OT: 4 Ice Center

[Dalkiel]

For those who play hockey locally here, I'd like to know your thoughts on the ice at the 4 ice center. I've been playing hockey for 25 years or so and have played on many many of difference rinks and ice surfaces but never have I been on ice like the 4 ice center. I cannot believe this is a new arena with the ice they have. I played last night in rink D and it was nothing but slush....sure you might say its just early in the year but its the same all year around and I have been on it since day 1 and its the same poor poor quality no matter the time of day or time of year.

The 4 ice center is the most expensive (other than the coliseum) ice per hour in Moncton from my knowledge but provides the worst surface by a long shot....although the new Kay isn't the greatest either.

It seems to me the smaller and older rinks seem to have the best ice, maybe not the best facility but the best ice. Take Hillsborough for example, not the best facility but excellent ice, you can go 3 periods without a flood where as the 4 ice center you need a flood every 3rd whistle. Petty is another rink with pretty good ice from what I remember, Amherst, Rogersville, Centennial, the Olympic and Arthur J, and the Byron in Riverview (special note to the lower).
All in all I'm quite disappointed in the new rinks and how poor the quality and dangerous might I add the ice surface is.

I'm curious to hear the thoughts of those who play hockey in the greater Moncton area.

[Optimus Reim]

Rink D is the worst of the 4 at the4 Plex. The figure skaters use that a lot and chew it up. The Kay, Coliseum and 4 plex are all the same price as it is set up through the 4 plex. The ice is better on B and C. A is decent but its like playing at the Coliseum, hot. I love the ice in Hillsborough. The rink is cold and the ice is hard, great to skate on and you can play for an hour and its not too bad. But if you can try to stay away from D at the 4 plex.

[Dalkiel]

Nov 3, 2008 19:51:42 GMT -4 Optimus Reim said:

Rink D is the worst of the 4 at the4 Plex. The figure skaters use that a lot and chew it up. The Kay, Coliseum and 4 plex are all the same price as it is set up through the 4 plex. The ice is better on B and C. A is decent but its like playing at the Coliseum, hot. I love the ice in Hillsborough. The rink is cold and the ice is hard, great to skate on and you can play for an hour and its not too bad. But if you can try to stay away from D at the 4 plex.

I find A B C D all equally piss poor. None to me are any better.
I'm no ice expert or nothing but I am a goalie so I pay a little more attention to ice than most people. I just don't understand it, would it not be as simple as turning the temp down a degree or two?

[Sébastien]

I was never a big fan of the ice at the 4Plex, but even more so, I always hated the ice in Petitcodiac. Too hard, way too hard! Might be different for a goaltender then a player, but I always hated having to play in Petitcodiac because of that.

[Optimus Reim]

I prefer harder ice. I am not the best skater so the more I can glide the better. Lol. But dalkiel is right the ice is not great but D is the worst. I have had some nights when its great. But the best ice is early in the AM IMO. We have played as early as 7 and it was great. But also it depends on the Zamboni driver too. I have seen them over flood where its like a pool for half the game but also where they put almost nothing. It was like skating on the road. The best ice in Moncton is at the J Louis. The rink is cold enough but its almost impossible to get ice there.

[Dalkiel]

I've played at the J and it is very good....not Hillsborough but still pretty good.

As for Sebastien, I find the harder the ice the better. When the ice is really hard like -20 pond hockey it doesn't get roughed up as much and more enjoyable to play on IMO

[chootoi]

the 4 plex is quite warm inside compared to alot of rinks. you can sit and watch a game without a jacket most times (i mean in the rink part, not upstairs). if you're playing, you likely notice it also.

the rinks like hillsborough and shediac, who have the better ice, are like the old barns and if you go to those rinks without a coat you'd better bring a 40 ouncer.

i find the best ice in town is at the arthur J in dieppe. the old rink there is amazing ice and the olympic ice surface is also pretty good, even with the figure skater and speed skater use. i believe it's also significantly cheaper than moncton.

riverview also has decent ice but the lighting in those rinks is horrid. you might aswell be playing in the parking lot under the stars.

