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Would Walter Gretzky, as a member the working class, will be able to afford hockey today?
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frightenedinmatenum2
Registered User
No, lol.
It isn't just afford, it's that there are other substitute products for hockey. Kids generally just want to play sports and be part of a team, some want an outlet to compete. If your kid can't play hockey, but they have a choice of 5-6 other sports that are accessible, odds are there will be a team they are happy to be a part of. The point being, there are now more alternatives than ever.
It's why stories like Chris and Anthony Stewart should be much bigger deals.
I sincerely think that if we're talking about growing the game, and if we already have acknowledged the idea that we should support and possibly subsidize a woman's league for the sake of accessibility, that the NHL needs to start a pro floor or roller hockey league. Assuming roller hockey can be played on any standard gym floor.
Ironically, the exclusive nature of NHL's fanbase is somewhat of an advantage because the NHL is seen as a prestige product with sponsors. The fan base is perceived as being more well-to-do than average, so it commands higher sponsorship dollars.
It's not cucumbers that make you rich, the money is in turning them into pickles.
It isn't just afford, it's that there are other substitute products for hockey. Kids generally just want to play sports and be part of a team, some want an outlet to compete. If your kid can't play hockey, but they have a choice of 5-6 other sports that are accessible, odds are there will be a team they are happy to be a part of. The point being, there are now more alternatives than ever.
It's why stories like Chris and Anthony Stewart should be much bigger deals.
I sincerely think that if we're talking about growing the game, and if we already have acknowledged the idea that we should support and possibly subsidize a woman's league for the sake of accessibility, that the NHL needs to start a pro floor or roller hockey league. Assuming roller hockey can be played on any standard gym floor.
Ironically, the exclusive nature of NHL's fanbase is somewhat of an advantage because the NHL is seen as a prestige product with sponsors. The fan base is perceived as being more well-to-do than average, so it commands higher sponsorship dollars.
It's not cucumbers that make you rich, the money is in turning them into pickles.
JPT
Registered User
- Jul 4, 2024
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First you get the pickles. Then you get the money. Then you get the power.
Then you get the women.
westc2
Registered User
Honest take? Who cares...It's a sport. If you can afford to play it and have the free time to do so, go ahead and do it. If you can't, find something else.
- Jul 21, 2022
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Gretzky comes from a landlord family, his family was pretty loaded both in assets and connections
David Suzuki
Registered User
The part you are missing here is that the Russian Revolution was literally a working class revolution...if you were a land owner in Imperial Russia you were not working class, this is not a debatable point
Jumptheshark
Rebooting myself
You might want to look into how much he got paid for his job. He worked hard and was well paid at the time. While they were not 1% family. They would be classified as upper middle class
JPT
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The Gretzky family left Russia before the revolution. Also, without getting into the stolypin land reforms too much, those who had their property taken were, at least initially, left with enough to live their lives. They were *not* left in a position to continue exploiting peasants. There's a reason the revolution happened and was successful, regardless of how things turned out later.
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Tie Domi Esquire
Go Real Sports Apparel Go!
- Oct 18, 2010
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Hell no, it's a big reason why sports are unwatchable in 2024. These cake eaters care more about buying purses and sandals than they do the product they're selling.
tarheelhockey
Offside Review Specialist
You joke, but tons of kids are consuming esports the way their parents consumed pro team sports. Streamers are as big a deal as TV networks to Gen Z and younger. Older folks don’t seem to realize this tide has already started to turn, and the amount of money to be made on spectator sports as sports is going to flatline pretty soon.
That’s a big part of why the business model is changing to de-emphasize general ticket sales and focus on very wealthy people looking for an exclusive luxury event, while the broadcasts are replacing sports commentary with gambling commentary — the leagues are re-defining themselves to be about things other than sports. Meanwhile esports has re-defined the concept of what it means for people to compete at a game.
That is a very good question.
How many Einstein's have there been in developing countries that never had access to proper nutrition or proper education?
What could have been....
TheFinalWord
Registered User
- Apr 25, 2005
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A 25 acre farm is small generally, but 25ac of field cucumbers represents about 1% of total Ontario production. It's not the same as cash crops. And if they had 25ac of greenhouse cucumbers, that's even larger as a percentage of Ontario production.
blankall
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- Jul 4, 2007
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Walter Gretzky was all in on Wayne's career, when Wayne was 2. Yes, hockey is expensive, but anyone with that kind of commitment will find a way to make it happen. The big expenses really come up at prep school time, when kids are 13+ and now the best programs and coaching get them access to that next level. Gretzky was already a major prodigy at that point. By age 10, Gretzky had 378 goals in a season. He didn't need an ultra expensive hockey prep school.
