How Hockey Explains Canada

The role of hockey in Canada serves as a national identity, a unifying force in a country of 33 million people. So crazed are Canadians for their national sport that they ranked outrageous hockey commentator and high school drop-out Don Cherry ahead of Alexander Graham Bell on a list of the greatest Canadians in history. Penned by hockey star Paul Henderson-famed scorer of Canada's "Greatest Goal" in the 1972 Summit Series-and featuring a foreword by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, "How Hockey Explains Canada" explores just how deeply engrained this national pastime is in the Canadian psyche. The intelligent discourse on Canada's national sport goes far beyond the sport's most-loved icons, great plays, and notorious brawls by looking into the history and culture of the game to explain why hockey has had such an enigmatic hold on Canadians. Featuring interviews with more than 35 current and former NHL players, coaches, executives, and commentators, this expansive biography of the sport explores hockey's inextricable connection to everything from the Confederation to the Cold War to international perception of Canada and the country's own cultural divide.

WITH A NEW EPILOGUE If hockey is the portrait of who we are, it isn't a pretty picture. Funny, irreverent, argumentative: In this dazzling cultural autopsy of our national pastime, Bruce Dowbiggin shows how the game reflects--and distorts--ideas about who we are. Or who we think we are. In the process, he takes on issues like fighting and violence, globalization, anti-Americanism, separatism versus federalism, greed and racism. "[I]nsightful, angry, caustic, funny and exasperating--somewhat like the man himself. This isn't just a screed, but a thoughtful and honest look at who we are, at heart, hockey and all."--Catherine Ford "[T]he most profound book of the 2008 crop. These thoughtful essays are purposely designed to be provocative. Some stances will make you mad, while others you will agree with, perhaps surprisingly. All will make you think, and undoubtedly feel passionate about whichever side of the debate you find yourself on." --hockeybookreviews.ca "Dowbiggin... has written a terrific new book about this country's love affair with hockey."--Steven Paikin, The Agenda "Dowbiggin is an exhilarating thinker and a very eloquent spokesman on behalf of his ideas. Myself, I think he should be asked to deliver the Massey Lectures." --Paul Quarrington, author, King Leary "I'll have nothing more to say to this coward...." --Don Cherry, Hockey Night in Canada "Bruce Dowbiggin is one of the great hockey chroniclers of our time." --David Adams Richards, winner of the Governor General's Award for fiction

"The Goal" was only one moment of many that made up a hockey career that lasted twenty years -- and a life that has gone far beyond. Paul grew up in the small town of Lucknow, Ontario, and played hockey from a young age. He started his professional career with the Detroit Red Wings in 1962, where he played with future Hall of Famers Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio, and Ted Lindsay. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the end of the decade, and it was there that his career took off, culminating with an invitation to the Summit Series. In the years following, the most famous hockey player in Canada left the NHL for the rebel WHA, playing with the Birmingham Bulls in the United States. It was in Birmingham that Paul developed and deepened his spirituality -- a quest that had begun in Toronto and would define his life after hockey. He founded The Leadership Group, where he serves as a mentor to other men trying to maintain a spiritual life in and out of sports. In The Goal of My Life, Henderson shares a story that cannot be defined by one goal, but by the many goals that he has set for himself throughout his life, both in hockey and beyond.

For Canadians, hockey is the game. Shared experiences and memories—lacing up for the first time, shinny on an outdoor rink, Sidney Crosby’s historic goal, or the one scored by Maurice Richard—make hockey more than just a game. While the relationship between hockey and national identity has been studied, where does the game fit into our understanding of multiple, diverse Canadian identities today? This interdisciplinary book considers hockey, both as professional and amateur sport, and both in historical and contemporary context, in relation to larger themes in Canadian Studies, including gender, race/ethnicity, ability, sexuality, geography, and reflects upon all aspects of hockey in Canadian life: play, fandom, sports broadcasting, and community activism. This interdisciplinary scholarly collection is an extension of the “Hockey in Canada: More Than Just a Game” exhibition presented by the Canadian Museum of History. This book is published in English. Includes one chapter in French. - Le hockey est le sport des Canadiens Les expériences et les souvenirs que nous partageons – lacer ses patins pour la toute première fois, jouer une partie de hockey de rue, le but historique marqué par Sidney Crosby, ou celui de Maurice Richard – font du hockey bien plus qu’un sport. Bien que le lien entre hockey et identité nationale ait été étudié, il faut s’interroger sur la place qu’occupe ce sport dans notre compréhension des identités canadiennes diverses et multiples d’aujourd’hui. Cet ouvrage interdisciplinaire explore le hockey tant comme sport professionnel qu’amateur, depuis une approche tantôt historique, tantôt actuelle, en lien avec des problématiques en Études canadiennes, dont le genre, la race et l’ethnicité, la compétence, la sexualité, la géographique, et lance une réflexion sur les divers aspects du hockey dans la vie des Canadiens : le jeu, les supporters, la radiodiffusion, l’activisme communautaire. Cet ouvrage complète l’exposition de « Hockey : Plus qu’un simple jeu », présentée par le Musée canadien de l’histoire. Ce livre est publié en anglais. Comprend un chapitre en français.

This volume examines the cultural meanings of high-level amateur and professional hockey in Canada during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In particular, the author analyzes English Canadian media narratives of Stanley Cup "challenge" games and championship series between 1896 and 1907. Newspaper coverage and telegraph reconstructions of Stanley Cup challenges contributed significantly to the growth of a mediated Canadian "hockey world" – and a broader "world of sport" – during this time period. By 1903, Stanley Cup hockey games had become national Canadian events, followed by audiences across the country. Hockey also played an important role in the construction of gender and class identities, and in debates about amateurism, professionalism, and community representation in sport. The author also explores the connections between violence and masculinity in Canadian hockey by examining media descriptions of "brutal" and "strenuous" play. He analyzes how notions of civic identity changed as hockey clubs evolved from amateur teams represented by players who were members of their home community to professional aggregations that included paid imports from outside the town. As a result, this volume addresses important gaps in the study of sport history and the analysis of sport and popular culture. This book was originally published as a special issue of The International Journal of the History of Sport.

Selected from the two most recent proceedings of the Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture (2019 and 2021), this collection of essays explores subject matter centered both inside and beyond the ballpark. Fifteen contributors offer critical commentary on a range of topics, including controversial decisions on the field and in Hall of Fame elections; baseball's historical role as a rite of passage for boys; two worthy catchers who never received their due; the genesis and development of the minor leagues; and baseball's place in popular culture.

Ice hockey has featured in North American films since the early days. Hockey's sizable cinematic repertoire explores different views of the sport, including the role of aggression, the business of sports, race and gender, and the role of women in the game. This critical study focuses on hockey themes in more than 50 films and television movies from the U.S. and Canada spanning several decades. Depictions of historical games are discussed, including the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" and the 1972 Summit Series. National myths that inform ideas of the hockey player are examined. Production techniques that enhance hockey as on-screen spectacle are covered.