Northern Kentucky Ice Center — Attraction in Erlanger

I have been playing hockey since I was 9 years old. I have seen a lot of rinks in a lot of different places. This one takes the cake as the worst rink I have ever stepped foot in.

Inside and out, the place is falling apart. Literally. Everything appears old, dirty, and grungy. The stands are made of old wood that appeared damp. At the top is an old, rusty railing. This obviously wouldn't matter for a team playing there...except that it does. Three glass panels replaced with plywood. Doors to benches and penalty boxes that can hardly be opened and closed. The glass that IS there is lower than most rinks. The painted lines under the ice are old and faded. Pieces of the boards jutting out create hazards to players. I am honestly surprised this place is not shut down after safety inspections.

Parking is terrible. The asphalt needed replaced a decade ago. And there is very limited parking. I estimate there are 50 parking spaces. That would probably accommodate parent vehicles from two teams. But with two teams already on the ice (and their vehicles already in the lot), there was no place for me to park. I ended up parking at a nearby business and walking.

Plus it is also the coldest rink in our league. My toes were completely numb after watching my son's game for an hour. There are two warming areas for players and parents but they are not in a place which allows for viewing the game.

I get it. The cost to maintain an ice rink is extremely high. But I am surprised that virtually no improvement have been made in the 8 years I have been coming here for youth hockey games. I heard a rumor that a new rink will be built nearby. Hopefully that is true because players, parents, and coaches hate...

Worst ice rink experience I've ever had. Parking is extremely limited, as well as poorly maintained. It's more a muddy mess than anything else. When we arrived, the facility was not very busy at all. Despite this, they had almost no skate sizes available. (A fact that was not brought to our attention, and we would have had no way of knowing before we bought tickets) they also do not clean the skates between uses. Not so much as a squirt of disinfectant. The ice was all but destroyed and was pretty melted far before the end of the session. Due to this most people were just standing around inside the rink. the entire inside of the rink was extremely run down, complete with nearly falling down rink walls, and a "sound system" that consisted of 1 speaker you could only hear when you were directly underneath it.

I would never...

In my over 20 years of hockey experience as a player and a coach, this place takes the cake as the absolute worst rink I’ve ever been to. This place needs to be condemned immediately. Rink manager admitted that the building isn’t to code and they don’t repair anything because if they did they would be required to fix everything. The place is covered in mold, seems like every inch. Anything covered in metal is also covered in so much rust you’ll want a tetanus shot. The place reeks of mold, urine and something else foul. Bleachers are wood and completely wet because there is so much moisture in the air and no condenser. Restrooms are a major health concern too. Horrible place for hockey. If you have to play their team, schedule games against them at your home rink. You’ll want to wash yourself in bleach...