Play of the day: Teddy bear toss

Once a year, the Calgary Hitmen of the Canadian junior hockey league are bombarded with teddy bears. Photo / Youtube.

Once a year, the Calgary Hitmen of the Canadian junior hockey league are bombarded with teddy bears.

The Teddy Bear Toss is the best spectacle in junior hockey, and it's for a good cause.

Fans bring stuffed animals to the games, and upon the Hitmen's first goal, they're hurled onto the ice in ridiculous numbers. The bears are then donated to local hospitals and charities.

Yesterday was the 18th installment of the toss, and fans didn't have to wait long. Ukrainian Pavlo Padakin tapped the puck in at 13:27 in the first, and down came the bears.

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The finally tally was 21,534 bears collected, pushing the total to more than 213,000 since 1999.

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