The Ottawa Senators along with the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets, with the support of the National Hockey League, are proud to announce Hockey Talks, a month-long initiative to bring increased dialogue and awareness to mental health and effective treatments. A game night in each respective city will be dedicated to Hockey Talks where each team will lend their voice to help encourage a national conversation about mental health and wellness.
During the month of February, each Canadian team will raise mental health awareness through in-arena messaging and online storytelling, sharing information and experiences at one of their home games. The programming and dialogue brings the opportunity to provide information to fans in recognizing mental health issues and better understanding the challenges associated with mental illness and to connect those in need of support with mental health organizations.
In Ottawa, our focus will remain on children and youth and our charitable partner for this game night activation will continue to be the D.I.F.D. at the Royal. Daniel Alfredsson will be approached to be involved with initiatives linked to HOCKEY TALKS as will Colin Greening. Both of these Ottawa Senators players have personal connections to Royal and D.I.F.D.. As in previous years, the Richardson family, and their connections locally will also be an important part of the evening.
The primary goals of this annual event are to:
- Raise awareness that Youth Mental Illness does exist and that as a result it’s the second leading cause of death in 15-24 year old Canadians.
- Create call to action with our fans/community each year … speak up, stand up, and make a difference…inspire conversations on the topic of Youth Mental Health.
- Promote organizations and resources in the community/region offering support to children/youth/families needing access to Mental Health treatment services.
- Raise funds to help support specific initiatives within the community that provide resources for children/youth/families needing access to Mental Health treatment services.
That solution is HOCKEY TALKS MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS.
To purchase tickets to this event please click here.