Is hockey in Canada dying?

[Jyrki]

Canada keeps cranking up the number of first-gen immigrants along with temporary residents, that means the slice of the media pie for hockey domestically keeps shrinking in relative terms because ice hockey is played in so few countries internationally. And with more money and infrastructure getting parked in non-hockey sports that translates into less kids being interested in the sport long term.

The country is also gripping with a cost-of-living crisis - or bonanza, if you're one of the benefactors who get to deflect blame - primarily driven by real estate. Canadians in general have seen their budgets quickly swallowed up by housing costs way more than any other inflation factor. Even people who can afford to buy homes that suit their need have most of their income tied up in mortgages. So increasingly, it's people who got to buy in early or are otherwise mortgage free with valuable real estate who can comfortably afford the sport. In that sense, hockey is more affordable than ever for the well-to-do. But the gap between them and everyone else has vastly widened over the past decade or two.

Then there's the climate change factor, which is slowly reducing naturally available ice for people to use for recreational purposes. I think it's worse for other skating sports because hockey still requires a lot of other infrastructure to get going, but the point still stands that kids will be less inclined to participate in a sport they can't easily get into.

So I think the golf analogy is good; hockey is descending into being a sport that just can't be practiced at a competitive level for the vast majority and said majority is losing interest in it. I don't think the NHL in Canada is under threat any time soon, but within a generation you'll probably see a lot more credible competition for pro ice hockey from other sports.

 

[Cancuks]

Soon the national sport in Canada will be cricket or soccer.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

Embiid will play for USA at the 2024 Olympics. He is a naturalized citizen that played high school and college in the USA.

Born in Cameroon.

Kyle Anderson is playing for China. Olympics to me means nothing for his nationality.

 

[Samsquanch]

Many things can be true at the same time. Is hockey no longer the most popular sport in Canada by a wide margin? true. Are less kids playing it due to the rising cost? Also true. Is the USA catching up in an alarmingly scary way? true once again...

Having said that, is Canada still producing a ridiculous amount of talented players? Yes is the only right answer. Can Canada still claim to having the undisputed best/most dominant player of the generation? Yeah and Bedard looks like the real deal too... And can Canada still ice at least 2 teams that could medal in any given tournament if they were allowed to? That answer is also yes, maybe even three tbh.....

 

[Dirtyf1ghter]

The United States is taking over as the hockey superpower with them churning out players. Canada seems to be falling behind.

This is demographic dynamics.

Canada has reached its ceiling since a while.

USA still has a lot of room.

It's the same for Sweden and Finland. Russia still has a lot of room for improvement and so do other European countries.

USA will become the 1st power in 20/30 years but that does not mean that Canadian hockey will be dead.

Just as USA will not be a dead power when China will be n°1.

 

[SmoggyTwinkles]

The United States is taking over as the hockey superpower with them churning out players. Canada seems to be falling behind.

Yeah we're pretty much all dead and nobody cares about hockey anymore.........

Kids go mow the lawn! It's a good workout.

 

[Mathieukferland]

I’m from a fairly homogeneous town with a very successful junior team, so I would say no. And I don’t think cost is an issue if you are truly elite, as I’ve mentioned before Tyson Jost and Gavin McKenna come from modest backgrounds but have sponsors from teams or academies in order to make that team better. If anything I think main issue facing hockey right now is early specialization, if you’re not playing hockey 12 months a year you’re likely to fall behind. This can lead to burn out and puts a certain degree of kids off from continuing with hockey

 

[WarriorofTime]

Born in Cameroon.

Kyle Anderson is playing for China. Olympics to me means nothing for his nationality.

So immigrants don’t exist for you?

 

[jigglysquishy]

If anything I think main issue facing hockey right now is early specialization, if you’re not playing hockey 12 months a year you’re likely to fall behind. This can lead to burn out and puts a certain degree of kids off from continuing with hockey

This is a huge problem. 10 year olds are being told to quit basketball or baseball or snowboarding so they can do hockey 100%. So kids quit hockey to play other sports.

When the pipeline is focused on NHL talent instead of fun, you end up with less NHL level talent.

 

[Machinehead]

I’m from a fairly homogeneous town with a very successful junior team, so I would say no. And I don’t think cost is an issue if you are truly elite, as I’ve mentioned before Tyson Jost and Gavin McKenna come from modest backgrounds but have sponsors from teams or academies in order to make that team better. If anything I think main issue facing hockey right now is early specialization, if you’re not playing hockey 12 months a year you’re likely to fall behind. This can lead to burn out and puts a certain degree of kids off from continuing with hockey

Just because a couple of guys made it doesn't change the fact that picking up a basketball doesn't cost thousands of dollars.

 

[AlainVigneaultsGum]

This ain’t it

Didn’t even make it to the second page before it started lmfao. So predictable.

 

[Mathieukferland]

Just because a couple of guys made it doesn't change the fact that picking up a basketball doesn't cost thousands of dollars.

I’m not denying cost isn’t an issue if you’re not at that tier of player. My point more so being that, at least in my experience in minor hockey fairly recently, cost wasn’t an impediment to players that were clearly special from modest background. However, yes, if you’re not an elite talent no one is likely to foot the bill for your registration fees and this can lead to issues with filling out the depth on elite minor hockey teams.


