As the clock approaches midnight for historic Matthews Arena, thousands of people in the world of sports and the Greater Northeastern Community are reflecting on their time within the hallowed walls on St. Botolph Street. More than a hockey arena, Matthews Arena has been a home base, a destination, a meeting area intersecting sports, politics, entertainment, and more for over a century. Everyone who has walked through the famous arched entrance has a memory of the arena they hold dear. We’ve spoken with fans, alumni, former players, and coaches past and present to gather their favorite Matthews moments to preserve them in time so that those memories never fade even when the building has gone away.
This feature on the beloved arena is broken up into three parts: one for the coaches who have led their teams from behind the benches; one for the players who enthralled us for decades with their successes and their passion playing for their school; and one for the alumni and fans who have been the lifeblood of Husky hockey and basketball for over 100 years. We reached out to nearly 40 alumni for this first section, and appreciate everyone who took the time to speak with us, and feel privileged to share the memories and moments so many people hold dear from Matthews Arena.
The Fans
Northeastern students have packed the arena in support of their team since the early 1900s, and have been in the balcony of the arena for hockey games hanging over the opposing goalie since 1998. While not everyone stays in the Boston area, once someone develops a passion for the school, it’s hard to shake it once you move away.
Multiple people interviewed, including longtime voice of Huskies Radio Rob Rudnick, mention Surge Night as an all-time moment both for Matthews and for The DogHouse. For those who may not know- in the 1990s, Coca-Cola created a product called Surge to try and compete with Pepsi’s Mountain Dew. Bottles were given away to students and fans at a 1998 game against Boston University at Matthews. The game would go to overtime and ultimately be won on a Todd Barclay goal, and from there- bedlam. Arguably the most legendary “modern” Matthews moment, it needs to be seen to be believed and deserves a place standing alone before we hear the favorites from everyone else.
Mike Davis, ’16: “October 13, 2012. Northeastern hosted Boston College in the Eagles’ first game since winning the national championship. Northeastern had won earlier that week against Merrimack in their season opener, where freshman phenom Kevin Roy scored in his first collegiate game. Anticipation for the team was high and the prospect of welcoming Boston College into Matthews had the student section in a frenzy even before doors opened. A sold-out Matthews DogHouse, packed to the brim and clad all in black, welcomed Johnny Gaudreau and the Eagles into the insane asylum, and were raucous from the start. NU raced out to a 2-1 lead after 1, behind goals from Ryan Belonger and the aforementioned Roy meeting the moment as he’d do countless times over four years, and then it happened.
As the second period started, the DogHouse rained verbal hellfire onto Parker Milner, the BC goalie. Bouncing the “Mil-ner, Mil-ner, Mil-ner, YOU SUCK” chants between the DogHouse and DongHouse, the crowd was so loud that the buzzer for Period 2’s intermission wasn’t heard by the players, causing a delay in the puck dropping. Referees had to manually get the players ready for the puck drop, since the timed cues for the game were completely off. You could feel the sound of the thousands of Huskies fans voices reverberating in the building- one of the few times it felt like I could see the sound waves moving around me. It was an intoxicating experience to be a part of, and that was the moment that I said “damn, I want to be them” as I looked at the DogHouse leaders standing behind the banner in section 44A. Then in the third period, still nursing the same 2-1 lead, Colton Saucerman fired a shot from the neutral zone and Milner didn’t react until the puck was behind him. The arena erupted after seeing a goal scored from the neutral zone, scored from impossible distance, on Parker Milner of all goalies, leading to the vibe of “that’s the guy that won the natty last year?!” The legend of Hot Sauce was born, and the Huskies would go on to win 3-1. This was the game that put me where I am today. It created a lifelong fan; it showed the power of a passionate, other-worldly student section; and it made me realize I never wanted to miss anything Husky Hockey related ever again in my life. It put me on a course that a little over a year later, I would fulfill my dream and take over the DogHouse, running it for 2.5 years, and eventually led to the creation of this blog with my buddy who ran the House with me.
It’s crazy though, both how many stories people have about this arena, and how many memories of your own come flooding back when you hear others talk. I think back on the traditions that we partook in or started that lasted to this day; the powerplay spelling chants; painting a new DogHouse banner as the old one was retired; painting the first NORTHEASTERN banner to hang on the opposite side of the scoreboard; starting the tradition where every player on the roster gets a hand-made sign to hang from the Matthews facades; celebrating wins with a YES chant as the team skated off the ice, which they still do in the locker room for their own celebrations. To think something up, put it in motion, and have it last both as lore and tradition and commonplace for fans to see at the arena- it’s special. You cannot fully put it into words. But thanks to everyone else who responded, we’re going to try.”
Ben Horner, ’13: “When I think about a favorite moment from Matthews Arena, several jump out from the hundreds of men’s and women’s hockey games I’ve worked as a broadcaster or watched as a fan. The first game I ever saw at Matthews—a 4–3 win over defending champion Boston College on Homecoming in 2008–09—comes to mind, as does Game 3 of that year’s Hockey East Quarterfinals, when Alex Tuckerman scored in overtime to send NU to the semifinals at TD Garden. There’s also the 2022 Women’s Hockey East Championship Game, when the Huskies lifted their fifth straight conference crown in front of a packed DogHouse one year after playing in an empty arena due to Covid. Interviewing an emotional Alina Müller afterward, as she took in the incredible student support, has always stuck with me.
There are a lot of moments—goals, games, DogHouse hijinx—I can still replay in my mind. But the one that jumps out most clearly, the one I’ll settle on as my favorite, is another game against BC from the 2012–13 season. That year, I was fortunate enough to be the lead voice of men’s hockey for WRBB Sports, Northeastern’s student radio station. In early October, the Eagles came to Matthews as reigning national champions (again) and as the top-ranked team in the country. That BC team was stacked, featuring future NHLers Kevin Hayes, Michael Matheson, and, of course, the late Johnny Gaudreau.
