Happy Canada Day (July 1st)

"Assault someone, you get five years. In hockey, five minutes. Is this a great game or what?"

-Columbus Chill Print Ad

As a life-long hockey fan, I've often been surprised to find out how few people have seen or experienced hockey firsthand. Our culture seems only to project an image of fist-fights, missing teeth, big Canadiens that talk funny, cold chilly weather, and more fist fights. It is portrayed as a sport where brawn come before brains and where pain and violence are constant focuses. While the values of toughness, hard work, intensity and Canadian heritage are definitely intricate parts of the sport, the love of violence, lack of regard for physical safety, and reckless image of hockey is often miscommunicated portraying these athletes only as "goons". This single story also fails to recognize the wide diversity of cultures that converge in this sport with players in the NHL hailing from over 22 different countries. (Global Game: NHL boasts a United Nations of talent)

I think that the single story presented in our culture has led to many people being unable to identify with the sport. Within hockey itself, there is a relishing of these stereotypes and hockey is proud of the values they communicate: toughness, intensity, aggression, and Canadian roots.  Considering the "single story" idea, I think it limits the sport from gaining a larger fan base. How could someone such as a young African American girl ever hope to enjoy this "beautiful game" when there seems to be absolutely no place for a person of her demographic in the sport? It makes me wonder if hockey's violent image keeps it from becoming popular here in Utah, despite the fact that Utah once hosted the world's best hockey during the Winter Olympic games and is know for its wintertime activities. While football and boxing are much more violent sports, hockey often attracts more "bad boy" fans because of its image, leading to further stereotypes about the fan culture. 

A YouTube video title: Top 5 hockey fights EVER has received over 3.7 million views 

While the recent All-Star game (which included 29 total goals scored) has received only 90K views 

Pictures such as this one inspire Bleacher Report blogs dedicated to "Ranking the Top 10 Worst Sets of Teeth in NHL History" 

A Disney TV show titled "The Might Ducks" featured weapon-wielding, crime-fighting super ducks that defeated evil Villains by utilizing their hockey skills.  

Among the above artifacts, it becomes clear that the hockey stereotypes are universal. I thought that the TV show "The Mighty Ducks" was particularly interesting. It was launched in conjunction with Disney taking ownership of an NHL hockey team called the "Mighty Ducks" and provides an interesting example of promotion through culture. Disney based the show off of cultural stereotypes in an attempt to create more buzz and attraction for their team.  The toothless gallery conveys hockey's desired brand of toughness, but also tells young kids that if they want to play, they'll have to pay, a message that probably isn't received well by most mothers. Lastly, about the only space on YouTube is occupied by fighting videos, which are perpetuated by the sport's extreme fans and enjoyed by the general masses. Based on these items its not hard to see how this "one story" is perpetuated in our society.