Attending an NHL game in person is more than just watching what happens on the ice. One of the most key parts to a great gameday experience is the food and drinks options on offer at the arena.  

That’s why we’ve decided to do some digging in order to uncover the best and worst NHL arenas for foodies! To do this, we’ve created our own index ranking each team, and their respective arena, on a number of factors such as beer price, hotdog price, and the number of food and drink stands per square foot and per 10,000 seats.

Are you curious how your foodie experience compares to other NHL fans? Just keep on reading to find out where your team ranks!

The best NHL arenas for foodies revealed

Right up there in the top spot with a total index score of 3.396 out of 5 is Bell Centre, home of the Montreal Canadiens. With over 39.33 concession stands per 10,000 seats, the second highest in our index, fans certainly aren’t left struggling for choice when it comes to food and drink options.  

Just beaten to the top spot but still scoring an impressive 3.323 in our index is the New York Rangers’ Madison Square Garden. Considering that this is also the stomping ground of the New York Knicks and just generally one of the most famous arenas in the world, it’s probably no surprise to see it rank so highly.

If anything, you might be wondering why it didn’t take the top spot! Well, despite their $4.50 hot dogs being the cheapest in the NHL, it’s doesn’t rank so highly for a few other factors. This includes coming third for the highest number of concession stands per 10,000 seats (36.65) and, perhaps most shocking, being amongst the top ten most expensive NHL arenas for a beer at $0.75 per oz. 

In third position is the PNC arena, where you’ll find the Carolina Hurricanes, after scoring 3.134 in our index. This is largely because of the sheer number of spots offering grub for fans as they beat out every other NHL team at an astounding 48.18 concession stands per 10,000 seats.

Falling into fourth position thanks to achieving an index score of 3.090 is the Canada Life Centre, a venue that will be familiar to fans of the Winnipeg Jets. Whilst it has a capacity of just 15,321, the second smallest in the NHL, it falls behind only the Carolina Hurricanes when it comes to the number of concession stands per sq ft. at 10.68.

Rounding out the top five we have the New Jersey Devils scoring 2.782 out of 5. Over at Prudential Center, Devils fans must be pleased with the food options they have to choose from as the arena actually scored the highest of all the NHL teams for positive sentiment at 66%.

Which NHL arenas will foodies be least impressed by?

Now, we’ve just gone through the top five but there are also some NHL arenas that might want to step up their current food and drink offerings for any foodie fans.

Scoring just 0.865 is the UBS Arena of the New York Islanders. With no other NHL team achieving a score below 1 in our entire index, any foodie Islanders fans won’t be pleased to hear that their home ground ranks so lowly in our index. A few factors that contribute to this low score include having the sixth lowest number of concession stands per 10,000 seats (12.17) as well as being one of the more expensive stadiums charging a whopping $7 for a hot dog and $0.75 per oz of beer.

Fans of the Anaheim Ducks might want to skip ahead as the Honda Center is revealed to be the second-worst arena in the NHL for foodies having scored only 1.080. However, this news might not come as a shock to Ducks fans considering that, according to our research, the arena only has 9.32 concession stands per 10,000 seats, the third lowest of all the NHL teams.

It's a sorry state of affairs for fans of the Arizona Coyotes as the Mullett Arena is next on our list of the worst arenas for foodies scoring 1.159. Whilst it may be the smallest arena in the whole NHL with a capacity of just 4,600, we can’t excuse the fact that a beer costs $0.78 per oz, the joint-third most expensive, and the severe lack of food and drink options with only 2.37 concession stands per 100,000 sq ft.

Rounding out the bottom five arenas for foodies we have the Dallas Stars’ American Airlines Center (1.213) followed closely by the Florida Panthers’ Amerant Bank Arena (1.272).

Which NHL areas have the priciest food and drink?

For many, a beer and hotdog are practically a must at a hockey game. However, sometimes this can come with a hefty price tag and some arenas might be looking to make a fast buck. That’s why we wanted to dive even further into the data and see which fans are forking out the most for their food and drink. 

The NHL’s most expensive beer

At an expensive $0.92 per oz, fans of the New Jersey Devils won’t be pleased to hear that they’re being charged the most for their gameday beer at the Prudential Center.

