Ohio State is planning to build a new facility for its hockey programs

Among items on the agenda this week’s board meeting is a proposal to build a new rink for the men’s and women’s ice hockey programs. Pending board approval, construction will begin in 2024 and open in April 2026.

According to the proposal, the new facility will include team locker rooms, an athlete lounge, a dining and nutrition area, support services for the men’s and women’s hockey teams, coaches’ offices and training facilities, as well as expanded seating and broadcasting capacity. current OSU ice rink. The new rink would be located in the Athletic District near Fred Taylor Drive, adjacent to the Covelli Center and the newly opened Ohio State Lacrosse Stadium.

The overall budget for the new facility must be decided.

The men’s ice hockey team currently plays in the Schottenstein Center, but the women’s ice hockey team still plays in the current rink located next to the St. John Arena. The facility only holds about 1,000 people, Ohio State women’s hockey coach Nadine Muzerall said.Eleven warriorsafter his team won the national championship last March, he had been in contact with Gene Smith and the Ohio State Athletic Board about building a new facility.

We’ve beaten, let’s be honest, the ugliest rink in college hockey and still won a national championship, Muzerall said. I’m recruiting a kid who doesn’t care about that and who’s not an outsider because I want that blue-collar kid who never grew up to be one. But I would always take a new hockey rink. And I have to give a lot of credit to Gene Smith and his team because that’s what he did…that’s what he said he’d leave before he retired. We are his last mission so I am very confident that he will pull this off with his team.