Yunost Sports Palace

The building that now houses HK Chelmet has changed its purpose several times. It opened as an ice rink in 1967, but the years that followed saw the space adapted for other needs. A bus station moved inside in 2011. When the station relocated in 2021, the ice returned.

A glass curtain runs along the ground floor, reflecting the sky and the trees that line the avenue. Inside, the dimensions are smaller than the great arenas in Moscow or St Petersburg. The ice measures 60 by 30 metres, a compact rectangle that suits the pace of the league.

HK Traktor played here for decades, until they moved to a newer facility in 2009. HK Chelmet, the club that remains, plays the shorter season with a sense of obligation rather than expectation. The crowd rarely fills the 3,650 seats, and when they do, it is usually for a match that means something beyond the table.

The venue has hosted other events alongside hockey. A dance championship passed through in 2018, bringing a different kind of noise to the seating. A fire damaged a dance hall within the building in 2023, and the space was rebuilt. The ice remains frozen through the summer months, maintained by the same refrigeration system that has run since the beginning.

There are no grand tiers or sweeping views here. The stands rise only a few levels, close enough to hear the pucks strike the boards. For a town that has seen its teams rise and fall, the arena offers a place to watch the game without distractions. The air inside carries the familiar smell of cold and sweat, unchanged by the decades.