Identity Crisis: Flyers Arena Changes Names, Again

For the billionth time in the last 14 years, the home of your Philadelphia Flyers has had another corporate name change. Dismantled are the signs that bear the title, “Wachovia Center.” Soon to be, um, mantled are signs that say, “Wells Fargo Center.” Of course, we the fans cannot go about calling our building by it’s full name. We need a nickname. But first, a brief look back at the history of the building.

The year was 1996, and the original home of the Flyers, the Spectrum, was getting old.  It was a new era, in which stadiums needed to have more amenities, to bring in more revenue, bigger clients, better athletes and performers. Eric Lindros was still early in his career, was expected to rule the NHL, and the team needed a new place to play.  And that year, construction on the new building was completed, just in time for the 2006-2007 season.  While under construction, the arean was dubbed “Spectrum II”.  However, CoreStates Bank had the naming rights, and the CoreStates Center was born.  Team owner Ed Snider proudly proclaimed that in the inaugural season, he predicted a Stanley Cup Final. He was right, as the team made it into the last round, only to lose in 4 games to the Detroit Red Wings.

The name lasted two seasons, until First Union bought CoreStates.  This was great, as we now had a place to call the F.U.C. or F.U. Center.  Has a nice ring to it, eh? This name lasted for five years, and also saw it’s fair share of triumph and heartache.  We blew a 3-1 lead to the Devils, scored 2 goals in 5 playoff games against Ottawa, saw Roman Cechmanek and his cranium carom. There was an incredible 7 game series against Toronto at the height of the teams rivalry, including the Tie Domi incident with the fan. But of course, in the corporate world we live in, Wachovia took over First Union.

Things weren’t all bad, as we now had the Wachov Center(whack-off center). The first season, 2003-2004, was a memorable. That was the year when we had no more superstars in their prime, just a gritty team that grinded out victories. This was the playoff run where Sami Kapanen was nearly knocked out, stumbled off the ice, Jeremy Roenick grabbed the puck and scored in overtime; all of this in one sequence. This building saw Simon Gagne team up with Peter Forsberg to become one of the league’s top snipers.  This building saw Keith Primeau become a Philadelphia playoff legend. We saw a old rivalries with the Penguins and Capitals renewed.  And under this name, we saw the team get back to the finals, only to lose once again.

Now the 2010-2011 season approaches, and Mike Richards will lead the Flyers onto the Wells Fargo Center ice.  Do we really want to call it that? Of course not, that’s just stupid. I’m not good at this, so if it’s corny or stupid, feel free to say so. Anyway, a few random idea’s:

• WeFaC
• Well-Cent

That’s all I got. A few futile attempts by my wife and my friend will not be mentioned. Anyway, please comment and add a few idea’s.

For more history, visit the official website of the Wells Fargo Center.

Thanks for reading!

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