Huskies women's hockey captain Bailee Bourassa (left) poses with mascot Howler and Rhodes McNairn outside the Jim Pattison Children's Hospital. (Bailee Bourassa/submitted)

By Daniella Ponticelli

Women’s hockey PLAY FOR A CURE

Huskies captain Bourassa forms special bond with young ‘champ’ who survived cancer

Feb 3, 2022 | 8:00 AM

Huskies women’s hockey will play for something much bigger than the game during the team’s final home weekend of the regular season.

On Friday, the University of Saskatchewan welcomes the Grant MacEwan University Griffins for their first Canada West meeting, the same night the Huskies host their 13th annual Play for a Cure event.

This year’s fundraiser honours a young boy who connected with Huskies captain Bailee Bourassa during her final nursing practicum in early 2020.

“It just happened by chance. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do (and) I got placed at the children’s hospital,” Bourassa told HuskieFAN.

“Honestly, it was a blessing in disguise because I absolutely loved it.”

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Bourassa’s practicum started around the same time Rhodes McNairn began receiving inpatient chemotherapy at the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital in Saskatoon.

“I just remember going into the room and he was not what you’d expect out of a cancer patient,” she said. “He was a little ball of energy, a spitfire.”

McNairn was five years old when he was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow.

“I always thought he was just the cutest and funniest little guy and every time I went and got to care for him, I was super excited to work that day,” Bourassa said.

Huskies’ mascot Howler gives a thumbs up alongside Rhodes McNairn. (Bailee Bourassa/submitted)

Bourassa also got to know McNairn’s family during this time, including mom Sharlene Cooper – a USask Huskies women’s basketball alum who played from 2000-05.

“She showed me a picture and then Rhodes immediately started talking about (Huskies’ mascot) Howler and how he loves Howler,” Bourassa said.

The nursing student decided to gather a video message from Howler to McNairn, a gesture that kickstarted a special bond.

“Rhodes ran up to me and gave me the biggest hug and said, ‘I love you.’ That was probably the most special moment I’ve ever had with him” – Bailee Bourassa

Bourassa’s practicum ended just as the novel coronavirus began spreading in Saskatchewan. She graduated in April 2020, and was soon hired as a full-time nurse at the children’s hospital.

“Rhodes was still there, he was there for quite a while,” Bourassa said, remembering a time when the boy’s health was worsening.

“It was quite worrisome. So I arranged to have Howler come with me to the hospital and we met Rhodes outside and we gave him a Huskie jersey and we had a dance party,” she said.

Bourassa stayed in touch with McNairn’s family. He was later transferred to the Alberta Children’s Hospital, where he received a stem cell transplant from his father.

By Fall, McNairn was officially in remission.

On Oct. 7, 2020 a convoy of vehicles – including Bourassa and Howler – surprised McNairn at his family’s farm in Saskatchewan.

People at the event were asked not to hug McNairn, as a COVID-19 precaution. But the little spitfire couldn’t miss a chance to say thanks.

“His eyes were so bright when he saw Howler and he saw me waiting,” Bourassa said.

“Rhodes ran up to me and gave me the biggest hug and said, ‘I love you.’ That was probably the most special moment I’ve ever had with him.”

Playing for the ‘Champ’

Friday’s Play for a Cure game will be another special moment for McNairn and Bourassa.

The boy and his family will be part of a ceremonial puck drop, while the team wears special jerseys that will be auctioned off during the game.

“We chose to put a shield in front of the jersey to represent his battle with cancer,” said Bourassa, who also had a hand in the design.

Styled after the NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knight’s white jerseys, the Huskies threads for Friday will feature gold as the main colour, representing pediatric cancer, with black detailing.

McNairn’s nickname, Champ, is also etched on the sleeves.

Special jersey design for Huskies women’s hockey Play for a Cure night on Feb. 4, 2022. (Dave Westbury/submitted)

Special jersey design for Huskies women’s hockey Play for a Cure night on Feb. 4, 2022. (Dave Westbury/submitted)

All money raised from the jerseys and a silent auction, setup along the concourse, will go to Haven Kids’ House.

The charity, chosen by McNairn’s mother Sharlene, provides temporary and emergency childcare while parents deal with crisis and difficult life challenges.

“The part that was so important to her was that they really value family, and how important family is for kids to feel loved and supported,” Bourassa said.

The magnitude of the Play for a Cure game is not lost on third-year defensive player, Isabella Pozzi, who helped organize the silent auction.

“It’s really special to have this night, and really nice to have the community come out and support,” she said.

Oh captain, my captain

Saturday’s game at 5 p.m. will also hold special meaning for Bourassa, as the final guaranteed home game of the season.

“I keep saying to my mom, ‘I’m trying not to think about it’,” Bourassa said. “There’s a lot of good memories here and I’m not really ready for that to end.”

The captain will be honoured for her contributions to the program since 2016. Bourassa sits sixth in goals and eleventh in points in the Huskies all-time history books.

The lone fifth-year on the team is currently finishing her Master of Nursing while working full-time as a nurse at the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital.

Listen LIVE to all Huskies women’s hockey broadcast on the free HuskieFAN app and on huskiefan.ca.