If you walked into the Hudson Hockey Arena early last Saturday afternoon, you would have seen Hudson native and current Los Angeles Kings player Davis Drewiske speaking into a microphone at center ice, introducing NHL and college players that were about to participate in the Davis Drewiske Youth 3-on-3 tournament to raise money for the Huntington’s Disease Society of America.

If you would have turned your gaze 90 degrees to the right, you would have seen dozens of young skaters, ages 7-14, literally chomping at the bit to get on the ice and interact with the pro and college players
And by the end of the day, it was hard to determine who had more fun–the adults or the 158 kids that took part in the activities.

“I’ve been looking the last couple of years to do some sort of fundraising locally,” said Drewiske. “I have to give credit to my mom (Karen), it was her idea, but there was no question we wanted to do something for Huntington’s Disease, just because of our relationship with the Dowell family.”

John Dowell was diagnosed with Huntington’s in 2001, and son Luke also has the degenerative brain disorder that results in a loss of cognitive, behavioral, and physical control. There is currently no known cure.
Chicago Blackhawk Jake Dowell chooses not to test for the disease, but is hopeful that a cure is something that will be found in the near future.
“They’ve made some huge breakthroughs in recent years,” said Dowell, an Eau Claire native. “Hopefully they can find a cure in the next five to seven years. That would be ideal.”

While money was being raised for a worthwhile cause, kids, parents, college and NHL players were all having a great time both on and off the ice.

Total Hockey’s Dean Talafous and Pete Talafous–another former UW player–worked with young players to help improve their skills indoors, and the kids had fun playing Wiffleball outdoors during some downtime.
A raffle, silent auction, and a dunk tank all helped raise money for the HDSA.

NHL players that took part were Drewiske, Dowell, Tom Gilbert, Joe Piskula, Robbie Earl, Brian Elliott, Scott Parse, and Peter Harrold. UW players included Ryan McDonagh and Derek Stepan.
All in all, it was a great day for everyone involved.