Devon Toews Brings Christmas in November to Local Hockey Team

Tuesday night, Avs defenseman Devon Toews kicked off the season of giving as he surprised the Colorado Rampage 10U hockey team with brand-new equipment, along with gifts to the group such as two Stanley Cup street banners, an autographed jersey and a locker room name plate.

"It was cool. Shoutout to Bauer for making it possible." said Toews. "Those kids were so happy to receive some new gear and some cool swag as well. To brighten up their day, making it a little easier on the families as well is really special."
Toews knows how it feels. He's been in their position before.
"Growing up, I remember my parents working two jobs to make it work for my brother and me," Toews said. "It's not a cheap sport, so to help out a little bit feels really good."
Located at the base of Rampart Range and just a 15-minute drive up Interstate 25 from the United States Air Force Academy, the Colorado Rampage Ice Hockey Program is celebrating 20 years of providing the best youth sports experience to all boys and girls.
After being traded to the Avalanche via the New York Islanders in early October of 2020, Toews had his eyes set immediately on giving back and making an impact in the community, but the circumstances of the pandemic delayed that.
After two years and with NHL restrictions eventually lifted, Toews set out on his long-awaited mission of giving back.

"This donation was important to [my wife] Kerry and I as we know the joy the game of hockey has brought to us and our family." Toews added, "We know the financial burdens of this sport can be troublesome and if we are able to give kids the opportunity to experience it in some way then we want to help."
Monument was his first stop in Colorado to provide that opportunity.
Then came Tuesday night when Toews arrived at Monument Ice Rinks and truly brought Christmas in November for the Rampage 10U team.
As the Avs' defenseman walked up the stairs into a room full of players, a smile beamed across every kid's face. A quick introduction from the coach was given, but even he said it felt unnecessary. Every player knew who he was.
One player screamed, "That's Devon Toews!" While many others yelled, "Woah!!!".
Toews presented his Avs' jersey and even before he could finish his sentence, one player shouted, "Is it signed?!?". Toews laughed and proceeded to say, "Yes, it's signed!".
A burst of excitement was let out by every single 10U player over his answer.
It truly is the unique little things that matter the most to the youth. Little did they know, an even bigger surprise was to follow.
With help from Toews' friends at Bauer, the Avalanche defenseman called up each of the 13 players individually and presented a bag full of new equipment and a hockey stick.

The room was full of joy, with each player cheered on by their teammates as they walked up.
One player yelled, "Can you sign my twig?" To which Toews joyfully followed with, "This is a $300 stick, are you sure about that?".
Toews spoke on this specific moment in the media session following, "Yeah, it's like a Christmas for them in November. I remember growing up, whenever we got a new stick or new gloves, or whatever it was, how cool it was and how excited we were to tape it up and use it at the next practice or game. I'm sure they are feeling all of that right now, and they'll have fun using it."
A team picture followed before Toews made his way back upstairs for the start of a team autograph session. He statyed and signed various items, including shirts, sticks, hockey cards and pictures.
One theme stood out the most to Toews and the media present. Of the 13 players and coaches, not one passed the opportunity to show their gratitude towards Toews.

One of the coaches adding, "This is great. We will never forget this".
Toews credits Bauer, along with Deb Dowling, Vice President of Community Relations at Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, for helping set the event up.
"My agent and I had this idea of doing something like this, and we worked with Bauer to make it possible," Toews explained. "Working with Deb (Dowling) is so easy. She was an easy phone call to find people that this would mean a lot, and be beneficial too. So, Deb did a great job setting all of this up."