Photo Courtesy of the ECHL
Equipment managers for a professional hockey team do everything from laundry to skate repair. Since the 2002-03 season, the ECHL has made a point to recognize those who work tirelessly in the position with the Equipment Manager of the Year Award.
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On Wednesday, the league announced Skylar Garver of the Fort Wayne Komets is the 2024-25 recipient of the ECHL Equipment Manager of the Year Award, presented by Warrior Hockey. The winner is determined in a vote of the league’s equipment managers.
A Fort Wayne native, Garver grew up in Stephens City, Virginia, and began playing hockey at the age of four. His family owned the Roller Dome in Fort Wayne where he learned to skate.
Garver began working in a pro shop while in college and spent one season as an equipment manager at Indiana Tech University, where he was part of an NAIA National Championship in 2019.
Garver joined the Komets as assistant equipment manager in 2019-20, and took over the head role the following season when the Komets captured the Kelly Cup title. He was selected to serve as an equipment manager at the 2024 Warrior/ECHL All-Star Classic in Savannah.
Tom Severance of the Charlotte Checkers was the award’s first recipient following the 2002-03 season. Click here for a list of all recipients.