The game was a complete sellout and the DogHouse was absolutely rocking from the opening faceoff. Two memories in particular stand out. First, Colton Saucerman scored from outside the blue line early in the third period to make it 3–1, beating Parker Milner with a knucklepuck from nearly 100 feet away. The roar from the crowd was deafening even through the broadcast headset. I can still see the puck fluttering in, still feel the pure elation, still hear the shocked roar from the DogHouse. The post-goal serenade of Milner must have gone on for five-plus minutes. The other things that stands out is the sheer intensity of the noise over the final minute. It was so loud—so incessantly cacophonous—that I couldn’t hear myself or my broadcast partner, Jack Thaler, in my headset. Every word we said was drowned out by the crowd.
I have scores of great memories from Matthews that I’ll cherish as we bid the Old Barn on St. Botolph farewell. But thinking of that game, and those moments in particular, still gives me goosebumps.”
Michael Downie, ’17: “I grew up in Florida so I didn’t know anything about college hockey, Hockey East, or the Beanpot before I got to Northeastern. But I did like hockey and watch it on TV, and I had the extreme fortune of just missing BC’s most recent National Championship in 2012, watching Johnny Gaudreau and the Eagles beat Ferris State on ESPN. I was shocked as a freshman that fall to find that those same #1 Eagles from my TV played (and, most importantly, frequently lost) in our very own arena and the underdog Huskies beating out those super teams is a big part of why I am where I am today. There were a lot of big games from my time in the DogHouse but there are a couple I’m sure nobody else will mention. The first is a nondescript 2-1 win over Colgate on opening day of the 2015-16 season that would go on to become the fabled start of the NU resurgence. We all know that NU started that season 1-11-2 and went on to go 20-1-2 in a 23 game stretch that saw them take their first Hockey East title in 28 years. But the 1 in 1-11-2 came on Opening Night, and it saw future captain John Stevens score the opening goal and his younger brother, fellow future captain Nolan Stevens, break a 1-1 tie in the third with possibly the prettiest goal of his career, as the power forward best known for scoring around the net skated into the zone alone, deked through the entire Colgate roster, and sent a defenseman back to bantams to net the game winner, sending me and the rest of the DogHouse into a frenzy to start off one of the craziest seasons imaginable.
The other game that I remember is the finale of the Huskies’ home and home series with Minnesota in the 2010s. After NU won in 2014 and lost both 2015 games, the series finished in 2016 back at Matthews and former fan favorite Mike Szmatula made his return to Matthews Arena after his unceremonious transfer the previous season. Minnesota took a 4-2 lead but the Huskies scored 4 goals in the third and got 5 goals that night from the legendary line of Dylan Sikura, Adam Gaudette, and Zach Aston-Reese to send Szmatula and the top ten Gophers packing once again. Aside from the storylines on the ice, that one is the only game my parents and sister ever joined me for at the old barn, so that and the monumental comeback from some of the stars of the program combine to make it a special memory.
Notre Dame’s brief stint in Hockey East turned in seemingly annual memorable moments surrounding Northeastern. The teams’ first meeting after Notre Dame became a conference member was a game in the opening round of the Irish’s own Shillelagh tournament, they beat the Irish for their own trophy at their own barn. The teams’ first conference meeting at Matthews the following year saw the Huskies sweep the Irish on the DogHouse’s White Out Weekend, including a Dalen Hedges game winner on Friday after Kevin Roy forced a turnover on the forecheck that left Jeff Jackson apoplectic with Hockey East refereeing, as rumors circulated that Notre Dame felt the conference was biased against them. In the 2016 playoffs, the Huskies swept Notre Dame in South Bend en route to their Hockey East title.
But we’re here for the Holy Zamboni. November 13, 2016. Notre Dame is in Boston for their final game ever at Matthews and was looking for a sweep of the Huskies. Husky netminder Jake Theut was in net for his first and only career start for NU. For some reason, this game was scheduled for Sunday at 3 PM after a Saturday 7 PM puck drop the night before, which meant that nobody would be there, and that Notre Dame had flight to catch right after the game. As such, the DogHouse was not particularly full for this Sunday afternoon game after a Saturday night loss. One of the Notre Dame assistant coaches, I wish I had a screenshot to prove this because he deleted it within like 20 minutes, decided this opportunity be wasted if he did not take a picture of the mostly empty DogHouse during warmups and send a tweet mocking the student section and asking what was so great about it. This turned out to be a mistake, as the DogHouse proceeded to spend most of their effort chanting and raving against Notre Dame and the coaching staff instead of what would have otherwise been a down game from them. Down on the ice, the Huskies were clearly overmatched but Theut delivered, saving all 22 shots he faced through two periods including 4 Irish powerplays. You know what happened next. In the second intermission, a Zamboni breaks down on the ice right under the DogHouse and floods the spot it was standing on with hot water. They try to move it with a forklift but have no luck. After seemingly forever, the broken Zamboni is eventually towed away by the other Zamboni, but the damage is done, and there a hole in the ice. There’s no time to wait around because Notre Dame has to go to the airport. It’s 5 PM on Sunday, so there’s no delaying until tomorrow like you could on Saturday. And Notre Dame is not exactly around the corner to get on a bus and make the game up later on. So, Jim Madigan, Jeff Jackson, the coaches, and the referees got to talking in the tunnel under the DogHouse, in full view of the arena… and nothing came of it. There was no makeup date. The game went in the books as a 0-0 tie, and fan favorite Jake Theut tied future NHLer Cal Petersen with a shutout in his only career start for Northeastern. Come the end of the season, Notre Dame would come up one point short of winning Hockey East and leave the conference with their tail between their legs without a single piece of hardware. It’s possible the Huskies would have held on anyway, but in popular lore, we were saved from a Notre Dame title by the Holy Zamboni.”
