DENVER — From coaches to players, the Colorado Avalanche have seen their fair share of changes. It may not look the same as it did over 20 years ago, but there’s one person who’s been a part of the game nearly as long as the team has been in Denver. His name is Tony Kreusch.
Tony is the Avs’ head ice technician. He started creating and maintaining the ice 24 years ago. He first began building rinks as a 19-year-old at Colorado College. Tony never imagined it would become his career.
“I cut my teeth in college hockey and loved that and just got very fortunate to be here with the NHL in this building,” he shared.
Tony’s goal is to make the best ice possible. He accomplishes this through the use of a machine that any ice skating fan should be familiar with - the Zamboni. For those who don't know, Zamboni is actually the brand name for this vehicle. It's really called an ice resurfacer. Without it, his job is a lot harder to do.
“Basically you take a machine and try to make it perfect ice every time. And you never really get there, but you get close,” he said.
With only 32 teams in the NHL, Tony’s title is a sacred one that few people hold.
“I’m here maintaining the ice, flooding it, making it pristine. So, I call it my chapel. Where you just get to relax and enjoy it,” he shared.
Making ice is part art, part science. For Tony the artistry comes through his goal to make it perfect. He described this type of ice as, “ice that looks like glass. There’s no imperfections. There’s no ruts. Nothing catches your eye. Your eye just kind of glides over it.”
Science comes into play with what it takes to keep the water frozen.
“Just to get a sheet of ice to freeze we have to have great compressors. Those compressors have to remove a lot of heat. You have 14,000 square feet out there. So, it’s just a huge, huge refrigerating system in the ice,” he explained.
As thousands of fans come to watch the game and start to heat up the building, Tony watches to make sure the temperature doesn’t get too high and moves into action when if it does. If compressors aren’t working properly, the players will be slipping and sliding on a surface that’s more water than ice.
He knows he’s done his job right not only by what the ice looks like, but also what it sounds like. He shared, “sometimes perfect ice is when you see a guy go into the corner for a puck and his corner, it just makes a beautiful sound.”
“It’s super important because that’s the surface where that maybe if you have a clump of snow, you miss a pass or the puck would go the wrong way. If the boards weren’t round and the snow was in the way, then you would have other bounces. So, we want to keep it pristine so that those bounces are true and the game is played on a true surface,” Tony explained.
Having worked over 1,200 home games, Tony has seen the team at every skill level. He’s witnessed miracles with the puck, from last second goals to incredible saves. However, he’s also seen his fair share of tragedies.
“A lot of different scenarios have happened with us being in first, us being in last, not making playoffs, being knocked out of playoffs in the first round. Lot of highs and lows. Lot of wonderful memories though,” he said.
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His first year on the job, the Avs won the Stanley Cup. It took another 21 years before it happened again. “It was very magical. And just as exciting as the first time. The making ice and being part of that. I actually got to drive all of that home series ice. Just to be part of that was once in a lifetime,” he shared.
Tony is the only full-time employee who handles the ice with Ball Arena. But there are more than a dozen people who make up the ice crew and drive with him during games. Tony emphasized that without them, his job would be impossible.
Hockey plays on thanks to people like Tony and his crew. It’s a career that’s given him incredible memories and created a love for ice as solid as his love for the game.
When speaking of his job, Tony shared, “it’s a profession that’s quite unique. Never one that I would have dreamed of, but it is one that’s a great dream.”
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