📍 Lincoln, Nebraska
🏒 Home of the Lincoln Stars

Don’t let the unassuming exterior of The Ice Box fool you – this old-school barn, located in Nebraska’s capital city, is one of junior hockey’s most raw and intimate venues. Here, the game is played in its purest form, with a passionate Lincoln Stars fanbase that creates an electric atmosphere night after night and a truly one-of-a-kind Great Plains hockey experience.

Opened in 1951, the Ice Box was initially an agricultural building at the state fairgrounds but was adapted for hockey when the Stars came to town in 1996. Although the fairgrounds would move down the interstate to Grand Island in 2011, the land surrounding The Ice Box was quickly gobbled up by the nearby University of Nebraska and today functions as the school’s Innovation Campus.

In its hockey setup, the arena features a rectangular ice-level seating bowl, metal bleachers in the south corners and a balcony club area, which combine to hold approximately 4,600 energetic fans. Often leading the charge are the “Section K Rowdies”, a boisterous group seated on the blue line nearest the goal that the home team attacks twice. However, there is no goal horn at The Ice Box, leaving it up to the crowd to roar and cheer after every Stars goal. Another strange detail: the venue doesn’t have an HVAC system, so the air is often thick and hazy, adding to the old-fashioned ambience.

While the atmosphere itself during all three periods of play is certainly remarkable, it’s the amazing pre-game spectacle that really steals the show. Lasers dance around the arena and a massive, lit-up Stars logo descends from the rafters as the players are introduced. The whole crowd also gleefully shouts “Stars!” when that word is sung during the national anthem, setting the tone for a night full of emphatic chants and yells.

On the concourse – which wraps three-quarters of the way around the arena in a U-shape – you’ll find a few quirky amenities and an eclectic mix of concession stands. Strangely, there are a couple of trading card vending machines scattered about, featuring high-quality packs of cards from Stars squads of the past and present. As for food, well… take your pick. The Ice Box may just have the most comprehensive variety of offerings in all of junior hockey, featuring a plethora of items both made-in-house and from local chains. Among the options are steakburgers, chicken sandwiches and frozen custard from Kansas-based Freddy’s, sweets and treats from Midwest staple Eileen’s Cookies, pizza from local chain Valentino’s, coffee and tea from small-batch craft coffee roaster The Mill, pulled pork sandwiches, pork nachos, walking tacos, hot dogs, soft pretzels, hot cocoa and even fruity margaritas.

A member of the USHL, the nation’s preeminent Tier I junior hockey league, the Stars play with a type of grit and determination that mirrors The Ice Box itself, becoming an occasional playoff contender and winner of two Clark Cups. Their first came on the heels of a record-breaking inaugural season – the best in USHL expansion history – in 1996-97, with their second win just six years later in 2003.

While their postseason accomplishments have been sporadic in recent years, the Stars are still the heart and soul of hockey in the Lincoln area and The Ice Box is still their beloved home. Sadly, the venue may be on borrowed time, with the City of Lincoln recommending that it be demolished at the conclusion of the Stars’ lease agreement in 2031. Until then, although it may not be the prettiest arena, The Ice Box undoubtedly remains one of the most authentic and electrifying hockey experiences in the Midwest.