About Eh! Hockey (phonetic "ay" rhymes with hey)

While opening a dedicated repair shop in the UK happened in 2022, repairs of hockey equipment has been happening for three decades.  Majority had been done by hand or with a basic table top home sewing machine (sorry mom) with limited capabilities like getting the equipment under the sewing foot.  What started as doing modifications and repairs to my own gear it expanded later to doing my teammates gear, sometimes while in the dressing room before a game.  Our closest equipment repair shop was a 2hr drive without traffic.  I always carried thread, needles. quick patching materials, spare helmet parts, screwdriver and a multi-tool in my kit bag.  I made my first stick straps in the mid 1990's and just replaced the webbing in 2023.

A warranty repair was done on new pants with regard to the leg zipper the local sports shop took it to a place to be fixed using a flat top machine.  I had joking made a comment that I should just buy the sewing machine needed and do my own repairs.  Relocated to the UK mid-2019 and during covid lockdowns I had a lot of time to think about what I wanted to do as work.  My previous career as a master electrician had put a lot of wear on the body working in tight spaces, weight of tools on hips, repetitive motions, etc.  Joining my first UK hockey team in the 2021-22 season I asked teammates who could do certain types of repairs or modifications to gear or re-palming of a glove and was told no one. Google searching turned up nothing either.  I joined a second team that season to get more ice skating time (we rarely practiced as adults in Canada, just games and I was averaging 68 ice sessions in a season excluding shinny skates) and between the two teams it had come up often that something was failing on their existing kit or their new kit was not fitting right and needed some tweaking.  I mentioned to a few teammates if they would be interested in me doing the modifications.  I invested in the sewing machine required to do the repairs and I did work on my teammates kit and word spread to other local players and parents. I did several months of a soft opening before launching Eh! Hockey publicly.
 

Our shop now consists of three industrial and one semi-industrial sewing machines.  We try to use UK companies for our materials as much as possible and support local businesses. Materials not available in the UK are imported from US or Canadian companies that have been in the ice hockey manufacturing/supplying business for many decades. They have built a reputation for quality products.  As a small business its hard to meet minimum order quantities on some type of materials and costs are higher.

We only use high quality materials and won't cut corners that can compromise safety of the kit or fail rapidly.  We want to return the equipment with it lasting many more years and the level of protection when originally made if not higher when it leaves our shop.
Workmanship is also high quality and we stand behind our work.  It is like our signature.

Other hockey notes about myself:
- For 8 years I also served as our teams first aid trainer as I have held my first aid since the age of 12 and expanded to advanced CPR, AED and oxygen administration.

- Certified level one coach NCCP in 1994, coached tom thumb and novice.
- CIAU (now USports) player in first official season. Retired due to concussion history on doctor's advice.
- Certified level two coach NCCP for ice hockey in 1998.
- Certified level three coach NCCP for ice hockey in 1999.
- Coach at female jamborees for SaskFirst Program (elite pathways).
- Returned to sports choosing ball hockey in 2008, returned to rec ice hockey in 2009, rejoined competitive ice hockey in 2012.
- Returned to coaching in 2023 with foundations coach, assistant and team coach.