Washington Capitals: 10 things you didn’t know about Capital One Arena
Capital One Arena is the destination for Washington Capitals fans! It is the home to your Caps as well as the NBA’s Washington Wizards and NCAA men’s basketball’s Georgetown Hoyas.
It was also home to the AFL’s Washington Valor before the league folded. They were Arena Bowl champions in the summer of 2018. It also was the home to the WNBA’s Washington Mystics before they moved to Entertainment and Sports Arena in Southeast D.C.
We present to you now 10 facts that you probably didn’t know at Capital One Arena. You may know a few of them but I tried my best to find some gems.
#10 The arena is worth $8.5 billion
Capital One Arena, previously called the MCI Center at it’s grand opening was worth $8.5 billion. It was a big part of a redevelopment of Chinatown that revitalized the entire neighborhood.
What was once a sketchy area turned into a hot bed of bars, restaurants and stuff to do. It opened it’s doors for the first time on Dec. 2, 1997. It has an average of 220 events per year and more stuff is coming back now that the arena is open to fans again.
The heart of the city on 7th and F Street is the place to be for games, concerts and other events.
#9 Unleash The Fury came from the Atlanta Thrashers
It’s the third period and the Caps need one goal to tie it. A timeout has been called and on the videoboards plays a clip of Tom Green from the movie “Road Trip”.
It is a scene where he motivates a snake to eat a mouse, screaming “Unleash the Fury!”.
This scene inspired Scott Brooks (no not the former Wizards coach) back when he worked for the Thrashers as a rally clip for the third period.
In 2007 Brooks was hired to be director of game entertainment for the Capitals and he brought that video over and it became an instant hit among fans.
I love going to Caps games and every time that video comes on I get ready. I turn to the fans to the left, right, front and behind me. I motion those around me to start getting up. When it comes and Tom Green screams it I make sure myself and everyone around me screams UNLEASH THE FURY at the top of our lungs.
It became even bigger as the team climbed the ladder to the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2008 and started to become the hottest ticket in town. The decibel level when fans yell UNLEASH THE FURY is equivalent to that of a rock concert.
#8 The Stanley Cup outdoor watch parties were the biggest crowd the city has seen in DC in a long time
I’m not going to say they were the biggest ever in the city, I would get blasted by the trolls for “spreading fake news” but they were pretty darn big.
Game 3 looked big. Game 4 looked bigger. Game 5 was so big the metro on the way there was crowded!
Stanley Cup Finals ticket prices were outrageous and for good reason, the Capitals were the first team with the legitimate chance of ending the DC Sports big four curse and they did exactly that.
I was lucky enough to be around at Game 3 and 5 of that series. I’m glad I did. I had the experience of what a watch party was like when the Caps were home and away.
Funny story I felt like I HAD to be in DC the night the Caps clinched the Cup. Well duh. My original prediction that year was Caps in 6 so when I hit up my father I was like “dad let’s go to Game 6 over the course of several days”. When pops was hesitant at the prices I said let’s do the Game 5 watch party while they’re away instead.
Little did he or I know.
#7 The war on ice surface issues
Back in December 2007, then team captain Chris Clark said what Alan May says on TV all the time about how he believes the ice surface at then called Verizon Center was the worst in the league.
“There’s a lot of ruts in the ice. It’s soft. It’s wet half the time. I could see a lot of injuries coming from the ice there. It could cost [players] their jobs… Even guys on other teams say the same thing. When we’re facing off, they say, ‘How do you guys play on this?'”
Team owner Ted Leonsis addressed that issue directly in his blog post from Ted’s Take. Believe it or not the quality of the ice has gotten better since Leonsis purchased the team.
The ice quality issue had been a persistent one since the Caps played their games back at the Capital Centre. However, there have been less complaints about the quality of the ice surface under Leonsis’ watch.
During the warmer time of year when the Stanley Cup playoffs take place there is a system in the arena to help remove the air and humidity that would otherwise negatively affect the ice surface.
#6 The chicken tenders are fire
The best food to get at Capital One Arena isn’t a fried chicken on a cinnamon roll (sorry Samantha Pell and all the brave folks that tried it during the playoffs). The best food to get at the game is none other than the chicken tenders.
Yes they’re that good and if you buy them in the right area where there’s multiple sauces they give you three cups to pick your three sauces. My personal favorites are the BBQ, buffalo and the boom boom sauce. Just make sure you go to Tender Love and Chicken.
If you’re not a chicken tender guy there’s other options too. There’s donuts and coffee from Dunkin Donuts, pizza from Papa Johns, District Grill (with burgers, hot dogs, etc), Over the Top where you can customize your food.
There’s also Fuku which specializes in good fried chicken sandwiches as well as Tacos 202 specializing in you guessed it… tacos! If you’re an ice cream lover get the gelati from Ritas which is ice cream mixed with your favorite flavor of Italian ice.
And if you’re looking to get hip to the culture when it comes to D.C. there’s the famous Ben’s Chili Bowl half smoke.
#5 If you want a good buzz, a Capitale and a Bud Light Seltzer is the way to go
It’s always fun to drink at sporting events. As far as drink recommendations go I would highly suggest a Bud Light seltzer black cherry, along with a Capitale IPA from Devils Backbone.
