How it Works: Team manager shows the work it takes to keep Carolina Hurricanes game ready

RALEIGH (WTVD) — It’s been just over two years since Jorge Alves went from equipment manager for the Carolina Hurricanes to goalie. For just over seven seconds at the end of 2016, Alves was a professional hockey player.
His time is now mostly spent behind the scenes in the locker room. He’s been one of the equipment managers for the Canes for the past several years. You could say that Alves and the other equipment managers, in a sense, keep the Canes functioning.

Alves works inside of a room that is adorned with tools–almost like a garage. He showed us a helmet he was repairing and prepping for a team member.

At another station in his office, he sharpens the blade of a skate. He told us that the players can feel if the blade is off by milometers.

There’s plenty of joking happening inside of the locker room. One player leans over Alves’ shoulder as he sharpens a blade.

“You’re doing all wrong!” the player said.

Alves and the behind-the-scenes crew are jacks of all trades, even mastering the sewing machine.

“We sew everything from equipment to socks and jerseys and everything in between,” Alves said.

The hours are long. On practice days, Alves could spend up to 10 hours at PNC arena.

On game days, the work day nearly doubles.

“That’s the thing,” Alves said. “A lot of people don’t realize, you know…they see it on T.V. and they see us behind the bench and running around and stuff and they’re like ‘Oh! that’s pretty neat! That’s what they do for a living.’ What they don’t see is the after hours.”