Buckley’s is encouraging a new slew of funny ‘bad taste’ faces for junior hockey.

The brand recently launched an online campaign in support of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Billet Families, an organization that provides homes for CHL junior hockey players during their away games. The centerpiece of the campaign is an interactive website and contest in which Canadians are invited to vote for Billet Family of the Year.

‘Buckley’s has been involved with the CHL before, but recently realized there’s a whole family component in the billets families that supports the CHL,’ Ginny Homewood, Buckley’s senior brand manager, tells MiC. ‘Since Buckley’s is about wellness, they felt it was a perfect fit and wanted to get involved in a bigger way.’

The contest asks visitors to BuckleysBilletFamilies.com to vote on photos in which the billet families pose with their ‘bad taste’ and ‘relief’ faces, just like in the Buckley’s TV spots. Online voting is up until March 31 when the winners will be decided. The grand prizes are three all-expenses paid trips for two to the 2010 MasterCard Memorial Cup.

The national ad campaign behind the initiative, with creative by Saatchi & Saatchi Toronto and media by MediaEdge in Toronto, includes billboards and radio spots throughout Canada. Additionally, Buckley’s street teams will execute ‘tailgate parties’ in Ottawa, Montreal, Mississauga, Regina and Saskatoon, featuring baked goods from CHL billet family-contributed recipes.

‘It was all about getting the right message out to set the tone for the partnership between billet families and the CHL players,’ Saatchi & Saatchi Toronto Chairman and ECD Brett Channer, tells MiC.