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A rendering depicting what the addition to Thompson Arena is slated to look like following the completion of planned renovations. (courtesy photo Dartmouth Athletics) -
An inside look at what the Smoyer Lounge, a hospitality space, is projected to look like after the completion of planned renovations to Dartmouth College’s Thompson Arena. (courtesy photo Dartmouth Athletics) -
Dartmouth’s Hayden Stavroff (10) skates behind the goal after shoving Cornell’s Ben Robertson (21) into the glass during a hockey game at Thompson Arena in Hanover, N.H., on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024. Dartmouth won, 4-3. (Valley News – Alex Driehaus)
HANOVER — The home of Dartmouth College’s hockey teams is undergoing a makeover that will bring upgrades for players and also promote equity between the men’s and women’s squads.
Plans for 50-year-old Thompson Arena call for an addition of just over 11,000 square feet and nearly 13,000 square feet of interior renovations to the existing space.
“This is all designed around a really enhanced experience for our student-athletes and also with efficiency of their time in mind,” said Mike Harrity, Dartmouth’s director of athletics and recreation.
“Ivy League student-athletes work very hard in the classroom, in their sport, and also just growing personally, and we really want to be more efficient with how they experience all that,” he added.
At ice level, additional square footage is being added to the men’s and women’s locker rooms, and team lounges will also be expanded. A renovated space for equipment will be created, along with an expanded sports medicine facilities footprint with hydrotherapy capabilities.
On the level above that, there will be a new weight room, which Harrity said will serve the hockey program and other teams that train nearby.
“We haven’t arrived at which ones (teams) will train out of there, but it would be so much more efficient for them to practice, come right out of practice, and if they have a scheduled weightlifting session, going right into Thompson,” Harrity said.
Coaches’ offices, currently located a few blocks away in Davis Varsity House, will also be relocated to Thompson.
At the concourse level, a new and improved Smoyer Lounge will be available, serving as a hospitality space during games and for special events. Harrity said that team meetings and meals could take place in the new lounge.
Head women’s hockey coach Maura Crowell, who is entering her second season leading the Big Green, said she was pleased the improvements were focused on her players.
“The really great part is it’s all pretty much student-athlete focused,” she said.
“I think just in general, the student-athlete playing experience is going to be awesome in there,” she added.
Reid Cashman, the head coach of the men’s hockey team, who joined the Big Green in 2020, expressed enthusiasm for the renovation, noting that it will aid in player development.
“To have a weight room 20 feet away from our locker room that our athletes can go to is just massive for how they can take care of their body, how they can develop their body,” he said.
In addition to better efficiency for student-athletes, the project will also create more equitable spaces for the men’s and women’s teams.
Specifically, the women’s hockey locker room, which has not been at ice level, will be relocated as a result of the project.
“It’s hard to make it up a couple of different stairwells with skates on, so we really, just for safety and health reasons, wanted to get that down to ice level,” said Harrity.
The project, which is being worked on in phases, is slated for completion by the start of the 2026 season and is estimated to cost in the “high $20 million” range. It is being funded by both the college and private donors, per Harrity.
“Our generous donors, former players, alumni, parents, friends of Dartmouth hockey have stepped up incredibly,” Harrity said. “It’s been an awesome outpouring of support.”
As work on the arena renovations progresses, both head coaches are hopeful that the project will translate to the play on the ice. Last season, the men finished 18-13-2 and secured an outright Ivy League championship for the first time since the 1979-80 season, while the women finished 5-21-3.
“It’s going to have a massive impact,” said Cashman. “We should see a healthier, stronger, faster Dartmouth hockey team because of this renovation.”
Crowell believed that the project would help recruit high-quality athletes because it demonstrates the college’s investment in the hockey program to recruits.
“That certainly puts us in the conversation with some of the top players, and as a result, you start getting those top players (and) your product on the ice is going to be better,” she said.
While teams and fans await the transformation of Thompson Arena, they will not have to wait for at least one upgrade for this upcoming season: according to Harrity, a video board will be installed at the arena for the first time ever, which is the result of the generosity of an individual who will be announced at a later date.
Ultimately, Harrity, Crowel, and Cashman expressed gratitude to both the college and donors who are making the upgrades to Thompson Arena possible.
“This is my fifth institution, 26 years in college athletics, and I’ve never experienced or seen stronger alignment between the athletics department, the athletic director, our president Sian Beilock, and the board of trustees to believe in the transformational power of sport,” said Harrity.
“We are excited about that vision, and this facility will provide our coaches, support staff and especially student-athletes with the resources they need to train and compete at an elite level.”
Michael Coughlin Jr. can be reached at mcoughlin@vnews.com.