Hockey fans flood ice with 45,650 stuffed animals for annual teddy bear toss

On Sunday, after the Hershey Bears scored their first goal thousands of teddy bears rained down onto the ice.

It was all part of the team’s annual Teddy Bear Toss, an event that’s held around the holidays where fans are encouraged to bring stuffed animals to toss onto the ice. All of the plushes that are collected are then donated to local charities during the holiday season.

Seconds after the Bears’ defenseman Christian Djoos scored a first-period goal, fans began tossing teddy bears over the glass.

The teddy bear shower, which resulted in a record-breaking 45,650 donations, lasted for several minutes. The team smashed their previous record, set in 2018, when fans threw 34,798 teddy bears onto the ice.

Even a gigantic stuffed sloth made its way onto the rink.

In addition to the over 45,000 stuffed animals, CommunityAid pledged to donate .25 per plush to the Children’s Miracle Network, and a club seat holder also pledged to donate $1 per plush to the Sweigart Family Foundation, according to CBS21 News.

The Readinger family of Hershey, Pennsylvania carried three bags stuffed with 208 plushes into Giant Center on Sunday.

“We do it for the charities, and it helps them [the boys] to understand giving back this time of year during this time of year, the holidays, to give back,” Ryan Readinger told FOX 43.

To make matters even sweeter, the Hershey Bears won in overtime.

This is an absolutely amazing tradition. The even is usually put on by minor and junior leagues, but imagine if the NHL participated. So many children could benefit!

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