The NHL is on its Christmas break. It's a time for joining together with family and friends. The rest and relaxation of this break provides those that have bumps, bruises and minor injuries, time to recuperate.
The hockey Gods were smiling down upon the Blue Jackets when the schedule was determined for this season. With seventeen consecutive days spent playing at home with the Christmas break in the middle of that stretch, the players, coaches and staff get the benefit of being home every night.
You probably know every player on the roster, and may even know all of the coaches by name. Naming the front office staff may be a bit trickier, but you would get a few correct. And that's okay, as this is not a quiz.
But, there are three men who you may not know and possibly have never heard of. You see the results of them being at every game. You see that broken stick lying on the ice as the player skates towards the bench for a replacement being handed over the boards.
The camera zooms in on a player on the bench, having just come off the ice after a long shift, taking a drink for refreshment. Or, there's a fight and a jersey gets torn in the melee. But the next time that player takes to the ice, everything is as good as new.
These are just some of the things that you may not even think about as you watch the game, but are an integral part of making the team run as a well-oiled machine.
The equipment staff of the Blue Jackets numbers just three men. On a typical game day, their day is typically sixteen hours long. They are at the rink every day, from August until after the season has been completed, with very few breaks.
Tim LeRoy (Equipment Manager), Jamie Healy (Assistant Equipment Manager) and Jason Stypinski (Equipment Assistant) have 60-plus years of experience in professional hockey between them. These three men are seldom noticed and almost never heard. But they are some of the hardest working guys in the organization.
LeRoy and Healy have been with the organization since prior to the inaugural season. "I was in Florida (Panthers organization) as the assistant (equipment manager," said LeRoy, "and the coach at that time was Doug MacLean. When he got the job as the General Manager (Columbus), he knew I was an assistant down there. I'm originally from Michigan; it was a promotion and closer to home."
Jamie Healy came to Columbus from the ECHL Peoria Rivermen. He worked with LeRoy's brother and is from the same hometown (Kalamazoo, Michigan) as LeRoy. He also worked with teams in the WPHL and IHL.
Jason Stypinkski is from central Ohio and joined the Blue Jackets for the 2005-06 season after being the director for the Chiller Ice Rinks. He got his start with the Columbus Chill (ECHL) in 1996.
"We're usually ready to go at about eight o'clock in the morning," LeRoy said. "We'll start getting ready for the practice, make sure with the coaches what colors (uniforms) they're wearing and making sure that everything is stocked up. That includes tape, gum, drinks and coolers. We'll make sure that everything is dry and that anything that needs to be repaired from the previous day or game is fixed."
Staying ahead of the game and anticipating the unexpected is part and parcel of their job. "Everyone gets their skates done on game day," said Healy, "usually before the morning skate. We always try to stay a day ahead by planning ahead."
LeRoy adds, "That's why we'll go in and grab skates the day before, after morning practice." The players have a pair of skates that they wear, a backup pair, and some may even have a new pair waiting on the back shelf, just in case the need arises.
The Blue Jackets next road trip doesn't happen until after the calendar turns to 2015, but these guys are already getting things ready for that trip. "We've already packed trunks for the next road trip coming up," said Healy, "just to stay ahead of everything. We're always expecting 'surprises'."
On game days, they are busy all day long. "Jason takes care of the visiting team," LeRoy said. "He takes care of their laundry and making sure they have everything that they need." That includes picking the visitors up at the airport. "So, he's got double-duties, along with doing the stuff on our side."
During the game, their duties become like those of a NASCAR pit crew, with timeliness being key.
"Jamie watches the game for guys breaking sticks," explains LeRoy. "Or, if a guy takes a shot to the skate, he'll check him when he comes to the bench and make sure the skates are okay. Sometimes, something rips; shoulder pads might screw-up in a fight or a jersey rips during the game or fight. Jamie will have to fix that."
"Normally, we have a backup (jersey)," Healy says. "But with our thirds, we only wear them twelve times a year. So we only have a backup for the fighters, which is pretty much just Jared Boll. When there's no backup, I have to fix it quick and get it back out to them. It only takes a few minutes, depending on severe (the rip) was. You just have to watch the clock while you repair it if they're in the penalty box."
During a game, they become repairmen for the players. "If a guy loses an edge, the coach wants him back on the ice as soon as possible," said LeRoy. "A lot of the skate blades are interchangeable now," continues Healy, "so now we can get it done within seconds on the bench. If we need to, we can then come back and fix the blade. We'll replace it, if we need to, in the next stoppage in play."
When the game is finished, they still have a few hours of work to accomplish. Being efficient means getting home from the arena at a somewhat reasonable hour, considering all the tasks that need to be done.
"When the game is over," LeRoy says, "we have a bin in the locker room for jerseys, socks, etc. We'll wait for all the guys to put that stuff in and then take that down to the laundry room and start that. But during the game, Ski (Stypinski) is in there between periods doing laundry from guys working out, dirty towels from the game and from the visitors."
"We're doing about three to four loads of laundry during the game," Stypinski elaborates. "Guys will come in, work out, stretch or whatever. A lot of them will shower again and then put their stuff on to go out and get ready for warm-ups. So, we're doing laundry all day, every day."
They do more laundry on game day than most of us do all week. "The (game) jerseys are like the fifth load of laundry that night," said LeRoy. "Then, each player has a laundry bag for their stuff that they wear on the ice during games."
After all of that gets finished, there's still the matter of the visiting team. "I'll drive the opposing team back to the airport," says Stypinski. "Unless both teams are leaving, then I'll go with our team and have someone else take the visiting team out to the airport."
"We usually get everything wrapped up about 11:30 p.m. or midnight," he said. "That's on a good night."
It's a job for those that are efficient and follow the plan. It's about expecting the unexpected and being prepared for any issues that might crop up throughout the day. The next time your favorite player breaks a stick, loses an edge or rips a jersey, the reason he's able to return to the ice so quickly is because of the work Tim LeRoy, Jamie Healy and Jason Stypinski do.
"Game days and travel days are probably the longest," LeRoy said.
The second part of this two part series will run Christmas Day as the guys take us through a day on the road.
