NEWS CENTER Maine features the man behind the ice at UNE’s Harold Alfond Forum
As hockey season gets into full swing, the people at NEWS CENTER Maine found themselves wondering what it’s like to be the person behind the wheel of the machine that makes the ice.
As part of its “Day in the Life” series, reporter Lindsey Mills spent some time with Leon Paquin, assistant manager of the Harold Alfond Forum at the University of New England. With the ongoing support of the UNE Facilities Department along with the combined efforts of the building staff, Paquin has maintained the ice at the Forum since it opened in 2012. He showed Mills all of the time and technology that goes into monitoring conditions and perfecting the ice with the Zamboni ice resurfacing machine. It’s a job Paquin takes seriously, because he knows the success of the Nor’easters depends on it.
“Heaven forbid you have too much water on the ice and a guy’s got a breakaway, and there’s a puddle of water and the puck stops – then they’re looking at me,” he said. “I don’t want that to happen!”
