Would Walter Gretzky, as a member the working class, will be able to afford hockey today?

[sawchuk1971]

It appears that the sport of hockey is becoming too expensive for working class families..

I noticed that Walter Gretzky's job was working as a telephone repairman , a working class job...

If Walter was a father today, will he be able to afford ice hockey for his son Wayne in this era?

Click to read more...

 

[Ninety7]

Makes you wonder how many stars around the world we’ve missed out on.

 

[SomeDude]

If you can handle budgeting, you can afford a lot more things than you think.

 

[Tom Polakis]

Good question, but maybe don't use Gretzky as your example. If a kid is just a pretty good player with hopes of an NHL career, it's extremely expensive to pay for travel, equipment, etc.

Maybe a more specific way to frame the question would be to ask if there are many examples of NHL players who were raised in lower-income families. Do today's better players in Juniors somehow have their expenses paid?

 

[HugeInTheShire]

Unrelated but I had to not let my daughter play baseball for team Canada because it was around 10 thousand dollars for expenses

 

[Serpico]

If you can handle budgeting, you can afford a lot more things than you think.

Nah, blue collar wages have been stagnant and inequality has grown since the late 80's. You have to spend crazy money just for pre-school these days never mind hockey. There is a reason why millennials such as myself don't plan on having kids and I work in finance.

 

[Paperbagofglory]

It appears that the sport of hockey is becoming too expensive for working class families..

I noticed that Walter Gretzky's job was working as a telephone repairman , a working class job...

If Walter was a father today, will he be able to afford ice hockey for his son Wayne in this era?

Not all working class jobs are created equal. Especially if you get into a trades that represented by Unions. Benefits, healthcare, insurance. I know many appliance repairmen, plumbers and Electricians making 40 dollars an hour or more. Its not a field where you usually struggle financially.

Working class people that have a good knowledge of investing and budgeting for the future will not struggle financially. Sure you might have to put in some more overtime hours to pay for your kids equipment, but this stereotype that someone working class people can't get into hockey in 2021 is over exaggerated. People of blue collar communities have representation in the hockey community. The cool thing about Canada and the hockey culture is if you live in a small town its even easier as there are a lot of community based drives and support in terms of local rinks and small town attitudes about communities helping each other out. Its why in Sask there is a huge boom of aboriginal hockey players and the numbers will keep increasing.

Its not all doom and gloom. Yes it is expensive, as maintaining indoor ice rinks are not cheap, but its not out of reach for most people.

 

[pt_mck]

If you can handle budgeting, you can afford a lot more things than you think.

Competitive minor hockey in Canada can cost a family $10-15K/yr (ice time, travel, tournaments, $300 sticks, $500 skates... aint cheap)
House league hockey can cost a family $2-3K/year

This is way out of reach for a lot of families.

 

[David Suzuki]

Reading his wikipedia entry I wouldn't exactly say he had a working class upbringing.

The Gretzky family were landowners in the multinational Russian Empire, and supporters of Tsar Nicholas II[3] originally from Grodno (now in Belarus)

Tony and Mary owned a 25-acre (10 ha) cucumber farm in Canning, Ontario[10] where Walter Gretzky was born and raised.

 

[GreatSaveEssensa]

If you can handle budgeting, you can afford a lot more things than you think.

Maybe so, but one can’t squeeze water from a stone.

All the budgeting in the world wont help with the costs of high end hockey these days if that family just doesn't make enough. Sure, maybe some house league hockey, and maybe a little spring hockey with a camp for a week thrown into the summer. But to play the high end stuff needed for proper development and scouting , plus the off ice training etc required now a days is far out of the reach of your average family.

 

[Spirit of 67]

It appears that the sport of hockey is becoming too expensive for working class families..

I noticed that Walter Gretzky's job was working as a telephone repairman , a working class job...

If Walter was a father today, will he be able to afford ice hockey for his son Wayne in this era?

Yes.
I know plenty of "Working class" people who's kids play hockey.

Like, WTF??

 

[Paperbagofglory]

Reading his wikipedia entry I wouldn't exactly say he had a working class upbringing.

