Edmonton Oilers fan cave: ‘The place sports activities followers can stay, prepare, renew’

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Coventry Homes scores a hat-trick with workout area, sauna and smoothie bar.

The workout room in the Edmonton Oilers fan cave, by Coventry Homes. The workout room in the Edmonton Oilers fan cave, by Coventry Homes. Photo by Visualizeit /Postmedia

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The Oilers score and you’re about to reach for a celebratory drink, and it’s a nice, cold smoothie?

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That will be the case if you’re watching the game in Coventry Homes’ newest Edmonton Oilers fan cave, which recently opened its doors in the new St Albert community of Nouveau.

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“This fan cave, just under 800 square feet, keeps in the (Nordic) style of the rest of the house,” said Tara Van Horn, Coventry’s director, marketing and design. “We’ve moved away from that traditional sports pub as we wanted to do something a little bit different. We actually did a take on a gym, but it’s more of a hockey training area. Instead of a traditional sports bar, we have a smoothie bar, a gym and, in the fan cave’s bathroom, we’ve created a kind of a Nordic spa as there is a sauna. We’re going for a place where fans can live, train and renew.”

This marks the eighth different Oilers fan cave Coventry, the preferred builder of the Edmonton Oilers, has launched since 2015. These Oilers game zone spaces, designed for finished basements in newly built Coventry homes, have varied over the years but have been a hit with fans.

“They’re very well received,” said Van Horn. “Edmonton has an enormous Oilers fan base. We have really loyal fans in the city so they get really excited. Lots of people like to come and check them out and get ideas.”

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The current rendition, located in Coventry’s new Dione show home in Nouveau, also includes some of the more traditional features seen in previous Oilers fan caves including televisions to watch the game, an eye-catching Oilers mural, and accents in Oilers colours.

While the smoothie bar replaces the customary bar/pub space, the gym, sectioned off by a glass wall from the rest of the space, is designed for training and fitness. But this one goes the extra mile with that fan cave touch: part of the gym’s floor surface has a synthetic ice overlay allowing for fans to work on their stickhandling skills.

“For us, it was so different from what they’ve done over the last seven previous fan caves,” said Abe Hajar, vice-president, corporate partnerships, sports and entertainment for OEG. “We love the creativity that Coventry brings to this: we’ve done everything from Zamboni slides to mini rinks, to more of an ’80s themed high-end bar type feel. So this kind of goes the other way to a new concept altogether with the gym and the smoothie bar; to add the synthetic ice … really kudos to them for continuously evolving what the fan cave can be. It doesn’t need to be a room with memorabilia. It’s more than that. It’s a lifestyle. It’s a passion.”

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The fan cave, however, is just one part of the Dione show home, a 2,107-square-foot, two-storey home with three bedrooms and three-and-a-half bathrooms with this version finished in a Nordic aesthetic.

“It’s very natural, organic and more minimal,” said Van Horn. “It has a tri-colour kitchen — it’s color blocked with natural wood, white and black. The home is our take on a modern Nordic feel.

“It (the Dione) is one of our most popular and most affordable models,” added Van Horne, of the home that starts in the low $400,000 range before adding a lot and GST. To add a fan cave, Van Horn said buyers must first finish their basement as part of the new home purchase but noted Coventry is currently running a promotion that includes a free basement development.

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From there, the fan cave package starts at an additional $14,700 or there’s the scaled down Team Player package for a den, bedroom or bonus space that begins at $2,200.

The new fan cave is open for viewing at 6 Nouveau Dr. Viewing hours are 3 to 8 pm from Monday to Thursday, and noon to 5 pm on Saturday, Sunday and holidays.

In TheZone

In the northwestern part of St. Albert, Nouveau is just in its early stages.

It’s a neighborhood that’s focused on providing value for home buyers, said Courtney Jensen, managing partner for Nouveau’s developer, Strata Development Corp.

Buyers will find zero-lot line single-family home products, said Jensen, noting that it means a more affordable lot, with the actual home product very similar to a traditional single-family home. Townhomes are also being built. Along with Coventry Homes, Jayman Built and Pacesetter Homes are the other Nouveau builders.

“We’re really excited that they (Coventry) chose to showcase this Oilers fan cave in one of our communities, and we think it will be something that the St Albert market will be really excited about,” said Jensen. “St. Albert is a big hockey city, and I think what Coventry is doing with the Oilers fan cave basements is really fun.”

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