NHL Announces Stanley Cup Rescue Dog Competition

All 32 NHL teams will be paired with a rescue dog as the league features the Stanley Pup competition where dogs will be advertised and hopefully will find their home during the Stanley Cup Finals between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers.

The 90-minute show will premiere June 6 on TruTV in the U.S. (2:30 p.m. PT / 5:30 p.m. ET) and on Sportsnet in Canada (3 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. ET). ‘Stanley Pup’ will also air on Monumental Sports Network on June 15 at 5:30 p.m. ET for fans in the Washington, D.C. region and across NHL digital platforms.

Some of the dogs names in the competition are Sidney Pawsby, Dustin Woof, Filip Fursburg, Taylor Howl and more will showcase their adorable canine skills “on ice”, according to a release issued by the league on Monday,

NHL players including Troy Terry (Anaheim Ducks), Jaccob Slavin (Carolina Hurricanes), Sam Bennett (Florida Panthers), Tyler Toffoli (San Jose Sharks),Victor Hedman (Tampa Bay Lightning), Alex Kerfoot (Utah Mammoth), and Brandon Duhaime and Ryan Leonard (Washington Capitals) will introduce participating dogs in support of local pet adoption in their cities.

Color and play-by-play commentary will be provided by Mark Shunock and Chris Rose, with Michelle Gingras reporting rink side.

The league also announced that celebrities will make appearances to try and convince the viewing public to adopt a pet for their forever home. Special appearances by celebrity dog lovers include: Tim Allen, Cedric the Entertainer, Cheri Oteri, George Lopez, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Bublé, Nikki Glaser, Paula Abdul and Will Reeve.

The national nonprofit organization Petco Love will once again provide the dogs in the competition through their shelter partners across the country to spotlight the joy of pet adoption, and BISSELL and Blue Buffalo join this year as sponsors.

Florida's Bennett has a foundation he formed in Broward County where every time he scores a goal he makes a donation to a local shelter. He has dubbed the program "Bennie's Buddies."

“It eventually started because my fiancé volunteers here (Humane Society of Broward County) once a week and we both have a love for animals,” Bennett said to FloridaPanthers.com at the beginning of the season. “We ended up adopting a dog from the shelter here a couple weeks ago and then we just had the idea that we want to do something else to help all the other pets, dogs and cats that are here and available to get adopted."

"So, we thought about the program, Benny’s Buddies, and to sponsor the adoption fee of any pet for every goal I score this year is what we're going to do. It's a great cause and I'm really excited to be a part of it.”