Add the two together if you have one of each. A Bud Light seltzer contains five percent alcohol while this Devils Backbone specialty has seven percent alcohol. That’s 12 percent alcohol to let you let loose and cheer the Caps on to victory.
Learn more about the Capitale:
This game day IPA is brewed to be enjoyed as you cheer for a Capitals victory. We mash in with Bravo, Centennial and Hull Melon hops and then dry-hop with even more Centennial and Hull Melon. This brew has melon and citrus aromas with full-bodied flavor, a slight hint of spice, and crisp malt finish. Perfect for sipping by the ice and winning championships.
If you’re lucky enough your favorite bar might even have Capitale beer. Mine does and I go there all the time when I can’t make it to the arena or when they’re on the road.
#4 It was almost named Etihad Airways Arena
It was first called the MCI Center as the arena sold naming rights to MCI Communications. Then in January of 2006, Verizon Communications purchased MCI resulting in the arena name to change to the Verizon Center.
In 2015 a report emerged in May that year that Verizon would not renew their naming rights when their agreement with Monumental Sports and Entertainment was set to come to an end in 2018.
In that same week Etihad Airways signed a deal to become the official airline of the arena. That began speculation that Etihad would be the leading contender to naming rights in 2017.
On August 9, 2017 the name officially changed as the bank Capital One bought the naming rights. It named the venue Capital One Arena and it’s still that name to this day.
In 2019 and 2020 Monumental Sports and Entertainment put $30 million into renovating the arena. That included completely changing the arena seats from blue/purple to black, and in turn the renovations improved the concourse and the food and drink options.
They also updated their video board and if you’re too high up to see it don’t worry, there’s four secondary screens in each corner of the arena. The arena looks like it glowed up.
#3 There was once a Discovery Channel Store and sports museum inside the arena
Remember going to the Discovery Channel Store when you were a kid? Once upon a time there was a 25,000 square foot Discovery Channel Store from 1998 to 2001.
There was also the MCI National Sports Gallery which was an interactive sports museum with interactive games, memorabilia, and the American Sportscasters Hall of Fame. That was from 1998 to 2001 as well. That area is now repurposed for office space.
December 2, 1997 the arena’s first event featured the Wizards against the Seattle Supersonics. It included President Bill Clinton in attendance and Clinton even checked out the sports gallery before the game.
That block of F Street NW between 6th and 7th Street NW was once called Fun Street before it was changed to Abe Pollin Way in 2007, named after the first owner of the Washington Capitals.
In 1999 Ted Leonsis bought the Capitals from Pollin and later he would own the Wizards and Capital One Arena as a whole. With great sight lines from every seat you can get a great view of the action whether you’re sitting in the first row or the last row.
It would’ve been cool to see a museum and a Discovery Channel Store inside the arena now but at least there’s sports betting and such.
#2 Some events have taken place annually at Capital One Arena dating back to the old Capital Centre
Some traditions never die and in addition to the Bullets/Wizards and Capitals there have been two events that have traditionally came every year.
Before we get to that let’s look at Capital One Arena by the numbers. The privately financed arena has hosted more than 47 million people and more than 3,900 events.
The arena has also hosted a multitude of high profile events in its history. In addition to the 1998 and 2018 Stanley Cup Final, they also hosted the 2001 NBA All Star Game and the WNBA All Star Game in 2002 and 2007. In addition they also hosted the 2003 World Figure Skating Championship.
In 2005 and 2016, the arena hosted the ACC Tournament and the second rounds of the NCAA Division 1 men’s basketball tournament in 1998, 2002, and 2008. They also hosted the 2009 Frozen Four men’s hockey championship.
In 2017 the arena hosted the Big Ten Tournament for the first time. It also played host to the A10 men’s basketball tournament in March 2018 and the East Regionals of the 2019 NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
The two events that have taken place every year since it opened as well as each of the past 40 plus years dating back to the Capital Centre are the Harlem Globetrotters since 1973 and the Washington International Horse Show since 1975.
#1 Premium seats and clubs
Located within Capital One Arena are 106 luxury suites, eight loge boxes, a high definition center hung scoreboard, an indoor basketball practice facility and nine dressing rooms.
Other amenities include the private Owner’s Club, the private Michalob Ulture Lounge, Maryland Live!Casino Player’s Club, Devils Backbone Lounge, Etihad Airways Lounge (for the seats behind the glass) and much more.
I had the opportunity to attend a game and experience the Etihad Airways Lounge. I’ll say this, the options for food and the unlimited food and drinks were the bomb. It was a fun night for me and my friend and I’m hoping it won’t be the last time I’m next to the visitors bench behind the glass.
If you want to get to Capital One Arena the best way is to take the metro. You can get off at Metro Center and one block to the arena which doesn’t take long. Or you can transfer to the red line and get off at Gallery Place/Chinatown and go up the escalators and you’re right there!
If subways aren’t your favorite there’s plenty of parking around the arena in garages that start as low as 15 bucks.
Trending. Evgeny Kuznetsov is a player to keep an eye on for fantasy hockey 2022. light
Well I hope you learned at least one thing you didn’t know about Capital One Arena. Soon we’ll all be back there together again ready to cheer on our Caps.