’Tis the holiday season and that includes the Gulls’ annual Teddy Bear Toss Night. The fan-interactive charitable event took place Saturday, Dec. 7, at Pechanga Arena during which fans populated the ice surface with stuffed animals of all shapes and sizes upon the first goal of the game scored by the hometown Gulls.
It’s become a tradition since first introduced in 1993 by the Kamloops Blazers in the Western Hockey League in 1993 and is now a staple for junior, college and minor league teams across North America.
Over the years, thousands, if not tens of thousands, of plush animals have been donated by the Gulls to local children’s charities and foundations. The Teddy Bear Toss is a part of the San Diego Gulls Foundation’s season calendar of events.
The Foundation serves as the Gulls’ main charitable beneficiary. Its mission is to facilitate and support programs that produce positive change for children and families throughout the region by providing educational opportunities,
broadening access to the sport and addressing the health and wellness needs of the community.
Fans could bring their own stuffed toys to the game while fans could also purchase bears at the San Diego Gulls Foundation booth on game day. All toys collected will be donated to non-profit organizations throughout San Diego County. Christmas came early for some as Gulls players helped deliver stuffed animals to the Ronald McDonald House on Monday, Dec. 9.
Some teams take the event very seriously. The two-time defending American Hockey League Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears continue to set records. The Bears, the oldest and most decorated team in the AHL, collected 74,599 teddy bears and stuffed animals during the club’s GIANT Teddy Bear Toss on Jan. 7 earlier this year to eclipse the club’s previous record of 67,309 collected toys in 2023.
Gulls fans didn’t have to wait long to start hurling toys onto the ice. That moment came at 10:58 of the first period when Yegor Sidorov scored his fifth goal of the season to push the home team in front 1-0 on the scoreboard against the visiting Ontario Reign. Almost immediately, furry creatures began raining down around celebrating San Diego players.
“It was unreal,” said Sidorov, a rookie pro with the Gulls. “It was a good experience. I have never scored on a Teddy Bear Night, so it’s good. Good pass, I just needed to hit the net and that’s it.
“I think we started playing fast, smart, too, and then we need to shoot the puck more, I think. And it’s going to be a little better if we shoot the puck more.”
The weekend couldn’t have come at a better time after the Gulls snapped a six-game losing streak with an epic 12-round shootout win in San Jose on Wednesday, Dec. 4. The teams each scored one regulation goal — Justin Bailey for the host team in the first period and Roland McKeown for the visitors in the second period.
The third period was scoreless as was the five-minute three-on-three overtime period to necessitate the shootout tie-breaker. Normally the tie-breaker goes three rounds but this one kept going and going until the Gulls decided it 2-1. Nikita Nesterenko opened it in the Gulls favor with a goal and Collin Graf tied it with a shot in the third round. From there, 10 consecutive San Diego shooters were turned away by San Jose netminder Yaroslav Askarov while Gulls goaltender Calle Clang stopped nine straight San Jose shots (11 of 12 overall).
Nathan Gaucher scored the eventual game-winner on the Gulls’ 12th shot in the tiebreaker. on the ensuing Friday. Trailing 3-1 early in the third period, the hosts pulled off one of their recent trademark third-period rallies with four unanswered goals to win 5-3.
The win marked the first time the Gulls had won two consecutive games this season.
Judd Caulfield earned first star with one goal and two assists, including an empty net goal at 19:43.
The Gulls (6-12-1-2) came up short in a 2-1 shootout loss on Saturday but earned five out of a possible six points in the three games.
“We found a style of play that is productive for us, and stacks and cost a lot of energy,” Gulls head coach Matt McIlvane said.
“There’s been a lot of change in our group this year, specifically early on, with guys going up to Anaheim, guys coming back, guys coming up from Tulsa, and so we’ve had to re-establish our brand of hockey,” assistant coach Kris Sparre said. “We’re going to need a lot more of that if we’re going to win hockey games in this league.”
