For competition and charity

Student hockey players face-off for a good cause. (L to R: Charles Amodeo, Jesse Sharp, Joe Garnett, Terry Nabuurs, Brendan Crossman)

The skates are sharpened. The sticks are taped. All that’s left to do is hit the ice…and, of course, count the money raised for a great cause.

It’s “game on” this Saturday for the yearly Residence Charity Face-Off hockey showdown, which pits Dalhousie’s residences against each other in spirited competition to raise money for the IWK Health Centre Foundation. Last year, by selling game tickets and organizing pre-game fundraising events, students collected $20,000 for the foundation. That’s a big number, but it’s one they’d like to better this year with the support of the Dal community.

“To me, it’s THE biggest event at Dal,” says student Brendan Crossman, who will play on Saturday for the BigHorns. “There’s nothing else like it. Seeing that many people together for one cause and raising that much money and energy is the best feeling.”

The game involves nearly all residences on campus: Howe Hall, Mini-Rez, Gerard and O’Brien unite under the orange Trojans banner, while Risley, Shirreff and Eliza Ritchie dress as the BigHorns in red. It’s been a long road to get to the game, from team tryouts in the fall to practices in the winter, with fundraising efforts all the while – including bottle drives, candygrams and player auctions. But with the final preparations out of the way, it’s expected that a sea of red and orange will flood Memorial Arena on Saturday and cheer on the teams.

For the players, the competition is serious and the spirit intense.

“From a hockey standpoint, it can get pretty competitive,” says Charles Amodeo, who will suit up for the Trojans. “When you put on the skates, you obviously want to win…that said, I don’t know if I’d be involved in the same way if it wasn’t for the cause.”

Joe Garnett, one of the student coaches for the Trojans, echoes that sentiment. “The game’s really about helping out in the community where we live for eight months of the year,” he says. “Win or lose, we’re all winners. That’s what’s great about it.”

All the players are hoping for a close, hard-fought contest; the winning team has switched back-and-forth the past three years. And both teams sound confident heading into Saturday.

“I’ve never been on a team as tight as this one. We’re ready,” says player Terry Nabuurs of the BigHorns. As for the Trojans, coach Jesse Sharp says, “This team’s got a lot of heart. They’ve really coming together, on the ice and off.”

All that’s left, then, are the spoils.