President
Ryan Gardner
Ryan Gardner comes from a hockey-enriched background. Not only did he play over 1,000 professional games in Switzerland—winning four Swiss Championships, one Champions Hockey League, and two Continental Cups—he also had an esteemed international career playing with both the Canadian and Swiss National teams. His resume includes attending the 2013 Sochi Olympics, winning a silver medal at the 2013 Men’s World Championship, and competing in five Spengler Cups.
The Problem
Skate Cuts
On top of his personal playing career, Ryan is the grandson of long-time NHLer Cal Gardner (New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, and Boston Bruins) and Son of former NHLer Dave Gardner (Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, California Golden Seal, and Cleveland Barons). It was a friend of his father, Dave’s, named Greg McNeil, who initially piqued Ryan’s interest in player safety products roughly ten years ago when he came to him with a wrist protector made of chain mail. McNeil had been diving into the world of protective equipment in an effort to rid the hockey world of catastrophic skate cuts.
The Solution
A9 Gards
Over the past decade, McNeil tirelessly tested and refined numerous products, sending them to Ryan to try, ultimately leading to the creation of A9. This product not only offers unparalleled protection to the player but does so without being noticeable. Our A9 fabric, the highest-rated material to protect against skate lacerations, has been developed and tested to meet the rigorous standards set by the NHL. The ANSI 19 scores, which measure the pounds of pressure before producing a cut in a given material, are exceptional for our A9 GARDS product.
Unfortunate Trends
Catastrophic
In recent years, the hockey world has witnessed some tragic events due to catastrophic skate lacerations. Our mission is to spread the word and educate the hockey world about what we have to offer to protect every player to the highest degree. The game is getting exponentially faster as the years pass, and this increase in speed inevitably leads to such catastrophic accidents. We want to ensure players have more than a few seconds to save themselves by mitigating such catastrophic lacerations.
Our Mission
Saftey
Our A9 GARDS products protect the most vital areas, including the neck, wrists (360-degree coverage), the femoral artery, and the Achilles tendon.
We want to ensure every player is as safe as possible while playing the game they love.
A9 GARDS - Making the hockey world safer, one player at a time.