Ashley Demirali, ’18: “November 10, 2017. Homecoming against BU in front of a sold out crowd. With the knowledge of the sell out, we prepared to start funneling students to the DongHouse after DogHouse side filled. We also sent some DogHouse leaders to that side with some planned digital communication. That was our way to make sure we kept both sides engaged. Despite failures at previous games, our plan to split the crowd worked. We decided to do the “Goalie Goalie Goalie you suck” chant alternating sides. It went on for quite a while. It was ELECTRIC, best atmosphere I’ve ever seen in Matthews Arena. I’ve never felt the building shake like that. When we scored a goal, I remember the building being so loud that when I played the the siren on the DogHouse megaphone, I couldn’t even hear it. Then to top it off, the Lincoln Griffin breakaway that led to Ty Amonte flipping over Jake Oettinger’s splayed out body…. The place went WILD. I’ll never forget that night and that feeling. Up there with that is going into the arena after the 2016 championship to welcome the team back, the Matthews arena celebration after winning the 2018 beanpot.
I first walked into Matthews Arena at 10 years old for a men’s ice hockey game. My dad was a member of Northeastern’s class of 1984 and had been bringing my older sister to games for a while. One day, I decided I wanted to come too. I remember my sister showing me this place like it was Disney World. She showed me all the little nooks and crannies of the building, sharing with me what she loved about it so much. I was hooked. I proceeded to come with my dad and my sister to most every game after that. Eventually, my dad bought a season ticket for me too. Section 6 Row G seats 1-4, on any given weekend you knew where to find us. I then had the privilege of graduating high school in Matthews Arena, a moment I will remember forever. I grew up in this place; it was home. It was a fitting place to hold such a momentous occasion. I remember walking out of the tunnel, crying and looking up at my proud parents, scared to end such a familiar chapter and emotional to do it in a place that meant so much to me.
It breaks my heart to know such a historic icon will be no more. We will never see another building like it. While I have the chance, I have been bringing as many of my loved ones to see Matthews Arena as I can so they can say they’ve been inside. They will never see anything like it again. I walk around showing them all the special spots and sharing its quirks, just like my sister did for me 20 years ago. Matthews Arena is way cooler than Disney World. Matthews Arena has taught me so many things. It has taught me about family, history, passion, dedication, joy, and heart break. It has been a constant in my life for a very long time, and I know so many others who feel the same. Soon, it will teach me its final lesson; the only constant in life is change.”
Alex Faust, ’12: “One memory that stands out to me is the beginning of my sophomore year in 2008: by this time, I had become hooked by Northeastern hockey and made it a point to sit (stand?) with the DogHouse for every possible game (home and road). Early that year, we were hosting then #1-ranked Boston College. I don’t recall if it was Homecoming weekend, but Matthews Arena was as packed as I had ever seen it – this was been before they replaced a fair number of the seats, so the seating capacity was larger than it’s been in recent years (the box score lists a sellout of 5,400+). Because of this, and because it was mid-October, it took a while for the ice to cure after a flood from the zamboni between periods.
Joe Vitale, the charismatic captain for a blue-collar, no-nonsense Huskies team, was already a fan-favorite, but this moment lifted him into big-man-on-campus territory: at the start of the third period with the score tied 3-3 and BC on the power play, BC was controlling possession in their own zone for a rush up ice, but with water still pooled on a bit of the ice, it stuck to the ice in the high slot right as Vitale was forechecking on the penalty kill. He picked up the puck and snapped it home, and sent the arena into pure delirium. It was that moment which sparked a belief among the fans (and college hockey world) that this Northeastern team could be special. It wound up being a magical season: they were ranked as high as #2 in the nation and reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in more than a decade — but it was this single moment at Matthews marked a pivotal moment in the resurgence of the program and helped create a generation of rabid NU hockey fans.”
Andrew Parente, ’10: “This was actually pretty difficult to do because I found it challenging to differentiate between a ‘Matthews memory’ and a ‘DogHouse memory’. So many things came to mind. My very first game in October of 2005, the creation of the Benny Hill arena lap during a timeout, painting our new DogHouse banner, honestly the list is endless. But one memory for me is tops and that was October 18, 2008. This was Homecoming night against then #1 Boston College. We had started the season undefeated and were coming off of a win at Providence the night before. We were starting to feel like this team could be something special but we were skeptical as usual given our history. There was significant buzz around campus, the game was a full sellout and it honestly looked that way.
I remember the entire balcony being packed for warmups. The crowd was INTO it and the game lived up to it, it was a real back and forth affair. Down 1-0, up 2-1, tied 2-2, up 3-2 and tied 3-3 going into the third. After each goal the place just seemed louder and louder. Joe Vitale scored shorthanded off the opening face off to start the period and from that point on it just felt like a constant BC onslaught. Brad Thiessen stood on his head making save after save. Counting down the final seconds was the first time I’ve ever really felt that sound had feeling. I remember breaking down the banner after game and just looking around thinking wow, what a game to witness here. Leaving the building there was a sense that finally we had arrived and this season could be something great. Obviously the rest is history but from that night on every game in that building that year felt special.”
Andrew Sullivan, ’06: “Before I get into thoughts about individual events at Matthews, I think it’s important to cover the perceptions of the place. Even though we spent many years not being good, other than seeing the arena for its history and uniqueness, it was not a place other teams and their fans wanted to be. It’s not a place that’s particularly built for comfort. The lobby is cramped, the bathrooms are tight, the temperature is inconsistent and the visiting team player facilities are spartan. It was also a place where both the team and the fans were going to take a pound of flesh, so to speak.
