There was never a time when hockey was not a part of Malik Garvin’s life. One of his earliest memories was being a 3-year-old with Fisher-Price roller skates strapped to his shoes as he cruised down the streets of Harlem.
Hockey occupied seemingly every waking moment for Garvin and his older brother Roger. They played in the schoolyard, in the hallways of their tenement building and inside their apartment. And when they were too tired to play hockey, they would sit in front of a computer and play hockey video games.
When the boys’ father passed away when they were young, their mother JoAnn Blackett went looking for programs that would keep her sons busy and off the streets. She saw a flyer at Roger’s school promoting Ice Hockey in Harlem and signed the boy up for the free program.
Before long, the toddler was at the rink watching his older brother having all the fun. That wouldn’t last long as a persistent Garvin pushed to get on the ice as well. He would eventually meet Todd Levy, a co-founder of the program who took a liking to the youngster and would eventually become his mentor.
“It became my first love in life,” Garvin recalls. “I was obsessed with it. It was hockey, hockey, hockey all the time.”
By the time he was 5, his mother doubled down on hockey, signing him up to play in the Ice Hockey in Harlem program in addition to a league at Chelsea Piers, which granted the boy a scholarship to feed his puck passion.
It was the start of a journey that would not only change his life but would impact the lives of countless youngsters living in Harlem. Hockey not only kept him off the streets and out of trouble, it also led him to some of the most prestigious prep schools in New England and eventually to Western New England University where he was a walk-on with the hockey team and graduated with dual degrees in accounting and finance.
Soon Wall Street came calling but the lure of hockey continued to tug on his heartstrings. In November of 2022 he was named the executive director of the program that had done so much for him.
“Everything that I had was thanks to ice hockey and Ice Hockey in Harlem,” he says. “I felt it was my duty to give back to this community, to show them all the great things I learned from hockey and help uplift the program.”
HOCKEY TAKES ROOT
There are 175 kids currently enrolled in Ice Hockey in Harlem with teams ranging from 8 & Under to 18 & Under. There are also Learn to Skate and Learn to Play programs that serve as a feeder system through a thriving program. Garvin said his program could service 500 youngsters if there was enough ice to fit their needs.
Players come from the Harlem area, from “river to river.” Most participants are people of color, but Garvin likes to boast of the program’s diversity.
“We are arguably the most diverse program in the country,” he says. “From our neighborhood in Harlem we have representation of all types – Black, White, Asian, Swedish, Ethiopian, a little bit of everything. We’re very proud of that.”
FUNDING THE FUTURE
Families don’t pay a penny to play in the program. Since its inception in 1987, administrators have become masters at fundraising throughout the community, tapping into the generosity and support of programs within New York City, including the USA Hockey Foundation, NHL clubs and so many more.
Some of that support is monetary, sometimes it’s about much more. The program has a longstanding relationship with the N.Y. Rangers, and over the years has teamed up with the Islanders and the New Jersey Devils. Whether it’s opening their ice for the kids to skate or providing them with tickets or a chance to meet their idols, these teams have stepped up.
“Everything they do for us is amazing. They do it out of the kindness of their hearts,” Garvin boasts. “It’s not about press or media or anything; it’s just about the kids, and that’s all we ever ask for.”
Two of the organization’s biggest fundraisers are the yearly golf and tennis outing that draws supporters from around the hockey community, and the annual Lawyer’s Cup, where teams made up of international law firms working in the City compete for legal bragging rights with all money raised going to Ice Hockey in Harlem.
Garvin and program coordinator Bernardo Vieira are the only paid staff members. The hours are long and the work is never done, but neither would trade this labor of love for all the money on Wall Street. They rely heavily on volunteer coaches, of which there is no shortage of quality candidates.
“We have 50 volunteer coaches, who are the backbone of this program,” Garvin says. “My job is to make sure kids get to the rink and back home safely. At the rink I’m a part-time equipment manager. I tie a lot of skates and tape a lot of sticks. I like to do that stuff, but the volunteer coaches run these teams as if it’s a paid position. They’re only here to meet the kids where they are and teach them the game. We’re lucky that we have coaches of that caliber.”
RINK WOES
The organization has long called Lasker Rink its home, but a lengthy renovation has sent Garvin searching the City for any available ice they could find. It’s not always the easiest task as ice is in short supply and expensive. The younger kids in the Learn to Skate, Learn to Play and 8U programs use Wollman Rink, which like Lasker is located in Central Park and run by the Central Park Conservancy. The older teams are bused to the World Ice Arena in Queens.
Both rinks have their challenges. For the younger skaters, the outdoor rink at Wollman is at the mercy of warmer winter temperatures that dramatically impact ice conditions. For the older players, making the bus ride from Harlem to Queens in cross-town traffic can tack hours onto their already busy days.
Still, complaining about the conditions is never an option. The program and its players are masters at defying the odds and overcoming any obstacle thrown their way.
“It’s so hard to be a hockey player in New York City,” Garvin admits. “They’re the only ones in their schools, the only ones in their buildings that play hockey. The best travel hockey players are going to New Jersey and Connecticut by the time they’re Bantams, and the ones who aren’t wish they were good enough because those kids go places.”
OPENING DOORS
For many of these players, hockey can serve as a catalyst to a brighter future. But as Garvin can attest, it takes a lot more than just a good slapshot or a smooth skating stride to succeed. To help these players discover a world off the ice, Garvin and his staff have created education enrichment programs.
In addition to helping students with their homework, they have also created a speaker program where people of color come in and talk about their paths to success. Most will never grow up to become professional hockey players, but like Garvin, hockey can be the engine that drives their dreams in whatever they decide to do.
“This program has always been and always will be about creating better people through the sport of ice hockey,” he says. “For the kids who work hard enough, it’ll take care of itself.”
Road trips are also viewed as more than just an opportunity to skate in a new rink. Often there is an educational component including trips to college campuses such as Long Island University, Harvard and Michigan. Youngsters often meet with players on both the men’s and women’s teams and hear their stories of how they got there.
“It’s important for me that these kids are guided properly and the opportunities that are out there for them are acknowledged and tailored to them properly,” Garvin says. “That’s just simply the value that my life experience offered me.”
Ice hockey has given Garvin so much over the course of his life, and he feels like he’s just getting started. And now he wants to help the next generation of Harlem kids find their place in the game and the world.
“There are some people who will say hockey is not for black people, and that is simply because of a lack of representation. The reality is, for the most part, ice hockey is embraced by this community,” Garvin says.
“As I lived it and as I see it, when these kids walk down the street carrying the [hockey] bags, people say, ‘Oh yeah, we’re taking that over, too.’ They love to see the kids doing it. They love that it’s different. And so do our kids.
“That’s a dynamic of living here in New York. It’s almost a defining characteristic that ‘I’m a hockey player’ because there’s not that many of them. That’s what makes it special.”