Canada Life Centre Game Day Guide
Winnipeg Jets · Winnipeg, MB
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Bags are limited to 4 x 6 x 1.5 inches and undergo contactless security screening.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Medical and childcare or diaper bags are exceptions but must use X-ray screening at Gate 1, Gate 3, or Gate 6.
- Bag storage
Canada Life Centre does not offer onsite bag check.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Email info@tnse.com before the event if the eligibility of a bag is unclear.
- Mobile tickets
Canada Life Centre ticket delivery is mobile or Will Call only; print-at-home tickets are not accepted for Jets games.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Load mobile tickets into the phone's wallet before arriving for faster entry.
- Re-entry
Guests cannot re-enter Canada Life Centre after exiting.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Event staff and security consider emergency, childcare, and medical exceptions case by case.
- Prohibited items
Prohibited items include noisemakers, aerosol cans, alcohol, recording devices, cannabis and tobacco products, professional cameras, fireworks, glass bottles and cans, hard-sided water bottles, hockey sticks, inflatables, lasers, outside food, projectiles, selfie sticks, skateboards, skates, and weapons.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- An empty soft-sided water bottle is permitted, prohibited items can change by event, and confiscated items are not returned.
- First aid
First aid is on the Main Concourse across from Sections 109/209 at Gate 2, with EMS attendants present during every event.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Tell any Canada Life Centre employee when first-aid assistance is needed.
- Nursing and lactation
Parents looking for a private space to tend to a child may ask Guest Services for access to the Quiet Room outside Section 124.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Family restrooms
Family washrooms are available on every level, and every public washroom has a baby-change table.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Tickets for children
Children age 2 and older need a ticket for Jets games; a child younger than 2 may enter without one but must sit on an accompanying adult's lap.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Guest services
Guest Services is on the Main Concourse across from Sections 103/104, at the south end of the premium-suite concourse, and outside Section 325 on the Upper Concourse.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Call or text 204-590-7622 during an event for assistance.
- Service animals
Service animals assisting guests with disabilities are permitted; other animals and pets are prohibited.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Smoking and vaping
Canada Life Centre prohibits smoking, cannabis, electronic cigarettes, and chewing tobacco throughout the building.
Applies to: Winnipeg Jets games
- Smoking tobacco or cannabis is also prohibited within 10 metres of every exterior entrance.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Canada Life Centre, hour by hour.
The Forks or Exchange District
Visit The Forks for food and drinks or the Exchange District for craft beer and restaurants. Both are within walking distance (or indoor pedway).
Pregame on Portage
The bars along Portage Avenue and in the True North Square complex fill with Jets fans in white. The energy builds early.
Doors open
Enter Canada Life Centre. The building is small and intimate, every seat feels close to the ice.
The Whiteout begins
Wear white. Seriously. The Winnipeg Whiteout is one of the most iconic fan traditions in hockey. The entire building turns white.
Game time
Three 20-minute periods. 15,321 fans making the noise of 20,000. The Jets' crowd is relentless and hockey-smart.
Hit the concourse
Grab poutine or perogies with a Fort Garry draft. The concourse is compact, lines move fast.
Portage Avenue nightlife
The bars on Portage and in the Exchange District stay open. Bundle up for the walk or use the pedway system.
Tips & Fan Reports
Don't walk around outside between stops in Winnipeg during winter. Explore in the summer - the museum of Human Rights is cool but needs time to see. For the arena, there is enough food and drink inside to keep you busy.
Winnipeg is one of the coldest cities in the NHL. In January, expect -30°C (-22°F) with wind chill. Use the pedway system.
Winnipeg winters are extreme. Dress for -30°C and use the downtown skywalk system where possible.
Jets fans are among the most passionate in the NHL. The True North chant during the anthem gives chills.
Canada Life Centre is the smallest arena in the NHL (15,321). It's also the loudest per capita. The intimacy is unmatched.
The Forks market district (10 min walk) is Winnipeg's premier dining and entertainment destination.