I guess my point is more so, at age 12/13 up to the age where kids leave for major Junior, that if you’re clearly good enough to play at the next level, the cost of doing so will be taken care of you.

 

[Machinehead]

I’m not denying cost isn’t an issue if you’re not at that tier of player. My point more so being that, at least in my experience in minor hockey fairly recently, cost wasn’t an impediment to players that were clearly special from modest background. However, yes, if you’re not an elite talent no one is likely to foot the bill for your registration fees and this can lead to issues with filling out the depth on elite minor hockey teams.


I guess my point is more so, at age 12/13 up to the age where kids leave for major Junior, that if you’re clearly good enough to play at the next level, the cost of doing so will be taken care of you.

How would you know you're an elite talent if you never play the sport?

I make decent enough money to where I can handle NYC cost of living just fine and I'm at games a couple times a month.

There's no way I'd be able to put a 6-year-old in hockey. It's $500 just to put them in a 9-hour skating camp.

 

[fahad203]

Pickle ball is taking over. Damnit.

Bro bring it. You dont know a backhand like mine
I'll mess you up

 

[Love]

I'm 36. Growing up like 80% of my freinds were Basketball fans. 40 % Football and like 10% hockey. Basketball is for sure bigger than Hockey here.

Same for me. Living in Vancouver proper, anecdotally I’ve found it’s way easier to find another NBA or NFL fan than a Canucks fan.

It seems that the big cities have less and less interest in hockey but the surrounding areas or smaller towns have more interest. Again this is all anecdotal based on what I see where I live. But if you look at NHL players from Vancouver, like ACTUAL Vancouver, not Surrey, Burnaby, North Van, Richmond, etc. how many are there? Evander Kane? There’s way more from the surrounding areas and smaller towns.

 

[BKIslandersFan]

No. Although it’s funny how a team named Canucks got more American players than Canadians.

 

[NorthStar4Canes]

Soon the national sport in Canada will be cricket or soccer.

How sad. One's an activity devised and spread by the British to distract and pacify colonized populations they've declared themselves as overlords over and the other is...well, soccer.

Lacrosse is the national sport, rightly so, and it should be played everywhere and anytime there isn't ice. Why the hell anyone would bother playing or watching cricket, soccer, or basketball when box or field lacrosse is an option is beyond me.

 

[WarriorofTime]

Is Canada's white population actually declining, or does it feel that way because the immigrant population is exploding? Pretty big difference and what it means. The 2020 census was the first time the U.S. had a declining non-Hispanic white population, people who identify with a single race. But at the same time, there was a large increase in bi-racial population (276 % increase from 2010 to 2020 in terms of people who identify as two or more races) which are traditionally not identified as "white", even with one white parent, but as the overall demographics shift, that sort of "categorization" may be re-examined.

Hockey doesn't need "unlimited growth", if no more junior teams or "elite" minor feeder teams come into existence in Canada (or USA) that doesn't mean Hockey is going to die or anything. It'd likely just stabilize some of the insane costs of "elite" hockey. Trickling up to the top, I don't particularly if NHL franchise values go up 4X from their current valuations.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Canadas demographics are rapidly changing, especially since 2020. If you think pointing that out is offensive feel free to leave the discussion to adults.

lol, did you not see a sold out Canucks arena, watching the Oilers nucks game play in Edmonton.
Hockey is doing just fine.

 

[Puckstop40]

No the wage gap is increasing so more people are able to purchase specialized training while the majority won’t be able to, you can look at a lot of recent NA draft picks, rarely are they a “feel good story”

100% dying. It's for the rich .

It's too f***ing expensive.

I don't think its dying , i do think its almost impossible to play for most people

This is the problem I see with hockey and why it may not grow a whole lot. The cost to play, equipment, ice time, etc. are getting more expensive. The cost of living is also increasing as are wage gaps. The only people left to play competitive hockey are going to be those with elite status as they can afford all the special training that the majority of common people just can’t afford.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

It costs an arm and a leg to play . Its not a race issue. Has nothing to do with the color of the immigrants skin.

Look at all these first overall and top picks coming out of NA , they all have parents who build rinks for their kids. They also all live in rural areas and have two parents and cars.

Wayne Gretzky did. and so did Connor McDavid.

There's no come up stories in Canadian hockey.

I remember us celebrating Arber Jackeye as an amazing come up story simply because he actually had a job at Costco. The struggle is real when a 18-19-20 year old has to have a job what a brave person he really overcame all the odds!

 

[Rob]

Is it possible that in the near future Canada will be surpassed by the United States? Yes. But I think it is hyperbole to say that hockey is "dying" in Canada.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Is it possible that in the near future Canada will be surpassed by the United States? Yes. But I think it is hyperbole to say that hockey is "dying" in Canada.

Its not dying the top players are always gonna be little canadian freaks who are put on ice at 1 year old.

The participation toll in the game is dying, but the elite will always be Canadian in my opinion. And regardless of how much unknown talent is lost from the pool of normal people and city residents who can't afford it the cream of the crop will always rise and we will always have Crosby McDavids Bedards ect

 

[Voight]

Top pick last year was Canadian... top pick this year will be Canadian... Canada has 3 of the last 5 WJC's...

 

[Arthur Morgan]

who can afford to put their kids in hockey these days?