Commemorative Chicago Wolves jerseys to bring attention to mental health
CHICAGO (CBS) – The Chicago Wolves delivered an AHL championship last season.
This year hasn't been as good, but as CBS 2 Sports Director Marshall Harris learned, the team is still striving to make an impact.
When the Wolves host the Rockford Ice Hogs and Grand Rapids Griffins this weekend, they will look a little different, wearing exclusive gear with an important message.
It's a weekend bigger than hockey for the Wolves, taking the ice sporting special sweaters that spread mental health awareness.
"Yeah they're really cool," said center Jack Drury.
The commemorative jerseys feature a butterfly to symbolize transformation, meaningful phrases and a colorful brain pattern representing different mental health issues.
"The goal is to raise awareness," said Wolves President of Operations Courtney Mahoney. "Certainly the goal is to raise a lot of funds for mental health-related charities. If we can have any kids or family, anybody feel better about themselves and understand that they're not alone, I think that's a win-win for the organization."
It's an organization that also prioritizes the mental health of its players. The defending Calder Cup champions are a younger team that's dealt with several injuries.
In his first season leading the program, head coach Brock Sheahan said checking in with his players has been routine.
"People think guys chasing an NHL career, it's all fun and games, but there's a lot of stress on these guys," Sheahan said. "We meet with them individually about hockey, I'd say weekly. Some guys, it's every couple of days, but it's always the first question is 'How are things going? How are you doing?'"
As left winger Mackenzie MacEachern explained, "I was actually like four days away from playing again, and I came into another little road bump and hurt something else so, it pushed me back another month and a half. Like I said, it's good to have those guys in there to kind of lean on and they kind of get you through those dark times and sad times. Whether it's a text message or just kind of having lunch with them or having fun with them in the locker room, it helped me along the way."
The team hopes the jerseys help everyone feel like they can ask for help.
"Everyone has become a lot more aware of it which is good, but we've got to keep pushing to make that more universal and make sure everyone knows different people are going through tough things and just all support each other and be there for each other," Drury said.
The team also wants to support local charities, which Mahoney said the Wolves will continue to do.
"One of our main charities, Chicago Wolves Charities, is Erika's Lighthouse, which is about all mental health awareness and it's starting in schools, with teens," she said. "They've been a partner with us for years. We've had players go out there to participate with their teen club. It doesn't end on Sunday the 29th. We will continue to do that and I think the relationships we're building with some of these charities, we're going to do whatever we can to support them."
The special jerseys are available to fans through several auctions and ticket raffles. The proceeds will benefit mental health awareness-related charities.
For more information on the team's effort, visit ChicagoWolves.com.