DCHP-2

Teddy Bear Toss teddy bear toss, teddy bear throw DCHP-2 (November 2016)

• n. — Hockey, Social customs

  an event during a hockey game when fans throw teddy bears on the ice for charity (see Image 1).

  Type: 4. Culturally Significant — The tradition is credited to the Kamloops Blazers, starting in the 1993-94 season (see Kamloops Blazers reference); it has since spread across North America and overseas. Often, the toss happens when the home team scores their first goal, thus the reference to "the teddy bear goal" (see the 1999 quotation). Sometimes the bears are tossed during a designated period during intermission (see the 2004 quotation). They are then collected by staff and donated to a local children's charity (see the 1998 quotation).
  Teddy Bear Tosses are a common Christmas tradition (see the 2013 quotation). Sometimes other items are thrown with the teddy bears, such as in "Toque and Teddy Bear Toss Night" (see the 2009 quotation).

  See also: toque