It really can’t be overstated how much of a home advantage it was having the DogHouse in the balcony. There’s no way for the opposing team to avoid the noise that’s generated from directly above. In the old days we were allowed to use a megaphone so it was abundantly clear what one person was saying at any point (fortunately before the days when people could easily record video). We had one night where we got sponsorship to buy 500 vuvuzelas and passed them out in the balcony. We had to pick them up in Rhode Island and one of the boxes of probably 20 vuvuzelas fell out of the pickup truck somewhere on I-95, so hopefully they were enjoyed by others. I imagine the pre-game hype meeting for BC at the net was not a particularly effective one. Pots and pans night was also a particularly irritating scene for both fans and players alike. The oddly designed “boxes” were also a feature, one of which was directly below the DogHouse. At the time Vinny Testa’s (a local Italian restaurant chain) would sponsor a dinner for two lucky fans, and nearly without fail someone from the DogHouse would go down and steal the platter of food off their table and bring it back to section 44. We would then enjoy the meal, passing it down the front row while not being concerned about the limitation of only having one fork and knife to be shared.”
Jared Shafran, ’12: “My favorite memory of Matthews was a homecoming weekend in October 2008. On Friday, the school had Jon Stewart perform a completely sold-out show, which was outstanding. And then to top it off, NU men’s hockey hosted No. 1-ranked BC the following night in the season’s home-opener. Coming off an improved 2007-08 year, there were higher expectations for the team, and they didn’t disappoint another sold-out crowd, winning 4-3 on a shorthanded goal by Joe Vitale 14 seconds into the third period. I specifically remember BC scoring first during the opening period before Dennis McCauley tied the game just nine seconds later and sent the place into a frenzy. As he did all season, Brad Thiessen absolutely stole the show in net. That was my favorite team to follow during my time, and that game set the tone for quite a run. From then on, we were taken much more seriously throughout Hockey East than we had been previously. And the atmosphere at Matthews was unmatched.
There were so many other big moments at the arena that season, including a whiteout game the DogHouse called “We Want Blood” against James van Riemsdyk and UNH, and eventually the final game in the Hockey East Quarterfinals against Vermont where an overtime goal by Alex Tuckerman advanced the team into the final weekend at TD Garden. But the scene at that win over BC was outstanding and I remember walking out of that game more proud than ever to be a Husky. Then on Monday’s Daily Show, Stewart began the program by giving Northeastern hockey a shoutout for taking down #1 BC.”
Bob Clayson, ’70: “The first thing that comes to mind is the 1982 NCAA Playoff games with a strong Bowling Green team. Freshman Jim Madigan picked up an assist on Bobby Averill’s GWG. I’ve never heard the Arena louder! Larry Bones’ game-winning-goal vs BC in the first and last NU Christmas tournament in the mid sixties…My first big thrill was seeing NU win the 1964 Christmas tournament at Madison Square Garden where we had to beat St. Lawrence, PC, and Brown. It was only the second year that we had several recruited Canadian players. Don Turcotte, an undersized RD from Kapuskasing, Ontario was the MVP.”
Aren Ghazarians, ’05: “People remember that when Dick Umile was the UNH Head Coach, he would whistle to call for line changes. In 2004, we had a guy in the DogHouse who could whistle named Hagop Minassian, we called him B-Boy. We positioned him for a game against UNH over the bench in the balcony. And so, randomly he would start whistling like Umile to screw up their line changes, and the UNH players had no idea. So they had people coming on the ice and off the ice, to the point where they had to call an audible and stop whistling for that game. It was entertaining to watch players not know what was going on, and the arena wasn’t exactly full so every whistle was heard.”
Rich Beck, ’84: (Editor’s note: Rich was the leader of the Zoo Crew, the predecessor to The DogHouse as the rabid Northeastern student section. This conversation took place over the phone with the writer transcribing). “So many memories…at the start of college, no one even sat up in the balcony due to safety concerns…we were a small group, but man when we went to an away game, boy did we stand out. Even the Beanpot, they didn’t sell tickets by school and section, we were all mixed together.
A couple specific memories: the year we went to the Frozen Four (1982), we beat Bowling Green with Jerry York as head coach. We (the Zoo Crew) were so popular that they gave us a locker room at Matthews to use before the game. When we went to the Frozen Four, we were blown away by the Wisconsin fans, and they adopted us and we cheered for Wisconsin. We learned so much from them and the next year, started painting our faces and took it to another level…nobody sat up in the balcony, we sat behind the opposing team’s penalty box. We took pointing at the goalie and yelling “sieve” to a new level: we made a human sieve chant. We had a guy named Wayne, we convinced him to get lifted in the air like a human arrow, he’d get lifted and put his hands together like an arrow and point him at the goalie yelling SIEVE SIEVE SIEVE. We never dropped him! We were laughing so hard, we would try to find something new to do every week.
One game we were playing against Maine, there was a guy who would always be in the penalty box. We called him The Turtle because his name was Tortorella: John Tortorella. John Tortorella was this punk on Maine, who became an NHL coach. So we harassed him so much that he stood up on the chair in the penalty box and swung his stick at us in the stands. They (opposing teams) did not want to go to the penalty box because we sat right there. We had the cheerleaders in front of us and to our right was the band, so we would play off each other. One year, for a game we all got kazoos. The band has to stop playing when the puck drops but we kept the kazoos going to finish the songs. After we won the ECAC championship in 1982 we went back to Punter’s Pub and I played the NU fight song on the bar on kazoo. We just had so much fun, cracking up every game.”
Ben Weiss, ’99: “Jim Craig the US Olympic gold medalist was our goalie coach for my first two years at Northeastern (Weiss was student manager for the team). In January or February, we had an off-schedule event here where the Bruins alumni were playing the 1980 US Olympic Team alumni in a charity game. Here I am as a freshman manager and Jim Craig pulls me into work the Team USA locker room. I have a Team USA jersey at home that is missing maybe four signatures from that team…I remember I was in the equipment room sharpening skates, and a guy walks in saying “any of you lads have some gum?” I say “sure I do” and give a piece, and ask someone with me “who was that?” “Oh, that was Herb Brooks!” So I caught up to him and asked “Hey Coach can we trade that gum for a signature here (on the jersey).” It was just one of those things where you’re sitting there, seeing all these legends from the Bruins and the US Olympic Team. I walk over to the Bruins locker room to deliver tape or something, and I hear some little kid say “hey Mom it’s the BayBank Guy” – it was Bobby Orr, who was doing BayBank commercials at the time and was coaching the Bruins.
