Hockey Fights Cancer is a charitable initiative of the US and Canadian

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) and the

National Hockey League Players Association NHLPA (french: AJLNH) is the labour union for the group of professional hockey players who are under Standard Player Contracts to the 32 member clubs in the National Hockey League (NHL) located in the United States and Canada. The association r ...

(NHLPA) dedicated to raising money and awareness toward

cancer research Cancer research is research into cancer to identify causes and develop strategies for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure. Cancer research ranges from epidemiology, molecular bioscience to the performance of clinical trials to evaluate and ...

. It was founded in 1998 as an outgrowth of a similar program instituted by the

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...

after former player

John Cullen Barry John Cullen (born August 2, 1964) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Hartford Whalers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning. He was a stan ...

made a brief NHL comeback after suffering from

non-Hodgkin lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight loss, and tirednes ...

. The program had raised over

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

14 million according to its Web site in 2015.

Founding

forward

was leading his team in scoring late in the

1996–97 NHL season The 1996–97 NHL season was the 80th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup winners were the Detroit Red Wings, who swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games and won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years. T ...

when he was forced out of the lineup after being diagnosed with

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight loss, and tirednes ...

. He missed the remainder of that season and all of the following season as he suffered from the disease. Cullen attempted a comeback in 1998–99, but chose to retire after four NHL and three minor league games. In recognition of his comeback attempt, the NHL named him the 1999 winner of the

Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey. It is named after Bill Masterton, the only player in NHL ...

for dedication and perseverance. Cullen's cancer inspired Timm Harmon of the Moffitt Cancer Centre at the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF i ...

to partner with the Lightning to raise awareness and money for cancer research. By December 1998, both the NHL and its union had joined themselves to the cause, creating the Hockey Fights Cancer initiative. Hockey Fights Cancer is also supported by the National Hockey League Officials Association, the league's professional trainers' association and media and business partners.

Initiatives

Coinciding with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Hockey Fights Cancer month is held in October/November. During the month, players, teams, fans and corporate partners combine to raise money via a variety of means, including auctions of team branded and player autographed merchandise and equipment. Game-worn jerseys are popular at the auctions;

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

star

Sidney Crosby Sidney Patrick Crosby (born August 7, 1987) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Sid the Kid" and dubbed " The Next One", he was selected first o ...

's All-Star Game jersey sold for $47,520 in 2007, while that year's jersey auctions raised over $140,000 in total. During the month, some players wear equipment specially painted purple to raise awareness for the initiative. In addition, each of the league's 32 teams designates at least one of their home games as "Hockey Fights Cancer Awareness Night/Day" to raise money. During these host games, the teams donate proceeds from 50/50 raffles, offer numerous promotions and donate tickets to hospitals and causes that support the fight against cancer. $1.1 million was raised in October 2010, bringing the charity's 13-year total to over $12 million.

References

{{reflist

External links

Hockey Fights Cancer
a
nhl.com
National Hockey League Organizations established in 1998 Cancer awareness