4 playoff games in 4 nights: How Pepsi Center crews pull off switch from ice to hardwood

DENVER — One can call it the perfect storm: For the first time the Nuggets and Avalanche are both playing in the round of their respective playoffs.

Both play under the same roof, which is producing an unbelievable flurry of activity inside the Pepsi Center.

“You don’t really have a sleep pattern,” joked Matt Mennona. “You live off naps.”

Mennona is the director of conversion at the Pepsi Center, meaning he’s in charge of creating the switch from Nuggets hardwood to Avalanche ice.

“Everybody feels like this is our time to shine because we’re on a national stage,” he said.

After the Nuggets’ win Monday night, Mennona’s team went straight to work, removing the wood and getting the rink ready for hockey Tuesday night.

Tuesday night, they’ll switch it back, and do so again Wednesday.

“Once you enter mid-season form and you start going, it’s pretty easy,” Mennona said.

Logistically, it’s an incredible feat.

The ice is constantly there, so crews have to cover it with fiber glass and special shims before placing down the Nuggets court.

The conversion takes a team of 22 workers about four hours to complete.

“With basketball, you must build everything,” Mennona said. “There’s different seating configurations that will need to be done, because you are building out from the boards down, instead of just ripping everything out.”

In total, crews install 600 pieces of fiber glass. The Nuggets court itself is made up of 233 individual pieces of wood.

For the Avalanche, crews have to install 220 panes of glass.

There’s also the production side of things, including the video monitor and overall fan experience.

“It’s all-in, and everybody knows that,” said executive producer Steve Johnston. “It is kind of a whatever-it-takes type of attitude at this time. We want to put on the best show for our fans as possible.”

Here

Monday: Nuggets home game 1

Tuesday: Avalanche home game 1

Wednesday: Nuggets home game two

Thursday: Avalanche home game two

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