The Compton Family Ice Arena is a 5,022-seat,
two-rink
ice facility in
Notre Dame, Indiana
Notre Dame is a census-designated place and unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend in St. Joseph County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. It includes the campuses of three colleges: the University of Notre Dame, Saint Mary's Coll ...
on the campus of the
University of Notre Dame. The arena saw its first game on October 21, 2011. The ice arena replaced the 2,857-seat rink in the north dome of the
Edmund P. Joyce Center
The Joyce Center, formerly the Athletic & Convocation Center, is a 9,149-seat multi-purpose arena in Notre Dame, Indiana just north of South Bend. The arena opened its doors in 1968. It is home to the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish basket ...
.
It is named in honor of former
San Jose Sharks part-owners Kevin and Gayla Compton, whose gift led funding for the project.
The new ice arena is located south of the Joyce Center, just north of Edison Road, and just west of where the new Irish track and field facility is being constructed. The majority of the general public arena seating is of the chair-back variety. The facility includes two sheets of ice (one of them Olympic-sized), with limited seating availability for the second sheet.
Offices, locker room, and training facilities for the Notre Dame hockey program will be located within the facility. The weight room within the building will be available for use by all Fighting Irish varsity athletes. Eight auxiliary locker rooms will be available for campus and community use of the facility.
History
On February 12, 2009, the University of Notre Dame announced it would begin construction the next year on a new, freestanding, on-campus ice arena designed to meet the needs of both the nationally ranked
Irish men's hockey team and the local community. Construction began on March 15, 2010 on the 5,022-seat arena, which opened on schedule on October 18, 2011.
The University originally had planned to renovate the current Joyce Center ice facility, but additional studies changed that plan to instead feature a new building. With the completion of the new arena, the ice plant was removed from the Joyce Center's north dome, making its space available for a variety of other events.
Charles W. "Lefty" Smith Jr. Rink
The main ice arena features a 200' x 90' ice rink. The facility is named the Charles W. "Lefty" Smith Jr. Rink, in honor of the first coach in the program's history.
References
External links
Compton Family Ice Arena
{{Big Ten Conference men's ice hockey navbox
College ice hockey venues in the United States
Notre Dame Fighting Irish ice hockey
University of Notre Dame buildings and structures
Sports venues in South Bend, Indiana
Ice hockey venues in Indiana
University and college buildings completed in 2011