3 dead, 3 injured in shooting at Pawtucket ice rink; state leaders express sorrow, outrage
The Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket. (Google street view)
A shooting at the Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket during a high school hockey game Monday killed three people, including the suspected shooter, in what police are calling a “family dispute.”
Three other victims who were shot remain in the hospital, Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves said in a Monday evening news conference outside the rink.
“It appears that this was a targeted event, that it may be a family dispute,” Goncalves said, adding later, “I don’t know the relationship exactly at this point, because it’s still initial but yes, it is family related.”
Goncalves said that police responded to an active shooter call at the rink around 2:30 p.m. and found two casualties, one of them the suspect. A third person who was injured later died at the hospital.
Names of victims had not been released, Goncalves said, noting police are still working to notify family members.
The Presidents’ Day matchup between Coventry-Johnston co-op and St. Raphael-Providence Country Day-North Providence-North Smithfield co-op involved students from multiple schools in the Blackstone Valley.
All students from the Coventry Boys Hockey team who were present “have been accounted for and are safe,” Coventry’s superintendent Don Cowart said in a statement. The Providence Country Day school confirmed in an Instagram story that all students, parents and staff who were present at the game are safe.
Video taken during the game does not show the shooting, but bursts can be heard before players on both benches duck and spectators begin to flee the arena.
“We want to speak to all the people that were witnesses so that we can get an accurate story to put out there,” Goncalves said at the press briefing. “I can tell you that we’re probably going to have another press release tomorrow.”
The FBI’s Boston division posted on X Monday evening to share that it is ready to assist the Pawtucket Police Department and the Rhode Island State Police “with any and all resources they need.”
There was no request for assistance from local law enforcement and no immediate threat to public safety, the FBI wrote..
“However, the public should continue to avoid the area,” the FBI post added.
Reactions from the state’s political leaders poured in quickly. State Rep. Jennifer Stewart, a Pawtucket Democrat, posted to X at 3:18 p.m., not long after the initial media reports of the shooting began to circulate.
“My heart goes out to the victims and survivors [of] this horrific shooting and their families,” Stewart wrote.
Gov. Dan McKee’s message arrived at 3:27 p.m.
“I am praying for Pawtucket and everyone involved,” McKee posted to X.
McKee’s second-in-command, Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, wrote that she was “horrified to learn that Rhode Island has suffered another shooting.”
The shooting comes just a little over two months after the Dec. 13, 2025, mass shooting at Brown University that killed two students and wounded nine others. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said the tragedy in neighboring Pawtucket especially in a place meant for families and youth, is devastating,
“My heart goes out to the community in Pawtucket after today’s deadly shooting at the Lynch Arena,” Smiley posted to X.
U.S. Rep. Gabe Amo, a Pawtucket native, posted to X shortly before 4:30 p.m., thanking law enforcement for their speedy response and advising residents to stay away from the area.
U.S. Senator Jack Reed issued a statement at 5:32 p.m.
“Children and families should be safe at a youth sporting event, not subject to gun violence,” Reed said.
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