A bigger question would be how many potential Gretzky's never hit their potential, because they didn't grow up on a farm with Walt giving them lessons from the age of 2 in their backyard rink.
But yes, I think the ever increasing cost of hockey has turned it into a sport for the rich, or those with ultra dedicated parents.
A bigger question would be how many potential Gretzky's never hit their potential, because they didn't grow up on a farm with Walt giving them lessons from the age of 2 in their backyard rink.
But yes, I think the ever increasing cost of hockey has turned it into a sport for the rich, or those with ultra dedicated parents.
JackSlater
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- Apr 27, 2010
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In Gretzky's specific case yes. Walter Gretzky made good money and Wayne was a legitimate prodigy, so something would have come along to help him if required. Even in the case of Bobby Orr, where the family was legitimately poor, I think he would have gotten taken care of given how prodigious his talent was, like literally playing against recent NHLers as a 13 year old etc. Crosby's family didn't have that much money but he was a prodigy, so for example he was able to go to Shattuck St. Mary's for free even though he couldn't afford it. Most players, even stars, were not prodigies so plenty of players miss out.
frontsfan67
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This is exactly why hockey isn’t as big as sports like basketball and soccer. Cost is a big thing.
Fantomas
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how would your kid become a prodigy unless you spend enough money to get him into hockey?
it's not like kids have 'prodigy' written on their foreheads. they have to play and learn skills first.
JackSlater
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It's not getting them into hockey that's extremely cost prohibitive, it's climbing the ladder the older they get. Gretzky was a known quantity by the time he was 9. A typical person would be able to afford that now.
Fantomas
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Both are cost prohibitive, I think. How many poor families can get their kid into hockey even up to age of 9? I think we've definitely missed out on a Bobby Orr or two over the years.
JackSlater
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It's expensive in many places sure, but I'd say that most in Canada could get their kid in hockey in those early years. Certainly the 2024 economic equivalent of Walter Gretzky could. An Orr or Howe, who were basically dirt poor, maybe not.
It's certainly possible that an Orr or two has been missed. I believe that it's much more likely to miss a bunch of potential stars though, as they sometimes show signs later on in development when many people would have pulled the plug on their kid's hockey at the highest level. I'd be more confident if Canada produced a huge star since Crosby who at least faced some kind of economic hardship, but I'm not sure there is one.
Raistlin
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- Aug 25, 2006
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No. but a lot of things are unaffordable now, its market economics. Hockey is now a sport with a high entry barrier. Like now with olympics, we have soccer and swmming, which is accessible to all, and we also have fencing and equestrian athletes. There is nothing wrong that Walter Gretzky can likely not afford to send Wayne to play hockey, because there will be a Hudson's Bay executive that can send his son Connor to play hockey. The government can help elevate the sport by providing equipment and finance prospects from low income families with scholarships, but the sport is thriving either way. Lamenting the prices of goods of yester year is not helpful, I recall 45 cent gas too.
blankall
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- Jul 4, 2007
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Walter made Gretzky a prodigy by building a backyard rink and giving him constant training himself. The future superstars missing out, due to affordability issues, is a great point, but it doesn't apply to Wayne and Walt.
mattihp
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Dragan Umicevic from Södertälje was a pro hockey player. Until borrowing equipment became more common, the nearby community got him his equipment. Mostly people who had barely heard of hockey.
vadim sharifijanov
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every time i think about walter gretzky the song wichita lineman comes into my head
as a union guy in trades he probably made good money. i’m sure midcareer plumbers make more money than my fairly comfortable college educated, has an office with a window self.
but i still wonder, because i have no idea what brantford is like, or if the 2024 walter would be living in a town like brantford or somewhere else, would he have a house? or a house with a big enough backyard to make a rink at the scale that a talented kid can become a wayne freakin’ gretzky?
asking as a guy in vancouver in a dual income household clearing $175k in a condo. i obviously can’t build my kid a rink, for numerous reasons.
as a union guy in trades he probably made good money. i’m sure midcareer plumbers make more money than my fairly comfortable college educated, has an office with a window self.
but i still wonder, because i have no idea what brantford is like, or if the 2024 walter would be living in a town like brantford or somewhere else, would he have a house? or a house with a big enough backyard to make a rink at the scale that a talented kid can become a wayne freakin’ gretzky?
asking as a guy in vancouver in a dual income household clearing $175k in a condo. i obviously can’t build my kid a rink, for numerous reasons.