RIP narrative.

 

[pld459666]

It appears that the sport of hockey is becoming too expensive for working class families..

I noticed that Walter Gretzky's job was working as a telephone repairman , a working class job...

If Walter was a father today, will he be able to afford ice hockey for his son Wayne in this era?

What do you mean appears? and becoming?

It's always been too expensive.

Growing up in NYC ice was no where to be found

pads? Goalies old abandoned couch cushions (no cup) / no blocker / a 1st basemans mitt for a catching glove

skaters? Sunday newspaper taped to your shins (no cup)

a puck? A sanded down roll of Scotch 88 Electrical tape.

hardly anyone wore aa helmet.

Hockey has ALWASY been an expensive sport

Thank goodness for spots like Play it Again so that folks could get cheaper equipmeent.

 

[David Suzuki]

RIP narrative.

Yeah just because he worked a day job doesn't mean he was "working class" like the vast majority of people are living pay cheque to pay cheque etc... so while hockey has obviously become too expensive and out of reach for many, I doubt someone like Walter Gretzky would ever have trouble putting his kids into hockey, today, or at any point.

 

[Just Linda]

Competitive minor hockey in Canada can cost a family $10-15K/yr (ice time, travel, tournaments, $300 sticks, $500 skates... aint cheap)
House league hockey can cost a family $2-3K/year

This is way out of reach for a lot of families.

I grew up poor. My brother took out a line of credit to pay for his last 2 years of junior. A big reason he left the sport was to work on the rigs to pay off that debt. I never stood a ghost of a chance of making the NHL but I'm convinced that if we were born into wealth (and if we didn't live in rural butt **** nowhere) that he would have made it.

 

[Canes]

RIP narrative.

You aren't going to get rich owning a 25 acre farm. And back then it was a lot harder work and not as lucrative as farming can be nowadays.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

Reading his wikipedia entry I wouldn't exactly say he had a working class upbringing.

Since when does owning a 25 acre cucumber farm make your kids rich?

 

[nbwingsfan]

If you can handle budgeting, you can afford a lot more things than you think.

If you make 55-65k a year can you really afford the ~25k a year its costing for most top of line coaches/camps?

 

[GJB]

Also have to factor in he was 1 of 4 brothers, at least 3 of them played hockey (Wayne/Brent/Keith). Putting 3/4 kids through hockey these days would be very costly no doubt.

 

[Chips]

edit can’t find

 

[SomeDude]

Competitive minor hockey in Canada can cost a family $10-15K/yr (ice time, travel, tournaments, $300 sticks, $500 skates... aint cheap)
House league hockey can cost a family $2-3K/year

This is way out of reach for a lot of families.

So, like $500 US?

 

[David Suzuki]

Since when does owning a 25 acre cucumber farm make your kids rich?

You missed the part where he was also the descendants of land owning aristocrats in the Russian Empire

And it's 25 more acres then anyone I know ever owned

 

[Chips]

You missed the part where he was also the descendants of land owning aristocrats in the Russian Empire

And it's 25 more acres then anyone I know ever owned

Aristocrats can be poor technically. It only for sure means their ancestors had money and or influence , and they inherited it.

That’s knowledge of a few different countries history tho, not Russia and they’re not necessarily all the same as Russia

also “rich” in another country can just mean “not as poor as most people” lol

even if they had money in Russian empire, they might have lost it coming over (I’m not sure if they just left, or left when people were getting, you know)

 

[nbwingsfan]

Since when does owning a 25 acre cucumber farm make your kids rich?

Cucumber farming is actually one of the more lucrative forms of farming. That probably pulled in a decent profit

 

[Paperbagofglory]

You missed the part where he was also the descendants of land owning aristocrats in the Russian Empire

And it's 25 more acres then anyone I know ever owned

To play devil's advocate. Didn't those descendants get everything taken from them by the Bolsheviks? The ones that survived anyways since there was essentially a purge of the royal family and all of its loyalists.

They might have been rich pre Russian revolution, but i doubt they were able to hold onto to their assets and Lenin was assembling quite a collection of followers as well as writing Beatles songs. Talented man that one.