By You’d think managing skates, helmets, pads and sticks for players like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin would be a great job, and it is, but it’s also a lot of work. Dana Heinze has been at it for 26 years, the past 10 as head equipment manager for the Pittsburgh Penguins, which means he supervises and assists with everything related to player equipment.
During the National Hockey League season, Mr. Heinze puts in 90 to 100 hours each week. “We have to be the first ones to the rink in the morning and the last ones to leave at the end of the day,” he says. “Sometimes that means really long days and nights, getting only four or five hours of sleep.” Mr. Heinze, 48, admits being obsessed with details — a must in his job. He’s in his 11th season with the Penguins, and says he is becoming more obsessive-compulsive each year.
On April 11, 2013, Mr. Heinze worked his 1,600th professional hockey game — a contest against Tampa Bay, where he had spent six years as assistant equipment manager. He has served as head trainer for his hometown Johnstown Chiefs on two separate occasions (1988-92 and 1995-98). He also worked one season as equipment manager for the New Jersey Devils. That was in 1992-93, under former Penguins head coach Herb Brooks.