Wear white. The Winnipeg Whiteout is sacred, the entire arena turns white for playoff games and big rivalry nights.
Gate 6 comes off the Cityplace Skywalk, so you can reach your seat without stepping outside — the detail that matters most in January.
The bag limit is 4 by 6 by 1.5 inches and screening is mandatory at every gate, skywalk included.
Highway 1 East becomes Portage Avenue and runs directly to the main entrance.
Before the Game
Canada Life Centre's main entrance is on the corner of Donald Street and Portage Avenue in downtown Winnipeg, and there are three ways in: Gate 1 at Portage and Donald, Gate 3 at Graham and Hargrave, and Gate 6 via the Cityplace Skywalk — the last being the one that matters in a Winnipeg winter. X-ray screening is mandatory at all of them. Bags cap at 4 by 6 by 1.5 inches with medical, childcare and media exceptions. True North partners with Platinum Parking for over 1,700 bookable stalls, and more than 13,000 spaces sit within a ten-minute walk.
Where to Go Before the Game
Gate 6, the Cityplace Skywalk
The skywalk entrance into the arena, which connects through downtown Winnipeg's indoor walkway system — the way in that avoids the street entirely in winter.
Known for Skywalk entry · Indoors · Mandatory X-ray like all gates
Gate 1, Portage Avenue and Donald Street
The main entrance, on the corner the arena addresses. From the Trans Canada, Highway 1 East becomes Portage Avenue and runs straight into downtown.
Known for Main entrance · Portage and Donald · Straight off Highway 1
Gate 3, Graham Avenue and Hargrave Street
The third entry point, on the opposite corner of the building from the main gate.
Known for Graham and Hargrave · Third entrance
The Platinum Parking stalls and downtown lots
True North partners with Platinum Parking for over 1,700 bookable stalls, with ParkMobile and ParkWhiz taking reservations without an app download. More than 13,000 spaces sit within a ten-minute walk.
Known for 1,700+ bookable stalls · 13,000+ within 10 min · No app needed
Pregame Rules
What Canada Life Centre allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Bag sizes are restricted to 4" x 6" x 1.5" or smaller, and undergo contactless security screening.
- Exceptions are made for guests with medical and childcare or diaper bags, and for media.
- Entry is at Gate 1 (Portage and Donald), Gate 3 (Graham and Hargrave), or Gate 6 via the Cityplace Skywalk. X-ray screening is mandatory.
- The main entrance is on the corner of Donald Street and Portage Avenue.
- True North Sports + Entertainment partners with Platinum Parking as preferred parking provider, with over 1,700 stalls bookable in advance.
- Parking can be reserved through ParkMobile or ParkWhiz, neither of which requires downloading an app.
- Over 13,000 parking spaces are in surface lots and parking structures within a ten-minute walk of the arena.
Weather
Canada Life Centre is indoor, so these are the conditions for the parking lot and the walk in, not the seats.
Across the NHL season the warmest month is October, with an average high of 52°F, and the coldest is January, when the average low is -5°F. October is the wettest month at 1.8 inches and January the driest at 0.5 inches.
That January low ranks 1st coldest of the 32 NHL venues, and October here ranks 29th wettest.
October
1.8 inchesNovember
0.9 inchesJanuary
0.5 inchesMarch
0.8 inchesApril
1.1 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Outside food and beverages are prohibited except for items needed for a dietary restriction, infant food or formula, an allergy, or a medical condition.
- A card or a phone wallet
All food and beverage transactions at Canada Life Centre are cashless.
- A coat for the walk in
January lows average -5°F between the lot and the door at Canada Life Centre.
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Official venue page / team game day guide
- Pregame
Canada Life Centre official site: Bag Policy, Directions, Parking, and the Fan Guide FAQ
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current Canada Life Centre fan-guide, accessibility, guest-services, food, parking, and ticketing pages reviewed for Winnipeg Jets policies.