The Canadiens announced yesterday that the new 21,400-seat
arena will be known as the Molson Centre, not the Forum according
to this morning's Montreal GAZETTE. The Club de Hockey Canadien
Inc., a subsidiary of Molson Cos. Ltd., is assuming the C$230M
cost of the new arena -- C$130M for the Molson Centre, C$50M for
the land, and C$50M for equipment including the scoreboard and
seats. The announcement yesterday was that Molson O'Keefe
Brewery, a major sponsor of the Canadiens and also a subsidiary
of Molson Cos. Ltd., had purchased the naming rights to the
building from the holding company -- "meaning, in effect, that
money will be transferred from one Molson pocket to another."
Brewery President Andre Tranchemontagne described the term of the
agreement as "basically, forever." In accordance with Quebec's
official language charter, the logo over the building's entrance
will read "Centre Molson." Canadiens President Ronald Corey
confirmed the new arena will open March 16, and outlined a
schedule of events leading up to that (David Johnston, Montreal
GAZETTE, 12/14).
