Matthews Arena is closing after 100 years

It’s a big week in Boston, like the city is preparing to say goodbye to one of the most historic sports buildings in North America: Matthews Arena. Opened on April 16, 1910 and recognized as the oldest hockey and basketball arena in the NCAA, as well as the oldest multi-purpose athletic facility in the world, the venue will host the final event when Northeastern University faces Boston University in men’s hockey on Saturday. After 115 years of continuous use, the arena will close to make way for the new complex, which is scheduled to open in September 2028, with demolition beginning in early 2026.

Originally launched as the Boston Arena, the building predates Fenway Park, both Boston Gardens, the NHL, the NBA, and even the Bruins and Celtics themselves. The arena became Boston’s first indoor ice rink. Before construction, hockey in the city was strictly outdoor. The moment hockey went indoors, interest exploded, contributing to Massachusetts eventually producing 229 NHL players, the second most of any American state.

The arena served as the original home of the Boston Bruins, who became the NHL’s first American franchise in 1924 and played there until 1928. It also hosted the first home game in Boston Celtics history in 1946, with the team splitting time between the Arena and the Garden until 1955, the franchise’s history on the same sheet of ice.

In addition to sports, the arena was a central cultural center in Boston. Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt performed on its stages and floors, along with Taft, Hoover, Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy. Not only that, musicians from Bob Dylan and Marvin Gaye to The Doors, Johnny Cash, Phish and Ludacris have performed within its walls. It was also where Nancy Kerrigan returned after her 1994 attack and where more than 12,000 mourners attended the funeral of Reggie Lewis.

Northeastern built the arena as the home of hockey in 1929, purchased the building in 1979 and renamed it Matthews Arena three years later. Since then, it has housed Northeastern’s men’s and women’s varsity hockey teams, men’s basketball program, club hockey groups, figure skating teams, varsity reunions and the city’s first Beanpot Tournament in 1952.

Northeastern’s hockey identity grew with the arena. The men’s team has produced 34 NHL players, while the women’s program has won six consecutive Hockey East titles (2018–23) and reached three consecutive Frozen Fours (2021–23). The famous DogHouse student section has become one of the loudest and most recognizable fan groups in college hockey.

Age, however, has finally caught up with the structure. By 2024, the condition of the building required large external steel girders, top floor closures and scaffolding to be operational. Its narrow lobby, wood-planked ceiling, narrow corridors and maze-like balcony tell you that the arena has long since surpassed modern standards.

Saying goodbye to the arena has been a lengthy process, spanning from the demolition request in 2024 to the final basketball game last month and the final community skate on Monday, culminating this weekend. After the final puck drops Saturday night, Northeastern’s teams will begin two years of temporary relocation to rinks throughout Massachusetts and Maine.

When demolition is completed in mid-2026, Matthews Arena will be gone after more than a century, but its impact on Boston sports, American hockey culture and Northeastern University will remain lasting.