NHL builds the 2026 Heritage Classic rink in Winnipeg with its mobile ice plant

The NHL is already building the real-ice rink for the 2026 Heritage Classic at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg, Canada. On Saturday, October 25, 2026, the Winnipeg Jets face the Montreal Canadiens in an official regular-season game on natural ice in the open air.

The rink is being built with the NHL’s mobile ice plant: a 53-foot (16-meter), 300-ton refrigeration unit that circulates about 3,000 gallons (over 11,000 liters) of glycol through pipes laid under the stadium floor. Sensors inside the ice monitor temperature in real time to keep the surface game-ready.

The build proves what Napapiri has applied for decades: a real-ice rink does not need a building. With mobile machinery, a flat base and enough energy, a football stadium becomes a professional ice rink in a matter of days.

For event organizers, municipalities and leisure and sports facilities, the Heritage Classic is the most visible reference for mobile real ice: the same refrigeration, insulation and control principles the NHL uses in Winnipeg are available for projects of any size.

Photo: Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg. Photo by Significa liberdade, public domain (CC0 1.0), via Wikimedia Commons. Archive photo of the stadium, not of the ice build.

Source: NHL.com.