So, my parents met at Northeastern, class of 1971. My dad took me to games at Matthews Arena to see Reggie Lewis play basketball. And now I am trying to get my daughters to understand the significance of it, but it’s so hard to pick just one or two memories…I think one of the things that’s so hard, if we really sit back and think about all the players we’ve seen come through here, it’s really something else; Patrick Kane came through here with the NTDP, if you’re old enough you saw Paul Kariya play here.”
Tim Fouche, ’11: “October 22, 2005 was my first game at Matthews Arena. We were playing Boston College who were highly ranked (would end up losing in the national title game). I had seen the homemade posters the DogHouse made hanging around campus advertising the game “NU vs BC, WEAR BLACK” in big block letters. I knew a little bit about the DogHouse from a game I caught on TV a few years prior and was excited to see them in action and be a part of the crowd. I rallied my buddies in the dorm. We got to the arena when doors opened at 5:30 and grabbed our seats in the 3rd row of Section 44. The crowd filled in around us and eventually the entire balcony was full of students in black shirts. It ended up being a sell out crowd of more than 5400 and it was LOUD. BC scored early in the first, but NU answered early in the second when fan favorite Brian Deeth blasted one home from the point. The place went bananas. The ice was tilted in BC’s favor from there, but we held on for a 1-1 tie and we celebrated like we won the Beanpot. I was hooked.
The team struggled that year, only winning 3 games. There were no more sellouts, but there were a hardcore group of us that were at every game. Those games with 3 rows of fans were the games where we said and did stupid things that would eventually morph into long-standing DogHouse traditions. They were the building blocks for the fans and the team that grew into somewhat of a winner over the next few years. The crowds got bigger as the team got better, culminating with a run to a NCAA tournament berth in 2009, the first in 15 years. Lots of sell outs, lots of big wins. The capacity then was 5400 and when the building was full it always felt like 5000 of those were in the balcony hanging from the rafters. Every game against BU and BC was special. They were must attend, heavyweight title fight type events. They had everything. Last second goals, overtime winners, dodgy officiating, heartbreak.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t give basketball a mention. Matthews wasn’t the greatest venue for college basketball. It often felt cavernous, and for whatever reason the crowds never turned out like they did for hockey, despite the team being pretty good for the better part of the last 20 years. Two specific games do come to mind though, Louisiana Tech and Michigan State.
It was not often that we got any TV games while I was a student, let alone a nationally televised game on ESPN. Louisiana Tech came to town in 2010 as part of ESPN’s bracket buster series showcasing mid-major teams in the run up to the NCAA tournament. Over 4400 came out to see the game, which had to be the biggest crowd since a game against Duke in the 90s. The crowd was lively, putting on a show for the national audience. NU led most of the way but let it slip late (common theme) and LA Tech banked home a wild 3 pointer with like 20 seconds left to break a 67-67 tie, putting a damper on a fun afternoon.
The ultimate memory for me and most fans over the last 20 years has to be the 2015 game against number 1 ranked Michigan State. A crowd of almost 5300 filled every seat in the building, the first sellout since the aforementioned Duke game in ’95. It was a special treat to have the number 1 team in the country visit the old barn, something I don’t think had happened before and will likely never happen again in the new building. NU got out to an early lead and I think most fans took pictures of the scoreboard at the time as we all kind of figured MSU would eventually overpower us, which is exactly what happened. But it was a marquee event fit for a building with over 100 years of hosting them, and really the last “bigtime” event the arena would host.
I’ll miss those big moments in the old barn, the big crowds echoing chants from one half of the balcony to the other. I’ll also miss the small quirks, the exposed wood beams, the death stairs, the fear of falling over the balcony, and the comically small bathrooms. I made lifelong friends that I met in that building, and I will always have the memories that started on that crisp October night 20 years ago.”
Ryan Fallon, ’16: “The first time I set foot in Matthews was as a college freshman in 2011, the first game of the Jim Madigan era. Somehow, despite being a Boston sports nut, I didn’t know anything about it. I spent most of the game in awe, looking up at the Bruins and Celtics banners and realizing the incredible history. But what left an impression on me was the energy in the building. The student section’s chants, being right on top of the rink in the first row of the balcony, the speed of the action. Braden Pimm scored an extra attacker game-tying goal with 2 seconds left, eventually forcing a 3-3 draw with UMass. I left the arena that night giddy that I had this kind of sports experience a short walk from my dorm. I didn’t miss a home game the rest of the year.
I spent most of my later years at NU sitting in the press box at Matthews, covering games for WRBB. As much as I love the balcony, that is the best seat in the house. You can see everything on the ice, you better appreciate the speed of the game, and you feel the crushing weight and noise of the student section when it’s full. Nothing is louder or more overwhelming than when Matthews is full. My favorite memory from the broadcast booth was Kevin Roy’s OT winner against Maine in 2016, the last game on home ice for Roy, as they made their magical run to the conference title.
As an alumnus I moved back to the balcony and Matthews has remained home. Every game I go to, I always see familiar faces, friends to catch up with. My favorite memory at Matthews since I graduated was Tyler Madden’s game-winning goal in OT against #1 UMass – we showed up early and sat in the first row of the DongHouse, helping lead chants for our end of the building. It was an incredible night, and Matthews at it best.”
Tim Giancola, ’21: “Number one, the win in over #1 ranked UMass. That season was where I had really started to get involved with the DogHouse, and this is easily one of the most electric sports games I’ve ever been to. Beating the number one team in the country in OT and getting the best celly of all time? Absolute cinema.