As for second place, there are two teams which manage to take this position with an average beer totalling $0.83 per oz., are the Philadelphia Flyers and Dallas Stars. Meanwhile, third is another tied position with the arenas of both the Arizona Coyotes and Anaheim Ducks asking fans to pay out $0.78 per oz. for a humble beer!

Thankfully, not all fans are being charged an extortionate amount for their gameday beverage. Truth be told, fans of the Columbus Blue Jackets are getting a great deal over at the Nationwide Arena where a beer costs just $0.44 per oz.

Those watching the Calgary Flames play a game at the Scotiabank Saddledome can sip on a beer for just $0.47 per oz which is actually the second-cheapest beer you’ll find across all the NHL arenas.

Both the San Jose Sharks and Winnipeg Jets fanbases are also able to enjoy an affordable beer costing $0.53 per oz at their respective stadiums – the SAP Center and Canada Life Centre. Last but not least is the PPG Paints Arena, where the Pittsburgh Penguins play, and game attendees can grab themselves a relatively cheap beer at $0.54 per oz.

The NHL’s most expensive hot dog

Given that we’re discussing arenas for foodies, we obviously looked into the classic gameday staple that is a hot dog as well. So, if you’re curious which fans are forking out the most for wanting something to chew on during all the on-ice action, we reveal all below.

Starting off with the stadium that has the steepest prices, we’re afraid it’s not good news for Seattle Kraken fans who are expected to pay a steep price of $8 for a hot dog at the Climate Pledge Arena. Next up, supporters of the Vegas Golden Knights will likely already be aware of this but it’s only 50 cents less at the T-Mobile Arena ($7.50).

Tied in third and filling the rest of our top five spots, anyone attending games at the home arenas of the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, and Boston Bruins will end up paying $7 if they want a hot dog.

Of course, not every arena is failing foodie fans when it comes to offering reasonably priced snacks. In fact, over at one of the most well-known arenas globally, Madison Square Garden, fans of New York Rangers can pick up a hot dog for a bargain at $4.50.

According to our index, two NHL teams claim the title of second cheapest NHL hot dogs due to selling them at a price of only $4.93. The two teams this title belongs to are the Calgary Flames and Ottawa Senators.

Rounding out the five cheapest NHL team arenas to grab a hot dog, we’ve got the home venues of the Columbus Blue Jackets at $5 with Edmonton Oilers not far behind costing $5.13.

Even though the food and drink are part of the overall experience, the most important thing for any fan is being able to show support for their favorite NHL team by attending games. With the start of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs in sight, be sure to explore the latest

Methodology

This dataset ranks all NHL teams, based on how good they are for food lovers. To do this, 5 different factors were used. Once the data for the factors was collected, the factors were then normalized, to provide each factor with a score between 0 and 1. If data was not available, a score of 0 was given. The normalized values were then summed, to give each location a total score out of 5. The locations were then ranked from highest to lowest, based on their total scores. 

The factors used are as follows:

• Beer Price - The price of 1 oz of beer at each NHL stadium.
• Hotdog Price - The price of a hotdog at each NHL stadium.
• Number of Concession Stands (per 100,000 sq. ft) - The number of food & drink stalls located in each stadium, per 100,000 square feet.
• Number of Concession Stands (per 10,000 seats) - The number of food & drink stalls located in each stadium, per 10,000 seating capacity.
• Positive Sentiment - The percentage of social media post's that are positive between 11 Feb 23 - 11 Feb 24 using the prompt "{Stadium Name} food".

The factors were indexed as follows:

• Beer Price - High values get a low score. Low values get a high score.
• Hotdog Price - High values get a low score. Low values get a high score.
• Concession Stands (per 100,000 sq. ft) - High values get a high score. Low values get a low score.
• Concession Stands (per 10,000 seats) - High values get a high score. Low values get a low score.
• Positive Sentiment - High values get a high score. Low values get a low score.

All data is correct as of 12/02/24. The ranking data shown is a compilation of multiple data sources and may not be representative of real life. All data is accurate with regard to the sources provided.

Bet on NHL Odds

Find season long NHL odds on Betway.You'll find all the latest spreads, totals, money lines and parlays. Missed tip off? No problem, Betway also offers live betting. All your NHL betting needs are covered at our online sportsbook.