Edmonton Oiler Eric Gryba bids adieu to his beard; raises $22K for charity

Edmonton Oilers defenceman Eric Gryba made good on a promise he made on social media last week and shaved off his beard for a great cause.

“I haven’t felt the skin on my face for a while so it’s a new feeling,” he said Wednesday. “I’m glad it’s not too cold outside right now.”

However, on Thursday, he said his face was feeling the breeze a bit.

“It’s amazing how much you can feel the wind when you’re our there,” he joked. “Even walking out this morning, it was still a nice morning, but it was a little cooler than I’m used to on my face.”

Watch below: Gryba explains the cool sensation on his face one day after shaving his beard

0:45 Oilers defenceman Eric Gryba shaves his beard for good cause: ‘It’s amazing how much you can feel the wind’

The 28-year-old vowed to make the cut if a video he posted on Facebook earned more than 5,000 likes. He also promised to donate $5,000 to Garth Brooks’ charity Teammates for Kids, which works with athletes, companies and celebrities to generate funds for children’s charities. It supports children’s health, education and inner-city outreach and also hosts Fun Zones in hospitals for sick kids.

READ MORE: Edmonton Oilers’ Eric Gryba to shave beard for Garth Brooks’ charity 

“One-hundred per cent of the money goes to the kids and there’s few charities that actually do that,” Gryba said. “It’s good to support something that has such a good reputation.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "One-hundred per cent of the money goes to the kids and there's few charities that actually do that," Gryba said. "It's good to support something that has such a good reputation."

Brooks is arriving in Edmonton late this week for a slew of sold-out shows at Rogers Place.

READ MORE: 9th Garth Brooks show added for Edmonton stop 

Within half an hour, the original goal was met. The Edmonton Oilers Foundation chipped in some funds for the cause, as did Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood.

By Monday, the video post had surpassed 25,000 likes.

“It’s unbelievable. Between Garth and Trisha backing this on social media and behind the scenes, it’s been crazy,” Gryba said. “When he did his Facebook Live video the other day and talked about the whole thing, I looked at my wife and said: ‘We’ve finally made it. We’re famous now.'”

Speaking of his wife – Gryba said she wants him to grow the beard back.

In total, the project raised $22,500 for Teammates for Kids.