Plenty of teddies were tossed onto the ice Friday night (Dec. 15) at the South Surrey arena, but it wasn’t bear abuse – it was Teddy Bear Toss night for the British Columbia Hockey League’s Surrey Eagles.
And what a game it was, with a back-and-forth score that eventually saw the Eagles crowned winners over the Powell River Kings, with a final score of 6-4.
Aaron Schwartz opened up the scoring for Surrey just under three minutes into the first period, unleashing a shower of stuffies and squishmallows onto the Nest’s Olympic-sized ice, as fans threw the new teddy bears and stuffed animals that they brought for the toss, which benefits BC Childrens Hospital.
“It was unbelievable! What a phenomenal outpouring of support,” said Ron Brar, who owns the team with his brother TJ Brar.
EAGLES GOOOALLL!!!!
— Surrey Eagles (@SurreyEagles) December 16, 2023
SCHWARTZY OPENS THE TEDDY BEAR FLOOD GATES AND WE’LL TAKE THE 1-0 LEAD!! pic.twitter.com/Hi1V1wwQtT
He noted fans were generous with monetary donations as well, which were still being tallied.
“We just can’t believe what kind of response we’ve had this year from all parts of the community.”
The Kings scored at 6:53 to tie the game 1-1 in the first period, before scoring twice in the second to make it 3-1 for Powell River, before Miles Burgin scored his first BCHL goal to make it 2-3 for the Eagles.
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The Kings answered back just over a minute later, to make the score 4-2 for the away team, before D-man and Eagles captain Ty Brassington put one in the net on the power play, leaving the score 3-4 Eagles at the end of the third.
Surrey forward Caden Cranston tied the game 4-4 on a power play goal just over seven minutes into the third, then waited until there was a mere 27 seconds left on the clock before flying in on a short-handed breakaway to score the game winner.
Ryden Evers then ensured the win with an empty netter for a final score of 6-4.
The Eagles, who started the season with 12 wins in 12 games, are still No. 1 in the BCHL’s Coastal Conference with 40 points and 25 games played.
Although they lost to the Chilliwack Chiefs the following night (Dec. 16), the team forced it to overtime.
“We still picked up a point,” Brar said.
“We couldn’t ask for a better team, better coaching, better staff – we’re pretty proud to have this team here.”
He’s hoping the team keeps its momentum going into 2024 and all the way through to the final BCHL playoff series.
“We’re hoping for the Fred Page Cup.”
The team gets to relax a little for Christmas, before taking on the Merritt Centennials at South Surrey Arena on Friday, Dec. 29 with a 7 p.m. puck drop.
They then face off against the Langley Rivermen at George Preston Arena at 7:15 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 30 for their final game of 2023.