Playing with the pros for a cause
Former NHL great Eric Lindros was in Whitby on Oct. 2 to launch the fourth annual Celebrity Classic hockey tournament.
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
It’s not everyday that Durham Region residents have the chance to lace up their skates next to one of hockey’s greatest, but for the fourth straight year, Eric Lindros and Easter Seals are making that happen; and for a good cause.
Earlier this month, Easter Seals announced the 2015 Celebrity Hockey Classic, a three-game tournament slated to take place on Nov. 6 at the Iroquois Sports Complex in Whitby.
Eighteen teams have enlisted for this year’s tournament. Over the course of this month, teams will be raising money in anticipation of the team draft the day before the tournament. The more money teams are able to raise, the higher they will be in the draft, upping their chances of playing alongside the NHL great of their choice.
Previous tournaments have seen the likes of Doug Gilmour, Gary Leeman, Billy Smith and Lindros himself.
The event raised $277,000 for Easter Seals last year, nearly doubling their total from the previous year at $144,000.
No stranger to Oshawa as a former Gen, Lindros says the event is gaining serious momentum and receives great support from sponsors across the Durham Region.
“We’re blessed in that fashion,” he says. “It used to be when the Petes and the Gennies played, there was a fence put up somewhere halfway between the two cities. There are no fences with this (event), everyone is helping out, everyone is pushing towards a common goal and we’re making a difference.”
Easter Seals has been operating for 90 years in Ontario, raising money and providing services for youth with physical disabilities.
Lindros says the money raised is about giving kids with disabilities the same opportunities as other childrens.
“I think we’re all touched by someone that we know that has a tough time…and if we can raise some money to help people level the playing field in some family’s lives then it’s what we should be doing,” he says.
The tournament festivities kick off on Nov. 5 for the official draft, held at The Junction in Oshawa, before teams hit the ice bright and early at 7:30 a.m. the next day.