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On-ice rivals Calgary Dinos and Mount Royal Cougars embody close-knit hockey community

The rivalry has been well documented.

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The rivalry has been well documented.

A nine-kilometre stretch of road separates the universities of Calgary and Mount Royal, their athletic programs consistently vying for title of top dog in the city.

But often times, life brings these combatants together in a special way, and nowhere is that more evident than in the respective Dinos and Cougars hockey dressing rooms.

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The women’s and men’s teams clash on Thursday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome in the fifth annual Crowchild Classic (5 p.m. and 7:45 p.m.) and the men’s game, in particular, has a lot riding on it.

But proof positive that these squads have a close-knit bond was during the holiday break. Perennially, the Dinos use their Christmas party to earmark a worthy charitable endeavour to give money to. This year, they targeted Cougars forward Tanner Olstad’s family, which had experienced the heartbreaking loss of baby Lewiston to Spinal Muscular Atrophy type 1.

“It was somewhat spontaneous,” said Dinos’ Danny Gayle, one of Olstad’s closest friends. “Years prior, we’ve tried to raise money to give to Hockey Calgary to purchase some equipment for kids who don’t have the chance to buy their own. We were brainstorming how best donate the money we generated. I know Tanner was going through a rough time with his family. We knew he was struggling a little bit, and we thought we’d reach out and see what we could work out.”

In the end, the Dinos donated close to $2,000 to the Olstad family for medical expenses.

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“It was special,” said Gayle. “You want to help your family and friends. Especially during the Christmas season, whatever we could do to help out really transcends hockey.”

“The hockey community is very small, and everyone knows each other,” said teammate Chris Collins. “We thought it was a great cause and we know that a lot of guys are friends with Tanner and his family is great.

“It’s funny, you can be bodychecking a guy in the corner one minute and then after the game, you go for a meal with them. It’s that close ties.”

Olstad, a third-year forward with the Cougars, is still so very touched.

“It meant the world,” he said. “Obviously, we are rivals in the hockey world and at school. We share the same city and you look at each other like you’re enemies. But off the ice, we’re friends, and it just goes to show how amazing people are. It just meant so much to my family. We were so taken by the gesture that they made, it was amazing.”

Baby Lewiston James Olstad was almost six months old when he died on Nov. 22, 2016, with SMA type 1 being the most rare and most severe. On the www.loveforlewiston.ca website, Olstad’s sister-in-law Jess writes a blog about their heart-rending experience and the disease that took their little boy.

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“Danny and Chris, the list goes on,” Olstad said. “I don’t know their entire team and their coaching staff. I’m just somebody that goes to Mount Royal. So to have people that you don’t know wrap their arms around the family and support us, it meant so much more.”

Nothing will loosen the ties that bind more than a key Canada West confrontation. Just two points separate the Cougars and the Dinos in the standings, and it isn’t just the City of Calgary Manhole — given to the all-sport Classic winner — on the line, but also placement for the upcoming hockey playoffs.

“I know they’re ranked higher than we are at the moment, and our league’s been really tight standings-wise,” said Gayle. “There’s the fun and games of playing your friends, but these two games are huge for us.”

“I don’t know if it (Crowchild Classic) has ever meant more for the standings than it has this year,” Collins added. “It’s the most fun regular-season game of the year, and there are no friends on the ice.”

Of that, Olstad is in hearty agreement.

“It all comes down to business on Thursday,” he said. “It’s a fun event, but at the end of the day, it’s a regular season game and they always give us a run for our money. We need to focus on what’s at stake.”

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