The Nottingham Ice Stadium was an

ice rink An ice rink (or ice skating rink) is a frozen body of water and/or an artificial sheet of ice created using hardened chemicals where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Ice rinks are also used for exhibitions, contests and ice shows. The ...

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

from 1939 to 2000. It had a seating capacity of 2800 for

Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

games. The building was first opened in 1939 but it was quickly called upon for other purposes. Throughout

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the Ice Stadium acted as a store for guns, bullets and other ammunition produced at the nearby

Royal Ordnance Factory Royal Ordnance Factories (ROFs) was the collective name of the UK government's munitions factories during and after the Second World War. Until privatisation, in 1987, they were the responsibility of the Ministry of Supply, and later the Ministr ...

ROF Nottingham Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Nottingham opened in 1936 in The Meadows, Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was one of a number of Royal Ordnance Factories created in the build up to World War II. During the war the site employed up to four thousand ...

. When the war ended, the building soon returned to being a recreational and ice sports building. A year after the end of the war, the Ice Stadium became the home of the

Nottingham Panthers The Nottingham Panthers are a British professional ice hockey club based in Nottingham, England. They are members of the Elite Ice Hockey League. Their main team sponsor is the Nottingham Building Society. The Nottingham Panthers have won four ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team, who would use the facility until it closed, albeit with a twenty-year break. When the Panthers disbanded in 1960, the Ice Stadium continued to be used for

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

and some other ice sports. It was to be the rink where ice dancers

Torvill and Dean Torvill and Dean (Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean) are English ice dancers and former British Ice Figure and Dance Championships, British, European Figure Skating Championships, European, Figure skating at the Olympic Games, Olympic, and Wor ...

would practise in their early years. The Panthers were re-established in 1980, and the Ice Stadium became renowned as one of the most intimidating venues for opposition ice hockey teams to visit. It was affectionately known amongst the ice hockey fraternity as 'The Barn'. From 1980–82, the legendary ice hockey player

Les Strongman Les Strongman (23 August 1924 – 8 August 2019) was a Canadian ice hockey player. He was born in Winnipeg. Strongman played professional hockey in Europe between 1946 and 1968 with Malmo FF (Sweden), Zurich SC (Switzerland) and British Natio ...

, was the Panthers

Head Coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

.Panthers site
/ref> In 1996, plans were announced to replace the ageing building with a modern

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

and a new skating pad. The Nottingham Ice Stadium was closed after 61 years in 2000. The Panthers played their final game at the Ice Stadium against the Newcastle Riverkings, which was lost 2–1 in overtime. The building was demolished soon afterwards to allow for the completion of the

National Ice Centre The National Ice Centre (NIC) is located in Nottingham, England. It is situated just east of the city centre, close to the historic Lace Market area. The NIC was the first twin Olympic-sized (60m x 30m) ice pad facility in the UK, "heralding ...

References

{{Coord, 52, 57, 10, N, 1, 8, 22, W, type:landmark, display=title Indoor ice hockey venues in England Sports venues in Nottingham Nottingham Panthers