By Emma Deo
Behind the scenes of Plattsburgh State men’s hockey, junior broadcast journalism major Alex Duval runs the show.
As the equipment manager of the men’s hockey team, Duval is responsible for inventory, maintenance and organization of 28 Cardinals’ gear. This is no small feat, and at Plattsburgh State, Duval does it all.
“My season starts when the ice is put in, and doesn’t finish until it is melted,” Duval said.
Before Plattsburgh State, Duval attended Plattsburgh High School. During his first year of high school, Duval began working at the Field House driving the ice resurfacer, doing the men’s hockey team’s laundry, moving the nets and drilling holes in the ice.
After the Cardinals hosted a national tournament game in Duval’s first year at Plattsburgh State, losing in a heartbreaker in overtime against Norwich, Duval was heading upstairs to do his usual lockup routine.
Once he got upstairs, head coach Steve Moffat signaled for him to come over and talk to him. He explained that their current equipment manager was graduating and that they would have nobody for the next season. He asked Duval whether he was interested in filling the position.
“At that moment, I was thinking back to all of the college hockey games that I went to growing up — the good and the bad. You still feel like you’re part of the team even though you’re just watching from a distance up in section K,” Duval said. “At that moment, it was a no-brainer.”
Adapting to a new system and team with guys who were significantly older was difficult for Duval at first, but a lot of the guys who were new to the team made the transition easier.
Duval’s main focus is making sure everyone is on the same page. The coaches are calling the shots and asking for certain things to be done, but Duval is the one maintaining the equipment. Wednesdays and Thursdays are the busiest preparation-wise, as Duval is tasked with making sure everything is running smoothly for a weekend slate of games.
Thursdays are generally reserved for skate sharpening, but every player is different. Some like it to be done every day, while others prefer their skates to be sharpened less often. Each player has a different preference for the sharpness of their skates as well.
In the locker room, Duval has access to a Sparx machine, which is an automatic tool used to sharpen the blades using different grinding rings that correspond to a different feeling on the ice. While this tool is useful, Duval finds more joy in using the manual sharpener.
“The nice thing about working at the Field House is that whenever I have downtime at work I can get these things done,” Duval said.
Skate sharpening may seem like an unimportant, mundane task, but if the blades are slightly uneven, the player can’t turn as effectively or can even trip and fall.
Last season, Duval once spent 20 consecutive hours preparing for games, sharpening skates and traveling with the team. Duval’s operation is solely his, but players and coaches will help whenever they can to lessen his workload.
“It’s a lot. It’s around the clock,” Duval said.
For Duval, Friday night games are busier, but Saturday game preparation is slower, like a debrief. After a Friday night game, Duval will do a damage report, counting how many sticks were broken and figuring out what needs to be replaced.
Aside from taking many laps around the lower level of the Field House, Duval’s pregame routine consists of checking in with players and seeing what they need to be done before the game. Players will leave their skates at the base of their locker if they need to be sharpened and Duval will grab them and get their skates game ready.
Duval then gathers the backup sticks on a cart and wheels them onto the bench. He likes each player to have two extra sticks, which is more than they will probably need, but Duval prioritizes keeping things running smoothly in any situation.
Duval keeps a detailed spreadsheet of each player’s stick preference and whether they are right or left handed. This is also shared with the coaches in an effort to keep everyone on the same page.
Along with the extra sticks, Duval keeps extra blades and miscellaneous extra items such as tape, pens, highlighters and a toolkit on the glass behind the bench during games.
While the Cardinals are skating on the ice, Duval is on the bench with the rest of the team. He helps out with broken sticks and even changes out broken or chipped skate blades right on the spot. Duval takes a lot of pride in his stick handoff skills. Hisattention to detail is crucial in a game where every second counts.
“With hockey, everything is on the fly,” Duval said. “It’s important that you can adapt to that especially as a player but as a manager too.”
After the final buzzer sounds and the skaters head to the locker room, Duval packs everything up and prepares for the team’s next game.
“I don’t even call it a job. I call it an opportunity. It’s a mentality,” Duval said. It’s an opportunity to be blessed to be part of a team you watched growing up.”
