Most people would be surprised to learn that hockey isn’t the national sport of Canada, considering the country’s love affair with the game. Many people in Canada eat, sleep, and breathe hockey. Hockey is definitely a Canadian sport, although its roots are in Ireland, back when it was called Hurley. In the 1800s hockey became very popular throughout Canada, especially the East coast, and its infectious nature has caught on all over the world. In 1917, a league was formed to guide the play among professional hockey teams. This league, the National Hockey League (NHL) originally consisted of five teams. But the numbers quickly grew and by the end of the century there would be 30 teams from all over Canada and the USA. For many fans, hockey is serious business. During Stanley Cup, in recent years, the US teams have dominated the hockey playoffs. However, hockey still has a bigger following in Canada. Hockey Night in Canada is quite an event in many households and sports bars. Several teams like the Winnipeg Jets and the Quebec Nordiques have fallen by the wayside in Canada in the past several years. High player salaries are an unfortunate cause. Compared to any professional sport Hockey stars are among the highest paid. Many of the top players head to teams in the US partly due to this reason. Thanks to high salary demands, Many Canadian teams have a hard time retaining their homegrown players. There has been no game so far this season due to this key issue of dispute in 2004. Hockey can be at times a violent game with spectators cheering their team as the opposing team is crushed against the boards. Of course, some people wonder if this propensity for violence is teaching young fans to be violent. Unfortunately, violence has turned up in the little leagues. While some of the little leagues are adopting no tolerance policy for aggressive play, and some have banned this type of contact all together, the professional teams under the NHL have not followed suit. These days’ parents have become a bit too passionate at little league hockey games. There is an increasing number of fights between parents and verbal and physical abuse against referees and coaches. This has prompted many people to stay away from the sport or putting their children in after school hockey programs. The thought of knowing that the parents care more about who wins than the kids do is frightening. Regardless of this hockey will always be a popular game in North America. Europe also enjoys much success in the world of hockey. Little known places such as Belarus has been highlighted after the recent world championships. Little ice hockey can be played anywhere you can find frozen ponds in the winter. This is not always the case though, look at the Los Angeles Kings. In North America one of the best-loved games is Hockey. Many fans are hopeful that there will be at least a few games this 2004/2005 NHL season. Farm teams and minor leagues are still playing so at least fans can get to see some hockey. To feel the excitement in the air and understand what the fuss is all about then be sure to check out a game at your local area. This is why hockey is so popular. Urther Queen is the webmaster for UQ Hockey, a fantastic resource for information about hockey. For questions or comments about this article why not visit: www.uqhockey.com/articles
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