UNB Wants You!

Having never been to the University of New Brunswick campus in all my travels, I can assure you that it is on my bucket list of places to visit when it comes to seeing hockey games. As you may well be aware, the UNB Varsity Reds men's hockey team is a juggernaut annually as they normally either win the AUS or finish the season as a finalist which means there's virtually always a U SPORTS National Championship berth awaiting them. The women, for what it's worth, were re-established not long ago, and it appears that Sarah Hilworth and her staff are aiming to equal the men's rich history of hockey success. This isn't a recruiting article for the team proper, though, but it still would count as "recruiting" in loose terms of the definition.

Currently on sale through the UNB Store are the above images as cardboard cutouts to be placed in seats this year at all UNB home games at Aitken University Centre! With COVID affecting the number of fans that can attend games, the Reds are looking to fill the seats with as many fans as they can with both in-person support and in-cardboard support!

While some may scoff at this idea of filling the stands, this is quite possibly one of the best money-making ideas that we've seen thousands of times before. The Reds aren't inventing the wheel here, but they are trying to capitalize on it. That's never a bad thing when it comes to Canadian university sports programs because we already know that some have more financial advantages than others. For the Reds to jump in and make this happen for the upcoming sports seasons just seems like an obvious idea that needed to be made real.

And it real it will be as you can buy a cardboard cutout of yourself in an authentic Reds uniform for $50 CDN! You'll earn a seat at the games, you'll help to fill the rink, but most importantly you'll be helping a university program raise a ton of money so they can continue to produce exceptional hockey teams in an effort to be the east coast's first choice for hockey players looking to get an education.

All three jerseys that the Reds wear are available for your cutout to wear. The best part is that once this 2021-22 season is over, the Reds want you to pick your cardboard self up or they can ship it to you for $25! How great would your rec room look with you in your Reds jersey in it? I'm thinking this would really up the rec room game for many hockey fans!

All jokes aside, this is a great way to help a fantastic university hockey program out while not spending boatloads of cash. If, for nothing else, do it for that reason. I'm already planning on getting one so I can virtually sit in the stands at Aitken University Centre and take in a few AUS hockey games this season!

Does that count as "seeing a game" if you're there, but not physically there?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!