Hockey Fights Cancer: NHL Fans Help

Ordinarily, when I hear that a sports organization is going to start doing something to fight a disease, it goes in one ear and out the other. Don’t get me wrong; when the NFL allows its players to wear pink wristbands and baseball players use pink bats for a day—it’s a nice thought. When NHL publicizes that they’re going to do their Hockey Fights Cancer thing, their heads are in the right place. But sometimes I wonder if that’s enough. We’re talking about multi-millionaires who are wearing a special tie for a day to promote awareness. League mandated awareness at that. But let’s be real—do any of us need to see a sticker on the back of a helmet to remind us that cancer fucking sucks?

The world doesn’t need to have more people telling us that cancer is a bad thing. When my grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, I pretty much got the point. After she beat cancer the first time, only to be diagnosed with cancer AGAIN (and eventually pass), the point had been driven home.

As much as I bash ESPN for regurgitating Brett Favre and Red Sox stories, they “get it” when it comes to the cancer problem. Their PR Department wasn’t simply preaching awareness or making empty promises when they helped found the V Foundation. No, they’re doing the most important thing that anyone can do to fix the problem: they’re raising money.

“We need money for research. It may not save my life. It may save my children’s lives. It may save someone you love.” –Jim Valvano

At the end of the day, that’s what the fight against cancer needs. Money. And lots of it. One of the best things that have come from the NHL’s Hockey Fight Cancer slogan this year is the call to action by some of the hockey fans around North America.

(Let me preface this with next section: In no way, shape or form have I been asked to do this. I just want everyone to know that there are different ways out there that you can donate to help in the fight.)

The people over at NHLtweetup.com have turned a bet into a strong fundraising effort. We’ve all made bets with friends like this: “If my team wins, you have to wear my team’s shirt for a day. If you win, I’ll wear your team’s shirt.” Hell, my best friend bought me a Ducks Stanley Cup shirt that lasted all of an hour. But instead of wearing the shirt for a few embarrassing photos and then throwing it away, they have come up with an idea to save the shirt and make some money while they do it.

A Devils blogger (@speakofthedevs) and the creator of NHLTweetUp/Islanders fan (@dani3boyz) have decided to donate the shirt for a fundraising effort. $5 bucks puts you into a raffle for one of the slightly used shirts. All money goes to Hockey Fights Cancer. You may like the Islanders or Devils; or you may hate them both with the passion of a Rangers fan. But it’s a great idea to raise money.

Art Middleton over at StarsScene.com is truly putting his money where his mouth is. He launched an idea last week that if he could get 1000 followers on Twitter and 500 people to become Fans on the site’s Facebook page, he would donate $400 to the cause. For the low, low price of NOTHING, you can help contribute to the cause. You can follow StarsScene on Twitter or become a Fan on Facebook and help towards the donation. Here’s an update of the progress Art has made towards his goals thus far.

The shop.NHL store is doing their part as well. They have everything from neckties to scarves to T-shirts to make money for the cause. But I think they’re missing the boat a little bit. There are plenty of things that I’d kick down money for, but lavender Penguins hat isn’t one of them. Maybe they could do an auction for some things that people would be a little more interested in. Here’s what I have in mind:

- People could donate to make sure that the Maple Leafs never win a game this year.

- People could bid on a Gary Bettman bobble head that just shakes its head NO in the general direction of Canada.

- Fans could place bets on how many times Chris Pronger will elbow opponents in the head. They could make it a 50/50 kind of thing.

- NHL fans that have DirecTV could bid on the rights to broadcast Versus.

- Fans in Ottawa could bid on Dany Heatley Voodoo dolls. Come to think of it, every fan in the Pacific Division could bid as well.

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Whatever you think of ESPN, the NHL or the blogging community—it’s great to see people moved to make a difference. You are welcomed to do whatever you want with this. If it moves you to contribute, that’s great! You can pass this along to your friends, share it on Facebook, tweet it on Twitter or scream it from the rooftops. Whatever. Just know that there are options out there for you to do something. Whether it’s following Art on Facebook, donating $5 for an Islanders (or Devils) shirt or just donating a few bucks because cancer sucks.

I will now get off my soapbox and return to the world of bone-crunching checks and breakaway goals. Thanks for indulging me.

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