He may have been forced to trade in his time at the rink for days spent at doctors' offices and chemotherapy appointments, but Eamonn Millar's passion for hockey remains as strong as ever. 

The 10-year-old Cordova Bay boy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia by doctors at BC Children鈥檚 Hospital earlier this year.

鈥淗earing that news was just 鈥� it was life-changing,鈥� said Eamonn鈥檚 mom Jen. 

But some things don't change. As Jen spoke to Saanich News, Eamonn gripped a hockey stick, practising his moves between cancer treatments in the pouring rain.

When leukemia took a toll on the active lifestyle Eamonn enjoyed as the captain of his Victoria Admirals hockey team, news of his diagnosis soon trickled through the organization.

鈥淚t hit me very hard because my son is the same age as he is,鈥� said Andy Navarrete, the Admirals鈥� U11-A coach, who touted Eamonn鈥檚 dedication to the sport. 鈥淗e was very excited to be there, practised really hard, played really hard, was a very good teammate, gave it all he had and was exceptional in the dressing room and around the rink." 

The Admirals organization began to rally in support of Eamonn, producing stickers with his name and jersey number, which players sported on the back of their helmets. Players also wore orange ribbons to show support for people with kidney cancer and leukemia. 

鈥淭his whole journey has been quite isolating,鈥� said Jen. 鈥淜nowing that his friends are there supporting him 鈥� it just helps lift him up every single day. Those messages of support mean so much.鈥� 

Eventually, support spread. At a tournament on the mainland in October, a Surrey team caught wind of Eamonn鈥檚 story and made him a one-of-a-kind hockey jersey, with his last name below those of four hockey greats: Wayne Gretzky, Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid and Connor Bedard. 

The Vancouver Canucks also heard about Eamonn and, in December, invited him and a few of his lucky teammates to watch a game from box seats, where the boys met current Canuck J.T. Miller and retired goaltender Kirk McLean.

鈥淚t shows the ripple effect of support,鈥� said Jen. 鈥淚t's really been ... motivating for Eamonn.鈥� 

In the new year, Eamonn's teammates plan to continue supporting their buddy. On Jan. 4, the Admirals will chip Christmas trees at two locations 鈥� 4368 Tyndall Ave. and 4240 Glanford Ave. Half of the proceeds will be donated to the Island Kids Cancer Association 鈥� a Saanich-based non-profit that provides year-round support for Island youth with cancer. 

Navarrete hopes the money raised will help Eamonn and other kids like him.

"You want them to come around this successfully and come away cancer-free and come back to enjoy sports as a youth," he said. 

All of this support has helped reinforce Jen鈥檚 hope about Eamonn鈥檚 future.  

鈥淗e's currently in remission, but then there's all this hard work still to do in order to ensure that the cancer does not return,鈥� she said, adding that Eamonn has to undergo chemotherapy and immunotherapy treatments until May, followed by two years of maintenance chemotherapy. 鈥淭he hope is that it never returns and that this journey is behind us in the next few years.鈥