By Owen Sienko
The Syracuse Men’s Club Hockey team is gearing up for its annual Veterans Appreciation Day this Saturday, November 16, at 2:00 p.m.
The team will host Clear Path for Veterans, an Upstate New York non-profit veteran service organization dedicated to providing veterans the resources and programs they need to reconnect with the community.
More information about Clear Path for Veterans can be found on their website at http://www.clearpath4vets.com.
The players will join the fans in a moment of silence honoring fallen prisoners of war before facing off against the Stony Brook Seawolves. Throughout the game, the Syracuse players on the ice will be sporting camouflage stick tape while the club’s staff gives away patriotic memorabilia at the promotions table.
“We have baseball hats to give away to the vets in attendance and our staff will also be making little yellow ribbons on clothespins for all fans in attendance to pin onto their jackets to show support to those that have served and honor those in attendance,” Director of Operations, Bridget Essing, said of the event.
The pregame ceremonies will be especially meaningful to nine Syracuse players -- Eric Parker, Peter-Owen Hayward, Ryan Dailey, Johnny Coggiola, Vincent Barone, Dylan Wheeler, Kai Miller, Connor Preston, and Tommy Flynn -- who have all had family and friends serve in the military.
“I am playing this game for my cousin Gianmarco,” freshman forward Vincent Barone said ahead of the game. “It is very amazing to see what he is doing now and playing this game for him is the least I can do.”
Junior forward Connor Preston highlighted the importance of honoring service members like his uncle Andy, who served as a captain in the United States Army.
“As a team we can never honor such individuals enough for all they have done for our country,” Preston said. “Their dedication to protecting our country is what allows us to do the things we love such as playing the game of hockey and going to college.”
Syracuse’s Veterans Appreciation Day will kick off in the Tennity Ice Pavilion on Saturday, November 16. Fans are welcomed to participate in the festivities and catch the ESCHL rivalry game when the puck drops at 2:00 p.m.
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