[SteveUL]

When that Hillsborough arena was built ... they took the Plant from the old Moncton Stadium after it collpased ... or at least that is what I was told. I disagree with the comment that you can play 3 periods without a flood though ... my son was playing midget the last few years and down there the 3rd period was always slower due to too much snow on the ice. The Coach used the strategy to go at them hard for 2 periods to build up a lead and then try to hold them off for the 3rd when it was harder to pass the puck effectively.

I think you'll find that most colder rinks have good ice ... while rinks that try to keep the inside reasonably warm for spectators have lower quality ice. Hillsborough is the coldest rink in Southeastern NB for spectators.

I agree on the old Arthur J ... nicest ice surface around here.

[Dalkiel]

Nov 4, 2008 8:50:40 GMT -4 SteveUL said:

When that Hillsborough arena was built ... they took the Plant from the old Moncton Stadium after it collpased ... or at least that is what I was told. I disagree with the comment that you can play 3 periods without a flood though ... my son was playing midget the last few years and down there the 3rd period was always slower due to too much snow on the ice. The Coach used the strategy to go at them hard for 2 periods to build up a lead and then try to hold them off for the 3rd when it was harder to pass the puck effectively.

I think you'll find that most colder rinks have good ice ... while rinks that try to keep the inside reasonably warm for spectators have lower quality ice. Hillsborough is the coldest rink in Southeastern NB for spectators.

I agree on the old Arthur J ... nicest ice surface around here.

The 3 period comment was just to make a point compared to the 4 ice center

[grinder]

I wonder why they are having trouble with the ice at the 4plex, you would think with the money they spent they would have good ice. I agree with other posters that some of the best ice in southeastern new brunswick is in the old rinks. I grew up playing in Petitcodiac which never was a great facility, but loved playing on the ice surface, I also loved the ice in Riverview and at the Arthur J Leblanc

[Dalkiel]

Nov 4, 2008 12:00:25 GMT -4 grinder said:

I wonder why they are having trouble with the ice at the 4plex, you would think with the money they spent they would have good ice. I agree with other posters that some of the best ice in southeastern new brunswick is in the old rinks. I grew up playing in Petitcodiac which never was a great facility, but loved playing on the ice surface, I also loved the ice in Riverview and at the Arthur J Leblanc

That's exactly my point.....with the money they spent and with todays technology, its amazing that they can put such a piss poor ice surface.

[tal]

Take this for what it's worth (a couple-years old third-hand information). When my oldest was ref'ing, I usually sat in the stands by myself (away from loud parents of players - of which I am one now). In one rink one time, I sat beside a rink staff, who told me he had just come back from a session at the 4plex regarding ice quality. He told me (if I recall correctly) that the temperature (or setting) of the cooling plant was determined each day by the "head office" of the company that owned the 4plex - which was located in Calgary, and therefore that the settings of the cooling plant in Moncton were determined based on the air temperature in Calgary.

Now, if that's true (and if I remember it correctly) - it could explain inconsistent ice at the 4plex (which is what my son used to complain about when ref'ing there).

[Dalkiel]

Nov 4, 2008 16:16:37 GMT -4 tal said:

Take this for what it's worth (a couple-years old third-hand information). When my oldest was ref'ing, I usually sat in the stands by myself (away from loud parents of players - of which I am one now). In one rink one time, I sat beside a rink staff, who told me he had just come back from a session at the 4plex regarding ice quality. He told me (if I recall correctly) that the temperature (or setting) of the cooling plant was determined each day by the "head office" of the company that owned the 4plex - which was located in Calgary, and therefore that the settings of the cooling plant in Moncton were determined based on the air temperature in Calgary.

Now, if that's true (and if I remember it correctly) - it could explain inconsistent ice at the 4plex (which is what my son used to complain about when ref'ing there).

I thought the city owns and runs the 4-ice center.

Also, the ice is very consistant.....nothing inconsistant about it.

[Optimus Reim]

I believe at one time the city did run it but now this company is in charge and he is correct they are based out of Calgary.

[pong]

Nov 4, 2008 8:50:40 GMT -4 SteveUL said:

Hillsborough is the coldest rink in Southeastern NB for spectators.

I would vote for Memramcook as the coldest in S.E. NB but my vote for coldest rink in North America goes to ...Rogersville!!