At long last, the Vancouver Canucks have installed blue seats at Rogers Arena.
Two of them.
Eagle-eyed Canucks fan Rosario Ardita spotted the new seats at a season ticket member event at Rogers Arena on Wednesday, sharing a picture with Daily Hive of two blue seats in a sea of maroon behind the Canucks’ bench.
Could it be a sign of things to come?
“We are exploring new seating options and they are samples,” a Canucks spokesperson told Daily Hive.
Rosario Ardita/Submitted
Canucks fans have been obsessed about the colour of the seats at Rogers Arena ever since former Canucks COO Jeff Stipec opened up about the topic during an interview with Sekeres and Price in 2018.
“We’re coming up to the life of those seats and I think when we do change them, they’ll be more aligned with the brand and the colours of the organization,” Stipec told hosts Matt Sekeres and Blake Price. “I can’t see us bringing in the crimson red seats as a new buy. I think it would be in the blue and green just to match the team.”
It’s been nearly five years since those comments, with Canucks senior executives showing various levels of interest since.
Trent Carroll, who was promoted and replaced Stipec as COO three months after Stipec’s interview with Sekeres and Price, poured cold water on the seat speculation in 2019.
“I hear a lot about the seats,” Carroll said in an interview with Daily Hive. “I don’t know what it is.”
Seats at Rogers Arena have been maroon ever since the building first opened as General Motors Place in 1995.
The two blue seats installed are the latest sign that the Canucks will give Rogers Arena an updated look.
Canucks president of business operations Michael Doyle hinted in November that a change could be coming soon.
“I think one of the most popular questions on social media is [about] our seats, and I can tell you that we do have plans for the seats,” said Doyle. “I won’t tell you what colour, but yes, we do have plans for the seats soon.”
Judging by photos of these seats shared on Twitter by @TheRealTambo last year, blue isn’t the only colour that has been considered.
@TheStanchion @jBowmancouver
An update after another delivery today….👀👀 #Canucks https://t.co/QFOQ2BiCER pic.twitter.com/0fpPvCtEFx— Tambo™ (@TheRealTambo) March 4, 2022
The last Canucks home game this season is scheduled for April 8, giving the team ample opportunity to update the seats in time for puck drop on the 2023-24 season in October. Rogers Arena does have concerts and other events scheduled throughout the summer though, so perhaps a change would have to be completed in stages.