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I used to work at the Delta Center, and I have a theory on why the Oct 5 game is at Maverik Center, and it’s not necessarily about whether there is an event at DC.

Just after the first preseason game, the circus is coming to town. They need to secure their rigging into the concrete floor, which means they will have to melt the ice. Then, when the circus is over, it takes about 48 straight hours for them to build the ice and get it ready for a game. There isn’t enough time between the load out/load in times between the circus and a couple of concerts that went make the rink.

There is some precedent for this. In 2012, there was a 10-year Olympic anniversary that featured a figure skating exhibition. Because of other events in the arena, they had to build the ice two weeks in advance, and so we had several events including two Jazz games with the ice under the court.

The length of time to make the ice is why once they make it, the ice stays there all season, even though running the cooling system is expensive.

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