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DM Senior Whitehead represents Army Lt. Colonel during AHHC

By Washington Post By Dillon Mullan and Eric Goldwein February 1 at 4:37 PM - BCSH, 02/01/17, 9:00PM EST

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DeMatha’s Teddy Whitehead represents Army father Friday night

DeMatha defenseman Teddy Whitehead (21) jumps in front of shot during the Stags’ Jan. 11 game against DeMatha. On Friday, the senior will honor his father on the ice. (Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post)

DeMatha and St. Albans will wear camouflage to stand out on Friday night as the Mid-Atlantic Prep Hockey League rivals face off in the fifth-annual American Heroes Hockey Challenge at The Gardens Ice House in Laurel. For DeMatha senior Teddy Whitehead, the special jerseys hold extra meaning.

The defenseman’s father, Norman Whitehead has been in the Army for his son’s entire life and has been stationed in Iraq since mid-August. Against the Bulldogs, Whitehead will honor his father by wearing the name ‘Colonel Whitehead’ on the back of his jersey.

“I love these jerseys, man. I wish we could wear them in more than one game,” Whitehead said. “I’m excited to wear my dad’s jersey. It’s my way of honoring him.”

Whitehead and his father email every day, and before he left, Norman gave his son some simple commands for the upcoming season.

“He told me to play hard for him and make him proud,” Whitehead said. “He’s not here to watch me play, so playing for him is what I’ve been doing all season.”

Over the past four years, DeMatha has raised over $75,000 for military charities. The Stags are aiming to hand over a check worth $30,000 to the USA Warriors Ice Hockey Program and the Fisher House on Friday night.

“It means a great deal to me to play for these charities. It’s a great cause, and it helps knowing that much money is going to military vets,” Whitehead said. “It’s good to know that even if my dad gets hurt, there’s always a cause to fall back on.”

Over the weekend, the Stags dropped three games against competition from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana at the Hoosier Cup Scholastic Showcase at Notre Dame’s Compton Ice Arena. Back in December, the Stags lost three games to nonlocal competition in New York before ripping off eight straight wins. Starting on Friday, DeMatha hopes to take lessons learned out of town and start a new winning streak through the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference and MAPHL playoffs.

“We played some great competition, so hopefully it’s just like the tournament in New York and fuels another month of success,” Whitehead said. “The stakes are much higher now, so it’s time for us to get going again.”

 

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