"You'll see hockey again at Xtream Arena. Definitely not this coming season. Perhaps the season after that." That is how The Gazette opened its look at the arena's future, and it describes this winter in Coralville well.
The Iowa Heartlanders asked the ECHL Board of Governors for a voluntary suspension of operations for the 2026–27 season, and the league approved it. The team announced the decision on a Monday in March, played out its remaining 2025–26 home games at Xtream Arena, and stepped back. Team president Matt Getz told KCRG that financial shortfalls were among the reasons for the pause.
So the arena at Iowa River Landing has its first winter without pro hockey, and hockey in Coralville hasn't stopped. Part of it moved across town to the ice at Coral Ridge Mall, where youth players wear the Junior Heartlanders name. The arena's general manager says the city's plan for bringing pro hockey back depends on that youth game.
What the arena books when nobody holds the winter dates
The listings on Xtream Arena's events calendar are heavy on all-day tournaments and short touring runs:
- Tuesday, Nov. 17, 6 p.m.: Iowa Volleyball vs. Illinois, listed as Senior Night.
- Nov. 26 to 29: Circus Hollywood, opening at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving night, then 7 p.m. on Nov. 27, 1 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 28, and 1 p.m. on Nov. 29.
- Dec. 3 to 5, 9 a.m. daily: Dan Gable Donnybrook.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 3 p.m.: Band Extravaganza, with University of Iowa bands, the Hawkeye Marching Band, Johnson County Landmark, the Spirit Squads and Linn-Mar's Marching Lions.
- Friday, Dec. 11, 7:30 p.m.: Hairball, with Rival 5.
- Jan. 2 and 3, 9 a.m.: Soldier Salute.
- Jan. 15 and 16, 7:30 p.m.: Battle By The River Rodeo, with line-dancing lessons at 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 15.
- Jan. 23, 9 a.m.: For Her Duals. The Iowa women's wrestling schedule lists its home For Her Dual Tournament for Jan. 23 and 24.
- Jan. 30 and 31, 8 a.m.: WrestleTown USA Nationals.
Four of those events are wrestling. The Donnybrook, Soldier Salute, For Her Duals and WrestleTown all start at 8 or 9 in the morning and run over several days, so much of the arena's winter activity happens in daylight.
Thanksgiving week shows the change best. Circus Hollywood opens on Thursday, Nov. 26, and Iowa River Landing's calendar lists a Thanksgiving Day Buffet at Watermill Kitchen & Bar the same day. The circus has an opening-night family deal. With an adult ticket, children ages 2 to 12 are $7 at the box office or $9 online. Center seats are $17 at the box office and $20 online, and end seats are $14 and $16.50, with fees possible on top. Buying at the box office beats online on every tier, so walking over from the Landing pays off on opening night.
Xtream's November and January calendars have no public skating on them. The arena's public skate on March 20 and 21, 2026, cost $8, and skaters brought their own skates and left hockey sticks at home.
The attendance number behind the pause
In The Gazette's reporting, Xtream Arena general manager Jason Anderson said the Heartlanders' lease runs two more years. If the team sorts things out, it has a contract to return for 2027–28. Anderson also said the arena isn't "putting all of our eggs in that basket." It has talked with the Southern Professional Hockey League and the Federal Prospects Hockey League. Both rank one level below the ECHL, and neither is affiliated with the NHL.
The Gazette's attendance figures help explain why those leagues are part of the conversation. In the season the Heartlanders finished this spring, they averaged 1,626 fans a game. That was last among the ECHL's 30 teams, and the league average was 5,018. Here are the same figures side by side, as The Gazette reported them:
League or team, per-game average | Fans |
|---|---|
ECHL league average | 5,018 |
SPHL league average | 4,264 |
FPHL league average | 2,775 |
Iowa Heartlanders, last season | 1,626 |
Coralville's crowds were below even the lower-tier leagues' averages. The Gazette also points out that running an ECHL team, with its player salaries and equipment, costs significantly more than running a team in the SPHL or FPHL. A team that costs less to run could break even with the kind of crowds Coralville already draws. The junior USHL can't come to Coralville because the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders hold the territorial rights.
Anderson said the shared goal of City Manager Kelly Hayworth, Josh Schamberger of the Iowa City/Coralville Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the arena is to "have everything ready to roll for 2027-28," with no more than one year off.
Where Coralville's hockey winter actually happens now
Anderson gave two reasons for keeping the break to one year. The first is money: an anchor tenant matters to the arena's finances. The second is the area's youth programs, which he said have grown "exponentially" because the Heartlanders were here. In the same Gazette piece he put it this way:
"I think the Heartlanders created a bit of a hockey culture here, so we don't really want to lose momentum. Keep building."
This season, that youth hockey happens at the BODYARMOR Ice Rink at Coral Ridge Mall. The Iowa City-Coralville Hockey Association has 2026–27 registration open for its Junior Heartlanders, so the team name is still on jerseys in Coralville this winter. The rink's ice schedule labels the association's practices and games "ICH." It also has public skate sessions open to anyone. The Hawkeye Skating Club is based at the rink and calls it home.
The pro team's absence doesn't change the rink's calendar. Its Winter I Learn to Skate session runs Tuesdays from Oct. 20 to Dec. 8 and Saturdays from Oct. 24 to Dec. 12. The fee was $100 plus a $20 membership fee, and it came with two free admission and skate-rental passes. Winter II starts Tuesday, Jan. 5, and Saturday, Jan. 9, 2027. The Winter II start lands between Soldier Salute and the rodeo at Xtream.
Anderson credits youth hockey for the market's growth, and that's why the mall rink matters to the arena's plans. The young players who start in the Junior Heartlanders program this winter are the fans Xtream will need if hockey comes back for 2027–28.
If your family's winter weekends used to revolve around Heartlanders games, or a new skater at home is starting Learn to Skate in January, we'd be glad to compare notes on how Coralville's winter is coming together this year. Jill Armstrong and our team have lived through many corridor winters, and we're always happy to talk about this community. Contact Us anytime.
