U13 Victoria hockey team celebrates their Canada-wide win of the Chevrolet Good Deeds Cup

Courtesy: Gordon Rufh
WatchThe Victoria Admirals U13 hockey team hoists their Chevrolet Good Deeds Cups
The Victoria Admirals U13 hockey team hoists their Chevrolet Good Deeds Cups

Hockey Night in Canada has finally announced the winners of the Chevrolet Good Deeds Cup: the Victoria Admirals U13 C2 hockey team.

The local team won the Canada-wide competition, not by how well they played, but their kind acts of service off the ice.

“It feels great, there are so many good teams in B.C. and it feels really good,” said team player Colby Berman.

Every player received their own golden cup, delivered right to their door, COVID-friendly style.

And although the cups are oh so shiny, the real prize is much bigger — $100,000 to a charity of their choice.

“I was just so shocked, just so excited, so happy that we won and felt so good that now we can give back to our charity,” said teammate Michael Rufh.

The team chose the Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island, which provides specialized equipment to kids struggling with physical and mental health challenges.

“We compared comparing hockey to actually needing the equipment, because we need equipment to keep us safe on the ice, and they need equipment to keep them safe in their lives. It feels great to know that we’re helping them,” said Rufh.

To win the golden cup, the team had to create a 60-second video explaining what they would do with the money if they won.

That video was liked by thousands of people and it first beat out every other team in B.C. before beating out every other U11, U13 and U15 in all of Canada.

READ MORE: Victoria hockey team needs your votes to win $100,000 for Island charity

On behalf of the team, Berman and Rufh both say thank you to their teammates, the parents and the community that continued to vote for them.

Team treasurer and mother of player #12, Anna Warhurst, says the team chose the theme of kindness right at the beginning of the season. They first started with bottle drives, chocolate sales and small donations to their favourite charities. When the opportunity came up to participate in the Chevrolet Good Deeds Cup, they jumped.

“These kids became ambassadors in their classrooms, sharing the story, telling other kids what the Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island and what hockey does for the community. If we hadn’t done that, we wouldn’t be here,” said Warhurst.

Because of the pandemic, the players could practice but games and scrimmages were cancelled. Aiming for this new goal kept their team spirit alive.

“I think was the game-changer for this season, it was going to be pretty dull,” said the hockey mom. “It is a win-win for our team. The enthusiasm that each of these players brought to this, just speaks volumes of their character and what they are going to take from this moving forward.”

Now, the team hoists their cups high, scoring a win for them and kids in need.

The Victoria Admirals U13 hockey team are this year’s winners of the Chevrolet Good Deeds Cup. (CBC)

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Rebecca LawrenceRebecca Lawrence

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