Second one would be the 2019 Hockey East quarterfinals against Maine. We got to watch two of the best goalies in the country go head to head. Cayden Primeau put on a clinic, the DogHouse was electric, especially with OT in the first game. After this series I knew the DogHouse was where I truly belonged. And as a bonus, the win over Boston College on Military Appreciation Night in 2022. I got both a decibel warning and a heart rate warning from my watch when Lundy tied the game!”
Andrew Brunn, ’14: “I have three distinct memories in my mind of Matthews Arena and Northeastern hockey. The first goes back to my freshman year in the 2009-2010 season. Waiting at the student entrance for the doors to open, but also waiting outside for Beanpot ticket sales which it definitely snowed through. My other memory as a student is losing my voice as a friend and I used to to yell a corny DE-FENSE chant when the arena was silent during penalty kills. As an alumni, I’ll never forget the zamboni breaking down right in front of me, leading to a Jake Theut shutout and a tie with Notre Dame.”
Adam Kubiskey, ’10: “The best, clearest memory I have is senior year, November 6th, 2009. The national champion BU Terriers were coming in for the first Hockey East home game of the season. Sold out, place was packed to the ceiling. Probably one of the most tense 55 minutes of hockey ever. The late great Wade McLeod put in the only goal of the night on the power play after an interference from Alex Chiasson and I think the arena levitated above the earth for a minute. In true Northeastern fashion Mike Hewkin took a major 2 minutes later and forced NU to play on the PK for the final 4:09. Somehow they held. You’d have thought we won it all right there. Clearly a game that meant way more to us than to BU, and in retrospect both programs had a pretty average/bad season, but from that point on, people believed. We left our seats and from the moment we were in the concourse, walking all the way back to West Village, everyone was singing Hey Baby at the top of their lungs. It’s a long walk. It was cold. Didn’t matter.
I graduated, relinquished my spot in the DogHouse, became an old dude, and went to 135 more games over the next 8 years. The memories, ironically, become a lot hazier/weirder when hockey night competed with real world responsibilities
I never won Happy Husky, but it never stopped me from gambling, not even when the buyin got to $20 a person at the NCAA finals in 2018. #CoffeemateNU was quite possibly the weirdest marketing campaign/chant of all time. I think we only ever got free fries from Pizzeria Uno for five goals scored in a night one time. Questionable/hilarious decisions like the DogHouse leaders dressing in black sweatsuits and pretending to chase a kid with a yellow baseball bat mocking a very real incident at BU that week; Hot Dog House, DongHouse, Sorry Gary written on the pizza box…The kid wearing the bread helmet for “This is Egypt” eventually became one of my closest friends. On and on…Above all else, I met my wife in that arena. And we’re gonna miss it.”
Owen Welch, ’23: “After thinking about it, my favorite Matthews moment has to be the 4-1 comeback against BC in 2022. It was already a packed house, which was standard for any game vs BC, and I remember there being high hopes with us being ranked at that point. It was a frustrating game for the first two periods and we were only down one heading into the third but it fell apart at that point. BC netted 2 more including what looked like a total dagger from Gauthier and he was taunting the hell out of the DogHouse.
We got some life when Novak scored with less than 10 left in the game but it was still an uphill slog until Lund potted his second of the night with about 2 minutes left. The clock still ticked with the empty net though and it came down to that offensive zone faceoff with 4 seconds left. When that puck squirted through and Lund was able to poke it over the line the roof came off the building. Easily the loudest I’ve ever heard the place. It completed his hat trick on the day too. I kept going back and forth between pure elation and worry that it didn’t cross the line before the buzzer. Once it was confirmed tied we knew we’d win the game, and even though it took a shootout, of course Lund scored the deciding one. Felt great to hear the DogHouse shove it right back in BC’s face.”
Zach Gordon, ’16: “My brother, who is almost 10 years older than me, was a huge role model for me growing up. Unfortunately he went to BU. We shared a mutual love of all things sports, and he took me to my first ever Battle of Comm Ave. Hockey was always my favorite sport growing up, and something about being in the packed stands of Walter Brown, with that dank rink smell, cheering our butts off yelling curse words that I hadn’t yet learned yet was just so enthralling. I was instantly hooked, and wanted to make college hockey a huge part of my college experience when it was my time to go to school. Fast forward and I correctly chose to attend NU (fun fact: that BU experience was a huge driving force for me to visit Boston schools when I was looking into colleges. I hated BU so much on my “campus” visit, and my mom took me down the road to NU because we had so much time after ending the BU experience early. The rest is history).
That first weekend we chose to go to the NU Hockey exhibition game with a PACKED DogHouse. The cheers, the atmosphere, the….well….powerplay spelling, all brought me back to that 8 year old kid. I couldn’t get enough. I think over the course of my 6 years at NU, aside from the times I was away on a school vacation or doing a physical therapy residency, I missed probably only 10 games total. This was due to the immense sense of community, friendship, and passion for our Huskies that was evident, regardless of how many fans filled out the stands that night. Even on our lightest of attended games, hockey or basketball, I knew I was going to be amongst friends. Some of my most memorable experiences that last with me to this day:
- Imploring whichever NU skater was a healthy scratch that night to throw up a snack (read: banana) to the hungry and poor fans up above (shoutout Steve Morra)
- Walking into the arena one day, realizing all of the signs celebrating the team which usually adorn the balcony, were sitting out on a table. I leafed through them to find one that said “FREE” in all capital letters (part of FREE madiGAN…iykyk). I thought it was so silly and proceeded to take that for myself, yelling FREE at the top of my lungs during the national anthem or whenever a skater exited the penalty box. The DogHouse still incorporates FREE to this day in the same game scenarios.
- The Benny Hill balcony sprint during a timeout, one of the best traditions in all of college sports. I used to practice cardio for it and everything
- One Shoe OT (for a brief time when No-Tee OT was disallowed, and then became lore after we won our first game removing one shoe for the overtime period).
