CAMH and the Leafs partner again for Hockey Talks

By Sean O’Malley
Senior Media Relations Specialist

Ethan Nino had a lot of reasons to smile while watching the Leafs game last Thursday, January 16^th.

Not only was it his first live experience watching the team he has cheered for his whole young life, it was his last day as a CAMH inpatient after receiving treatment for depression and PTSD.

“I was giving up hope and CAMH saved me, said Ethan, 22. “It feels like night and day from when I first came here. They found medications that worked.  But they also were so supportive the way they would just talk to me and actually listen to me.”

Ethan was among 50 CAMH current and former clients who, thanks to a partnership between the MLSE Foundation, Ford Canada and the CAMH Foundation’s Gifts of Light program, cheered on the home team in a close game they lost 2-1 to the Calgary Flames in a shootout.

The Hockey Talks Mental Health Awareness Night partnership between the Leafs and CAMH is  now in its eighth year. Several Leafs players made remarks in support of mental health awareness in a video played during shortly before the game began, including Finland-born forward Kasperi Kapanen.

“Being brave enough to talk about not doing well, that doesn’t show weakness,” said Kapanen. “I think it’s the other way around.  It shows you being mentally strong.”

Gifts of Light Manager Quinn Kirby also did a live interview that was broadcast to the full house of almost 20,000 fans on the Jumbotron.

“The conversation around mental health is finally becoming prominent in households, schools, workplaces, and now thanks to Hockey Talks, high profile sports events,” said Kirby. “We are so grateful to MLSE staff, coaches, players and fans for helping us continue to normalize the conversation around mental illness, and break the cycle of silence, stigma and shame.”

Another way the Leafs marked the partnership with CAMH was by presenting staff with a custom Leafs jersey with “CAMH” written on the back.

During the first intermission, CAMH Clinician Scientist Dr. Juveria Zaheer, was presented with her own Leafs jersey for being named a “Citizen Community MVP” for her mental health advocacy.

“It was such an honour to receive the award on such a special evening,” said Dr. Zaheer. “The Hockey Talks Mental Health Awareness Night is an amazing opportunity to show that mental illness can affect everyone, and gives people who may be struggling a chance to see that they are important, they matter, and they are deserving of hope and help"