HAMILTON (CP) - Locked-out NHL players and a handful of former stars put on a light-checking but spirited show in an outdoor charity hockey game in front of 20,000 well-wrapped spectators at rain-soaked Ivor Wynne Stadium on Saturday night.
The disappointment over the lost NHL season was put aside for the event, which was billed as Our Game To Give. Proceeds went to the Tsunami Relief Fund of the Canadian Red Cross and Camp Trillium for children with cancer.
"People understand that when it comes to things like this it isn't really about all the bad stuff that's gone on," said Joe Nieuwendyk. "It's about everybody coming out and having a good time and raising money for good causes."
The inclement weather kept most dogs in the Steel City indoors.
"I'm giving them the first star for showing up," Terry Crisp, who served as one of the coaches, said of the hardy crowd.
Team Gilmour rallied in the third period to defeat Team Staios 11-8, and also had a 60-45 shots advantage.
For Team Gilmour, Steve Thomas scored three goals and Nieuwendyk, Adam Mair, Gary Roberts, Mike Peca, Scott Walker, Wade Redden, Ken Hadall and Todd Harvey had one each.
"With such a void in hockey, it's nice to go out there and compete at some level," said Thomas. "I really thought the people of Hamilton really enjoyed the game regardless of the elements.
"They hung in there right to the end. And as much fun as they had watching it, I had equally as much fun playing. It was tough skating east, into the wind. We had to do that twice on offence. To skate into that wind, you really had to put your head down and really bore into it. On the other side of the coin, going the other way was a lot easier. It felt like you were going downhill."
For Team Staios, Mike Comrie and Kris Draper scored two goals each and Steve Rice, Mike Gartner, Rob Blake, Ryan Smyth added one each.
"It was a blast," said Draper. "It wasn't the best weather for the fans but for the players it was great.
"Nobody cared if it was raining or snowing. It was just great to get back on the ice."
There was no checking but it was a competitive outing - as evidenced by the determined play in the late going of suspended NHL player Todd Bertuzzi, who picked up his pace in an unsuccessfully bid to win it for his team. He declined interviews afterwards.
The fans didn't care who won.
"I've been dying for a hockey game," Russell Copeland of Hamilton said in explaining his presence as he tried to fix an umbrella torn apart by stiff winds.
Losing goalie Curtis Joseph laughed about the weather afterwards.
"You looked up and saw rain coming down sideways, and lots of wind," said Joseph. "Guys said they wouldn't backcheck against the wind, and I wouldn't either."
He wasn't surprised by the crowd's avid involvement in the event.
"I think people are starved for NHL hockey and fans here are used to the elements watching the Ticats so they turned out in great numbers," said Joseph.
There were breakaways galore.
"The long outlet pass looked like it was in fashion," Joseph said with a grin.
Hall of Famer Gordie Howe, rain pelting his white hair, received a standing ovation when introduced before dropping the puck for the ceremonial faceoff.
Rain turned to snow during the second intermission. The wind-whipped snow then got heavier.
With six minutes left, Brodeur preserved his team's one-goal lead by stopping Matthew Barnaby on a breakaway. Nieuwendyk and Harvey then padded Team Gilmour's lead.
Peca loved the first outdoor game he's played with NHL peers since turning pro.
"I think it was great," said Peca. "I'd really like to see more outdoor games if we could do it in cities that could accommodate them.
"A lot of people were saying (Friday) would have been a better day for the game (because it was milder) but I think with the rain and a little bit of snow it made it even more memorable. I don't think you could find a guy all night without a smile on his face."
Spectator Bob Guyatt of Hamilton, wearing a Colorado Avalanche sweater, had no problem braving the elements.
"Just because it's a party," Guyatt said when asked why he attended. "I bought 12 tickets back when they first went on sale and I was going to be here come hell or high water.
"It's an event. Where else can you for $35 bucks for four hours and have a good time like this? Besides, football fans are out this kind of weather all the time."
In terms of attendance, atmosphere and relevance, the event was not close to the magnitude of the Heritage Classic game in Edmonton in November 2003, where three times as many people were on hand in -20 C weather.
Smyth said the ice was better at Ivor Wynne than at Commonwealth because it was so cold there that the ice became brittle and broke in places. Teammate Eric Brewer also has now played in two outdoor games.
"They did a great job on the ice with the conditions," said Brewer. "You couldn't ask for more difficult conditions to work with but things went very well."
Al Gill of Alberta-based Canadian Arena Products supervised installation of ice for both events. Despite steady rain, which caused a pebbling effect on the surface between Zamboni scrapes, the ice stood up well Saturday.
Other current NHL players who participated were Steve Staios, Bryan McCabe, Darcy Tucker, Jay McKee, Glen Murray, Brad May, Shayne Corson, Mark Bell, Jason York and Steve Montador.
Former NHLers taking part included Rice, Probert, Gartner, Doug Gilmour, Marty McSorley, Adam Graves, Nick Kypreos, Chris Kontos, Nelson Emerson, Ric Nattress and Joe Cirella.
"I had two gears - slow and stop," said Kypreos.
A strip of green carpet was placed over the ice for Mike Vanderjagt to try field goals during the second intermission. The Indianapolis Colts kicker who is from neighbouring Oakville, Ont., fell on his first attempt to put a ball through the uprights behind the end boards. He declined a second attempt.
Vanderjagt's biggest regret, however, was not scoring on a breakaway during the game.
"I thought to myself, `I'm going down the ice against Martin Brodeur,' " he said. "I psyched myself out.
"But It was a great experience all around. It was as good as it gets. If you're a basketball player, to have a dream come true you'd be playing with Shaq and Kobe and that kind of deal. For a kid growing up in Canada, it's the same kind of thing, to be on the ice with Gilmour, Thomas, Nieuwendyk and Roberts."