- Eye black on all of my jerseys (thanks Mike Davis)
- Stacys Mom
- Wearing a USA Soccer Bandana to a game one night (maybe it was a costume night? Idk). We won that game, and as the superstitious man I am, I wore it to subsequent games. It became tradition, and to this day one of the most touched I’ve ever been is when the entire DogHouse showed up in USA bandanas as a thank you for my years of fandom on Senior Day
I could go on and on, but I’ll shed light on one last thing. Similar to the snack throwing, we used to have a running joke that the pee-wee kids on the lower level should “throw us some chicken” out of the chicken tender baskets that Matthews sold. We finally convinced a kid to do it one night, and we erupted in cheers. I look back on that moment and smile, not just as a marker of one of the infinite inside jokes we had as a fanbase, but that hopefully we instilled joy in those children like I did when I went to that first BU game so long ago. Whether it was a hockey game in the balcony, a basketball game on the floor, or even just going in for free skate or broomball, each time I stepped foot in Matthews I became a kid again. That unconditional joy, knowing you’re going to experience a memory that will live with you forever. The building may soon be gone, but I’ll never walk down St Boltolph street unhappy again. 8 year old me wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Nathan Vaughan, ‘12: “Matthews Arena has been part of my life from childhood growing up on stories of my dad going to the circus there as a kid and my parents watching Reggie Lewis and Jim Calhoun from their student days. My first time in attendance I saw Jerry York coaching Bowling Green and then my first weekend as a student we hosted defending national champ North Dakota. Anyone who knows me though, knows that my memory of the place would be centered around a women’s game. While I have seen countless great things over my nearly two decades as a fan, there is nothing better at NU than winning a Beanpot. In 2013 the Huskies were the defending champs having finally won at Walter Brown the previous year. Emotions were high with Boston College being the number two team in the country. The game was back and forth and I remember being basically the only person in the balcony, living and dying on every shot Chloe Desjardins faced. When the Eagles tied it up 3-3 midway through the final frame it was agony.
Just over a minute later Katie MacSorley would give us the eventual winner and I was dying a little inside every tick of the clock for those final 580 seconds but the Huskies were able to close it out. I was allowed to go onto the ice, get a hat and hoist the Beanpot. That was the final time the original trophy was awarded and it was blissful being down on the ice holding it. In more recent times I’ve been able to bring both of my young children to Matthews as we say goodbye, my son has grown attached to the Hey Song, and is incredibly excited every time he gets to go to the game. Getting to share this place with both of them a little bit before it gets knocked down might even surpass that Beanpot for me seeing the excitement for the place in their eyes.”
Steven Kesler, ’13: “It was my second year as Paws and I had convinced the sports marketing director to use some budget on a T-shirt cannon. It arrived in a metal plated suitcase, the kind you’d expect to hold James Bond’s arsenal or the nuclear codes, and we hurried it down to Matthews as fast as we could to try it out. We learned a lot that day…things like needing to wrap the shirt tight or else it unfurls soon after launch but not so tight that it becomes a weapon, or how the trigger was so reactive that breathing on it too hard might send a shirt flying. Turns out you can also set off the fire alarm if you shoot a shirt into the rafters. We learned pretty quickly that any T-shirts we shoot during games would have to be at the lowest possible setting on the cannon for safety reasons. But we’ll always have that afternoon where we cranked that sucker up and tried to dent the back wall of the arena from center ice with a (now-legendary) Who’s House Is This shirt.”
Evan O’Toole, ’12: “As an avid sports fan, I knew that when I came to Northeastern that I wanted to be part of what makes a sporting event a great atmosphere. As a musician, the best place I could be to do that was in Pep Band. Growing up I wasn’t as in tune with college hockey so stepping into Matthews for the first time back in 2007 for a hockey game was a special moment. As a history buff, learning about the arena and its place in Boston sports history in general, gave me such a thrill to be inside a place so special to so many before me. Whether it was hockey, basketball, events, Springfest concerts, or even playing Broomball, stepping into and around Matthews never lost its luster from that very first day. The old barn exudes its own atmosphere that lends itself to making so many of those experiences that much more incredible. As time went on, I fed off that and became even more invested with NU Sports fandom. I donned what I named the “NU Trooper” outfit for the remaining four years as both part of the Pep band as well as the DogHouse for my senior year. I even hosted a sports show on NUTV which would then be played pre game at games which was incredibly cool to see myself “on the big screen”.
Coming to the arena in the outfit, filled with excitement to root our men’s and women’s teams on, are times I’ll cherish forever. I was lucky enough to be involved in some of the games (like sled racing) as well as the Benny Hill run around the arena (a workout even when I was in the best of shape!) which added to the just pure fun of going to games. My hope was to always bring as much energy that would build the atmosphere up for both the team, students, and fans to enjoy. Friends of mine even in the COVID year, well after graduating and even moving out of Boston, put money together to ensure my likeness was still at the games with the NU Trooper in the stands. Even when no one could be there physically, it was special just knowing the cut out was there all season long. I feel like it would take nearly a book’s worth of pages to accurately sum up all the things I was blessed to be a part of. The news of this being the final year of the structure as it was for Matthew’s brought sadness in my heart despite knowing for some time that’s its end was more imminent than its continued existence. I’m sad that future students and fans won’t get to experience what it was like being in this space and basking in its historical beauty & atmosphere. However with what’s to come, I do have excitement for those to make something new and special as I’m sure they’ll continue to preserve nods and traditions that began at Matthews. With all that said, thank you Matthews Arena for being a formative part of my time at Northeastern and thank you for providing the memories and experiences that I’ll have forever.”
