Drake University Club Hockey is on the brink of its most significant structural change in program history. A 3,500-seat hockey arena is set to begin construction at Merle Hay Mall by this March, and after an expected 18 months of construction and $42 million, this will serve as Drake Club Hockey’s new home arena.
The arena did not originate as an opportunity for Drake. In 2021, Merle Hay Mall announced a project in collaboration with the local junior hockey team, the Des Moines Buccaneers, to build an arena to bring more life to the surrounding area. However, the Buccaneers backed out two years later. The ground had already been broken on the project, leaving the site untouched as the mall was left without plans or tenants for the new arena.
The project was revived in April 2025 when Jared Hassman, the director of leasing at Merle Hay Mall, announced the revised plans for the project. The arena was now slated to include a single sheet of ice, sports courts, and pickleball courts to support multiple teams using state funding.
To the team, the most exciting part of the new arena is the inclusion of a locker room specific to Drake Club Hockey. Players will no longer have to rent out a storage facility for their gear. Having a dedicated space is important, said sophomore hockey player Matthew Garcia.
“The arena will hopefully be more of a home for the club,” Garcia said.
Garcia said he is optimistic about the impact that the new arena will have and hopes to see it leave a lasting impact on the hockey community in Des Moines.
The arena places Drake Club Hockey within a wider effort to bring new life and activity to the Merle Hay area. Liz Holland, CEO of mall owner Abbell Associates, said that Merle Hay Mall’s convenient location makes involvement easier for Drake. This could lead to more spectators and potentially a women’s club hockey team down the road.
Ian Altekruse, one of the captains of the hockey team, has been on the team since his first year at Drake. Now, he has gotten to play a role in the new development for this club, and said this new area is a big step to grow the club over the next few years.
Altekruse said he hopes that playing closer to Drake will help more students show up to support the team.
“Hopefully this also extends to people in the surrounding Des Moines community,” Altekruse said.
Altekruse hopes the new location also helps hockey grow in the metro, as an ice arena in a popular social spot could introduce more people to the sport.
Drake Club Hockey has operated within the limits common to club sports since its founding in 2020, often settling for late and sparse ice times. The Merle Hay arena serves not just as a new location for the team to play, but also as an opportunity to grow within the University and community.
