skyline at night The arena was initially projected to cost $60 million to build, Attempts to fast track construction resulted in a $16 million cost overrun, resulting in a final cost of $97.7 million and an eight-month delay in its completion. Upset with the excess cost,
opposition politicians in Alberta demanded a public hearing into the issue. A hearing conducted by the city placed much of the blame on the project manager, while the city and province were required to pay the additional costs. When it opened on October 15, 1983, the Olympic Saddledome served to boost the morale of a city that was experiencing a significant downturn as a result of the international oil market collapse, high interest rates, and the federal government's
National Energy Program. The Oilers defeated the Flames 4–3 in front of a sold-out crowd of nearly 17,000 fans. The initial
seating capacity was 16,605 for hockey as the upper loges were not immediately completed. As the Olympics neared, the Calgary organizing committee spent $1 million to add over 2,600 seats to the upper loges in a bid to alleviate a scandal that resulted from the organizing committee giving its partners and sponsors preferential treatment in ticket sales. With a capacity of 20,016, the
International Ice Hockey Federation noted that it was the largest arena ever used at the Winter Games, and called the facility "the finest international rink in the world" The
International Olympic Committee praised the city's commitment to hosting the Olympics, noting in its official report that constructing the arena prior to being awarded the Games lent credibility to Calgary's bid and positively influenced voters. (international rinks are wider than NHL rinks). The Saddledome reached its highest capacity in the early '90s at 20,240. game The Flames petitioned the City of Calgary and the Saddledome Foundation to upgrade the facility in 1994, requesting renovations to add additional luxury boxes and a new club section. The Flames insisted the upgrades were necessary for the team to remain viable in the arena. They argued it was important that their landlord bring the arena up to the higher standards they felt was required. The team lobbied City Council in the hope it would agree to fund the majority of the $18 million renovation using federal infrastructure funds. At the same time, they rejected a counter proposal for applying a ticket surcharge to pay the cost. Media reports claimed the team was considering relocating out of Calgary if council did not agree. Flames' owners denied the reports, but said they had threatened to build a new rink elsewhere in the city. Renovations occurred between 1994 and 1995 and saw the addition of 41 new luxury suites at the top of the lower bowl, an 1,172 seat club section, a new restaurant, expanded offices for the Flames, Saddledome management and
Hockey Canada, as well as a significant restructuring of the public concourse and a new parkade structure. The arena remained operational until the spring of 1995 despite ongoing construction, but was closed entirely between April and October 1995. The Saddledome officially reopened on October 25, 1995, for the Flames' first home game of the
1995–96 NHL season. Prior to its reopening, the Flames signed a deal with
Canadian Airlines to rename the facility. Under a 20-year agreement worth approximately $1 million per year, the arena became the Canadian Airlines Saddledome. Removing the "Olympic" moniker was controversial with both the public and City Council, though the city voted in favour of the deal which included the donation of a portion of the naming rights to fund amateur sports within the city. The arena was renamed again in 2000 when Canadian Airlines was acquired by
Air Canada and ceased operations.
Pengrowth Management Ltd. signed a 10-year agreement that gave the facility the name Pengrowth Saddledome. The arena has received cosmetic upgrades in recent years. In 2004, the Flames spent $1 million on a
LED "power ring" display that lines the facing of the second level. The
JumboTron that was installed in 1995 was replaced in 2006 with a new
HD video scoreboard. Along with the new board, the previous speakers were replaced with Apogee ALA-9 arrays in 2007. Manufactured by
Daktronics and branded as the "
Enmax Energy Board", the display contained 12 screens and two LED ribbons.
2013 flood The Saddledome was one of many buildings impacted by the
2013 Alberta floods. The flooding of the
Elbow and
Bow Rivers swamped many areas of the city, including Stampede Park where the Saddledome is located. The event level of the arena was filled with water, also wrecking the
high definition scoreboard that had been sitting on the rink floor during the summer downtime, while the dressing rooms and control room for the video replay screen were swamped. At a press conference held on June 22, 2013, team president Ken King stated that the arena had flooded up to the eighth row and that the event level of the facility was a "total loss". He added that the team's equipment and some memorabilia had also been destroyed, but expressed confidence that the facility would be repaired and ready in time for the October start to the
2013–14 Calgary Flames season. Repairs to the facility forced the cancellation of all concerts and agricultural events scheduled for the 2013
Calgary Stampede. Crews worked around the clock to repair the facility; Saddledome director of building operations Robert Blanchard estimated that 650,000 man hours of work was performed on the facility and noted that they had compressed a six-month project into two. The facility was granted its occupancy permit in late August, and the first event following the Saddledome's reopening was an
Eagles concert on September 11. The first hockey game was September 14, a Flames pre-season contest. ==Events==