Matty Wasserman, ’25: “As a freshman starting out with WRBB in 2021, everything about Matthews felt big — the history, the entryway, the DogHouse, even the scoreboard (perhaps too big). My first core memory was Gunnarwolfe Fontaine’s OT winner against Harvard … a near-sellout on a Tuesday in early November, with both ends of the Dog House filled up and rocking. I didn’t grow up a big college hockey fan, but that’s when I was hooked. Over time, as I came to know the people and place inside out, Matthews began to feel small. It was like a home you knew every last corner of, both for its best qualities and shortcomings. But it was uniquely the home and pride of NU hockey, and I wouldn’t have traded it.
Though I just graduated in May, I would have loved to come back in 20, 30, 40 years and point to where Cam Lund scored at the buzzer against BC, or where Devon Levi made 60 saves to beat UConn, and return to the spots where I made many of my best college memories. The new facility will be an important centerpiece for the next generation of NU athletics, but I feel incredibly fortunate to have overlapped with the final years at Matthews and shared a love for the place with so many others.”
Justin Harriman, ’02: “I vividly remember the first time I walked into Matthews, I was taking a tour when I was in high school with my mom. I was looking for schools with criminal justice programs. I fell in love with the student center, and wanted to see what the arena was like down the block. We walked in through the hockey offices and I walked out past the bathrooms and was awestruck by the arena. I looked at Providence College, Union, UMass-Amherst, had a deposit down to Niagara, didn’t get into my first choice (American), and then Northeastern got back to me with an acceptance. And I remembered just walking into the student center and the arena, and to this day remember the chill in the air and the smell of the arena, and that was what sold me on coming to Northeastern. I remember it like it was yesterday, and we are going on close to 30 years.
The fall of my freshman year, I vividly remember going to my first hockey game, around section 49 today, and thought it was pretty great. My friends started sitting in section 6 soon after behind the bench, and sat there for the duration of the season. I have a program from the Surge Game that night, we painted our chests that night in the lobby of 103 Hemenway and then came to the arena. As the playoffs approached, head coach Bruce Crowder approached us for a Meet and Greet in the Varsity Club, thanked us for turning out and asked us to come back for playoffs, suggested moving to the balcony for the playoffs. This was the March playoffs in 1998, and that’s where the DogHouse has stayed since. And the lobby of 103 Hemenway is where the first DogHouse banner was created in the summer of 1998.
From there, years of memories were forged. We were never a “great” team but it happened often that if you came into Matthews ranked number 1, you did not leave number one. The loudest I have ever heard Matthews was when Jim Fahey scored in overtime with one second left then Jason Guerriero won it in overtime, prompting a banner made by Michael Salvo and Dan Kee to be unfurled in the balcony reading “Dick, You Got Umile-ated.” Another #1 that we saw go down included Wisconsin with Dany Heatley, who was a Hobey candidate and top prospect.
When I was in classes, I would literally take my lunch and sit in section 6, watching practice. The arena cat, named Mocha, would sit under my seat and keep me company watching practice. Never begged for food, just kept me company. And when I’d finish my lunch I’d pet the cat and go to my next class. I’d get to the arena a little before 5:00, turn the banner over at 5:00 promptly, and blow my 122 decibel English train horn- Leon Heyward once told me that that was a signal for the players as to what time it was and “ok time to lock in and get ready,” because they knew it was 5:00 every time.
I’d go down over the opposing team tunnel with the megaphone, knowing you couldn’t say anything vulgar or sensitive, but would just chirp opposing players. But I was loud. One time, Jack Parker was at the edge of the tunnel, and we had a back and forth over the megaphone use, and I hit the siren as the players hit the ice for warmups. Parker jumps up and pulls my megahorn on the shoulder strap, pulling me down almost out of the stands. Jay Pandolfo sees me hanging over almost falling over Parker, and starts pulling on my jersey trying to pull me over. My friends are holding my legs to try and stop me from falling. Parker yanked the megaphone out of my hands, siren still blaring. I went to NUPD the next day to get on record that Parker assaulted me, but didn’t want to press charges, and it became a real record in the Northeastern Crime Log.
Looking back now as an adult, I think about the ways that I’ve entered that building. A student coming in through the backside; a season ticket holder in the side door; a regular guy coming in through the arch and the front door. Every time, they have the radiators cranking, it has that unique smell that only Matthews Arena has, and you can’t describe it, but it’s like your favorite hooded sweatshirt, your favorite blanket at your parents house. A sense of warmth and comfort. You hear the murmur of the fans in the arena, the old clicking of the turnstiles, the beep of the ticket collectors, the smell of the popcorn. You feel the history in the arena, feel the temperature change as you ascend the stairs moving from the lobby to the arena. There’s this energy between the excitement of the student section and going to your section, surrounded by people you’ve known for decades. It’s family. You don’t get that energy at a Red Sox or Bruins game. It hits you in all five senses. You check in with people you’ve known for decades, give a wave or a head nod, and that’s what being at Matthews is like. It’s this unmeasurable feeling of warmth and energy, something you can’t make up. If you’ve experienced going to games there for so long because of your dedication to the school, nobody else will be able to replicate that feeling…that energy feeling of being around family can’t be replicated.”
Other memories shared by fans and alumni on Twitter and over text include the back-to-back overtime winners scored first by Matt Benning and then by Kevin Roy to propel the Huskies into the Hockey East Quarterfinals in 2016, en route to their second Hockey East Championship; DogHouse members repeatedly beating BU students in various food eating competitions during intermissions; seeing the women’s team win their first Hockey East championship at Matthews Arena in 2018; many intermissions spent with their fellow fans in the Varsity Club; attending the prestigious Hobey Baker Award ceremony in 2015; and the first game back after the COVID-19 pandemic prevented fans from attending games in 2020-21.
As we count down the final days of Matthews Arena, we will have Parts Two and Three of this feature coming later this week, highlighting the men and women who these fans cheered for from the stands. Part Two will share the memories of nearly two dozen former players spanning fifty years, and Part Three will feature the coaches who led their teams into shaping these moments at Matthews Arena.
As always, go Huskies.