Through Strachan's Strays, Hershey Bears D Tyson Strachan seeks to raise ...

A general love of dogs inspired Hershey Bears defenseman Tyson Strachan and his girlfriend, Kate Ankoviak, to start Strachan's Strays.

One pooch in particular, an American bulldog named Bowser rescued from a horrific puppy mill situation during Strachan's tenure with the St. Louis Blues, animates the couple's motivation to promote adoption and support of rescue dogs through their organization.

Bowser was a year and a half old and had never been out of a cage when they found him.

'He couldn't walk on bare ground,' Strachan said. 'He had heartworm so bad that he passed away about a month into us having him.

'His memory has kind of stuck with us. We're softies. We had him cremated and we bring him with us everywhere. He's a big driving force behind what we do.'

Using his platform as a professional athlete, Strachan seeks to educate the public about the benefits of dog rescue, the heartrending consequences of pet animal overpopulation and raise donation money.

Strachan's Strays, which works with no-kill shelters, took off among hockey fan bases in Miami and San Antonio the past two seasons during his time in the Florida Panthers organization.

'It's amazing how many misconceptions there are out there about shelter dogs in general and shelter animals,' Strachan said.

'A lot of people feel that shelter animals in general have either been abused or are all mutts or are bad animals. A lot of people feel they have to go to a breeder to get a specific type of dog or get certain traits. We just want to convince people that you can go into a shelter and you can find any type of animal you really need.'

Strachan owns two rescue dogs - Raja and Soder - and also provides foster care for rescue dogs when his in-season apartment accommodations allow it. Last season in San Antonio, Strachan and Ankoviak fostered six puppies for two months.

This season, Hershey teammates David Leggio and Garrett Mitchell adopted rescue dogs, Strachan said.

'I think that they're both very happy,' Strachan said, 'and they have two great additions to their families.'

For Strachan, rescue adoption is a far better option than providing economic support to puppy mills. He has witnessed puppy mills firsthand.

'We got to see the conditions that the general public aren't going to see,' Strachan said. 'They're going to go down to the puppy store and see that cute little puppy sitting in a cage or kennel that's cleaned up. There's 800 dogs stuck in cages [at the puppy mill] with frozen water bowls and not able to move.'

A Strachan's Strays Night is scheduled for Feb. 15 when the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins visit Giant Center.

On Wednesday night, Strachan and Bears teammates are holding a photo shoot with their own dogs and rescue dogs. Autographed portraits from that photo shoot will be on sale during Strachan's Strays Night to raise money that will be donated to local no-kill shelters.

It wasn't a portrait, but on the ice Saturday night at Giant Center Strachan made a highlight reel hit on Syracuse Crunch forward Richard Panik (around 2:41 mark of embedded video). Strachan caught Panik, who had just received an ill-advised pass from Pierre-Cedric Labrie, at the blue line.

'I thought it was a good hit, I really did,' Bears head coach Mike Haviland said. 'He met the puck right when the puck was there. The guy had his head down. I thought his hands were down. He didn't jump.'

But Strachan was called for charging.

'I think that's about as clean of a hit as you can,' Strachan said. 'In today's day and age in hockey, it's tough. A lot of the big hits, right away it's kind of reactionary calls. They find something.

'Charging is usually when you're running at somebody. In that situation, I would never run at anybody.'

Labrie, rushing to Panik's defense, jumped Strachan and started a fight. Strachan and Labrie were teammates in Peoria in 2009-10.

'I don't fault him for anything he did,' Strachan said. 'I think he could have let me square up a little bit more.

'I know his intent wasn't to injure me in any way.'

NOTEBOOK

Brandon Segal was selected as Hershey's player of the month for December and was presented a watch by Leitzel's Jewelry of of Myerstown.

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