NHLPA Goals & Dreams
NHLPA Goals & Dreams was launched by the National Hockey League Players' Association in November, 1999 as a way for the players to give back to the game they love and the game that has given them so much. Funded entirely and solely by the NHLPA Members, the Goals & Dreams fund is the largest grassroots hockey program in the world.
Goals & Dreams celebrated its 10th anniversary in November, and to recognize the players' commitment to supporting grassroots hockey programs around the world, Goals & Dreams Ambassadors, embarked on a 10 countries in 10 days tour. The tour began on November 13th in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, and made stops in Helsinki, Finland, Moscow, Russia, Riga, Latvia, Prague, Czech Republic, Trnava, Slovakia, Sarajevo, Bosnia, Frankfurt, Germany, and New York City, USA, before finishing in Toronto, Canada on November 22nd. More than $180,000 in equipment – 360 complete sets - was donated to programs over the course of the trip, giving even more children the opportunity to play the game of hockey.
Under the Goals & Dreams umbrella, the players support various charitable initiatives including the NHLPA Carbon Neutral Challenge, Hockey Fights Cancer, Habitat for Humanity and many more.
On behalf of the players, the NHLPA is a committed contributor to community and charity undertakings.
Learn More about the Goals & Dreams fund.
Hockey Fights Cancer
Hockey Fights Cancer is a joint initiative founded in December 1998 by the National Hockey League Players' Association and the National Hockey League to raise money and awareness for hockey's most important fight.
Learn more.
Carbon Neutral Challenge
NHLPA members are doing their part to reduce global warming through the NHLPA Carbon Neutral Challenge. This initiative, researched and designed specifically for the players by the David Suzuki Foundation, involves individual NHLPA members purchasing carbon credits to offset the carbon footprint produced by their extensive travel schedule.
Learn more.
NHLPA / NHL CONCUSSION VIDEO
In partnership with the NHLPA and the NHL, the National Academy of Neuropsychology and the National Athletic Trainers' Association have compiled a 12-minute video about concussions, titled “Concussions in Hockey: Signs, Symptoms and Playing Safe”, which speaks to several physicians and NHL Players for their insight into how these serious head injuries should be diagnosed and treated.
Concussions carry a strong possibility of serious, or even permanent, injury with them and the purpose of this video is to illustrate how any athlete should not succumb to the pressure of playing before they feel 100% healthy. Concussions do not discriminate in regards to physical size or skill, and are a potential hazard to any athlete. To learn more about concussions, their effects, how to tell if you have one and when you have recovered, please watch the accompanying video.