The First Niagara Center in Buffalo might be getting a new name. First Niagara Bank has been acquired by Key Bank. What does that mean for the home of the Buffalo Sabres that bears the First Niagara Center name?

Naming History of Buffalo's Arena

When the downtown arena was conceptualized and ground broken in 1994, the building was dubbed the Crossroads Arena and replaced the iconic Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

The naming rights to the building were first acquired by Marine Midland Bank and then re-branded as the HSBC Center in 2000.

First Niagara Bank purchased HSBC's branches and worked out an agreement for the naming rights to the stadium as well.

The current deal with First Niagara extends the naming rights to 2026, so will the name to the building change if Key Bank branding replaces First Niagara?

One user of the r/buffalo subreddit suggested Key Arena or Key Ice Center.

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