Asheville Hockey League Newsletter: Fourth Quarter and link to the public survey! Please respond!
4th Quarter, December 2025
Hockey Returns to Asheville!
Sort of…
Yes! The Asheville Hockey League has a rink at 99 Riverside Dr.
After the loss of the public rink in Carrier Park to the 2024 Helene flood, the league has been striving to get our youth league back on wheels in Asheville. Thanks to sponsorship from local businesses and the Carolina Hurricanes, we have been able to achieve our league objectives for 2025.
Secure rink time in Greenville to get both the youth and adult leagues playing again.
Produce our first fundraising tournament (The Hurricane Cup).
Establish a local rink to get our youngest youth players engaged and playing again!
What does this rink mean for the adult league?
Right now, as was originally intended, the rink is a youth-only facility. There are several current limiting factors for widening access to adult play.
Tile surface quality. The surface is simply not up to faster adult play. It is fine for developing youth players, but the playability at any real speed is severely limited.
The durability of the dasher boards and fencing. Our intention was always to provide a youth facility first and this fills that need. But the boards really can’t take the kind of physical play the adult league is used to.
The size. At roughly 60 x 85 feet, the rink is much smaller than what we are used to. It’s great for a young skater just learning, but standard adult play isn’t feasible.
Will adults ever be able to play on it?
We hope so! The league is upgrading the tile right now. This should greatly improve the playability of the surface and it will give the league a chance to test the tile we intend for use in a future full-sized facility. We are also increasing the durability of the fencing and reinforcing the boards. Hopefully, this will allow 3 on 3 adult play in the near future!
Keep in mind, this is a youth facility first and we are going to schedule time and use based on the needs of the kids!
Is the rink public? Can anyone skate there?
In a word, No! The league has secured a lease with the owner of the land and has liability insurance that covers our youth league activities. We are investigating if and how we can open it to other groups and, hopefully in the future, set pick-up times that we all want. Obviously, we have to get it to the stage of adult playability first!
Ok. Enough on the kid’s rink. What’s the deal with a new full size rink?
Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of news on this front. The city still intends to build a temporary rink on Ashland Ave (next to Asheville Yards) and has put the construction bid out twice, with nobody accepting it. Rest assured, the league has been represented in discussions for both design and scheduling, but there is not a date for construction as of yet. The site needs to be graded, paved and then have the rink installed. It is our understanding that funds have been allocated, but the timing of the project scope needs to coincide with favorable weather to be possible. The league still owns a rink that we intend to lend to the city and we are testing new outdoor tile at the youth rink to make sure that the surface we recommend is what will give the best playability. But in the end, this is a municipal project that is subject to the timing and limitations of any city project. As we learn more, we will include updates in future communications.
Don't forget to give your input to the city!
Deadline for this survey is 12PM on 12/19/2025!
If you can attend the public meeting, that is even better!
Other news…
Thanks to very generous local and national sponsors, and players still willing to make the trek to Greenville occasionally, the league is still financially sound.
Total registrations for 2025 were $46,285 (a normal year at Carrier Park was about $75,000).
We have cut expenses where possible (fewer jerseys, better pricing on screen printing, etc) and we have some amazing local sponsors that have stuck with us! But, we are also paying for rink time - So, while we are financially very healthy, we are still being frugal and are incredibly grateful for the sponsors and donations that have given us the ability to keep youth and adult programming going, while developing a new facility in town and preserving resources for a future facility!
Financially, after seeing a high balance of $213,522, the league still has $175,708 in the bank (and our youth league is skating in Asheville again!)
Congratulations to our Fall Season Adult division winners!
A League - Bev’s
B League - Olde London
C League - Pure & Proper
Thank you to all that have supported and stuck with us in this challenging year! We are excited and optimistic about the future!
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