adam Zukowski said.
The Drake Arena may have been constructed after the boy’s team was already playing, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t had a profound impact on both the boys and girls teams.
“When you think of ice hockey you think of Minnesota, and SPA has always provided for students through years in all aspects of academia and athletics. By having an on campus arena, like most other IMAC teams, it helps students to improve more individually and as a team, since they have a top-tier facility always ready for them at home,” Edhlund said.
Both the Spartan and United hockey teams have had countless memorable experiences in this arena.
“For [the Boys Hockey team], it’s kind of like a collection of memories – there’s no one memory that really stands out. Every time I walk into the arena I remember every guy who has graduated and all the memories we have as a team,” Boys Hockey captain Adam Zukowski said.
“It was really memorable, though, when we beat St. Cloud Cathedral a few years ago. It was a really big game and they were a really good team, and winning that game helped to push our team forward for the remainder of the season,” Zukowski said.
Edhlund also recalled a significant girls game: “The girls have been playing Red Wing for maybe 23-24 years and never beat them, and then a few years ago they finally beat them at Drake, so that was pretty significant.”
The “wall of fame” in Drake also highlights significant players from either SPA hockey teams who have also gone on to play college hockey.
“Hockey is different in the sense that playoff victories or other important games that send teams to tournaments don’t occur in Drake. The only major victories that may occur here are the regular season or maybe conference championship games,” Cole said.
Despite the lack of major victories in Drake Arena, Zukowski still finds Drake to be extremely important to him.
“Drake Arena is a place with so much character. It has its tin roof and green outside, and it doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the school. But it’s a building that you just know you’re going into,” Zukowski said.
Another important part of the history of Drake Arena is the summer hockey program that was run by Mike Foley.
“So many individuals went through this program – it was a staple in the Twin Cities. If you wanted to go to a summer hockey program, you came to SPA and you learned from Mike Foley. That’s who everybody knew and trusted. Hundred and hundreds of kids came through those doors every day and every hour,” Edhlund said.
Drake Arena has been a staple of the SPA community and public community for 50 years, and it is important to take the time to reflect on the importance and impact the arena has had on all those who have entered through its doors.