The long awaited journey to experience Hockey in Canada (Cleveland Monsters 2025 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs)

For years, going to a professional Hockey game in Canada has been a top tier Bucket list item, and after my Cleveland Monsters clinched a playoff spot, I was able to make my way to Coca-Cola Coliseum (Home of the Toronto Marlies) for game two of the AHL’s 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs.

Game one went to the Monsters by a score of 4-3 in Overtime, and The Marlies once again came out swinging in game two, going up as much as 2-0, before letting the Monsters score 3 in the second period. The Marlies came back in the third, tying the game at 3 to send it into overtime….again.

Neither team could find the twine in Overtime, and with 55 seconds left in 2nd Overtime, the Monsters found the net (in what was apparently a controversial goal for the Marlies faithful) to win the game, and the series, 2 games to none, to Move on to the division semifinals to face the Laval Rocket.

Arena review:
the Arena was not a bad spot – I will hold true to my comment about not understanding why building a 360 bowl on one level is such a challenge (this was an older arena so it gets a pass). The team walking from the locker room through the concourse was a cool addition, though, kinda annoying. They rope the middle of the concourse off with nine minutes left in the intermissions – so not only did you have to walk to the main seating bowl, then up to the top of the seating bowl to get to the second level (which WAS a 360 Concourse!!), but, you were also stuck on whatever half of the arena you found yourself on during that time in the intermissions (again, unless you walked up all the stairs in a section of the main seating bowl to get to the second level). there was not a bad seat in the house though, and the atmosphere was amazing with all the fans and their flags, drums, and Vuvuzelas, so, I’d give it an Overall score 6.5/10 in the rankings (the birds in the ceiling, which you could hear throughout the games, took a half point off from being a 7/10).

Watch all of our Arena & Stadium visits in live action on COTW TV!