Nobody will ever deny the importance of hockey to life in Canada.
Many Canadians seemingly hang on to every game for their favourite NHL club. In smaller centres, hockey is a staple of life in the community.
Your small-town arena becomes the hub of activity every winter. It’s not just a place to gather to watch hockey; it’s a place to socialize and meet with friends and enjoy good food. In some communities, the concession stand might be the closest thing they have to a restaurant. And in many communities, big and small, it will be home to the best burgers in town.
For the majority of those who play, watch and/or love the game, their introduction to the sport came through minor hockey.
When they’re playing at a young age, they aren’t playing for money or fame or glory. Maybe they’ll get the thrill of having their name and photo in the paper. Maybe they’ll win a league even a provincial championship, or they’ll be selected for an age rep. team.
But the vast majority of them are playing because they want to be on the ice, and because of the great friends they have made through hockey.
Minor hockey is also an opportunity to learn valuable lessons that kids carry with them for the rest of their lives. It’s a chance for them to learn about teamwork and sportsmanship, to develop their work ethic.
It allows them to see communities they wouldn’t visit otherwise, and might not see again. It brings them to cities, towns and villages of all sizes, and sends them to all sorts of arenas, whether they be new and impressive, or old and nearing the end of their service.
It allows them to meet friends they wouldn’t encounter otherwise, whether it be teammates or even opponents. In some cases, the opponents they have faced for years might eventually become teammates, and vice-versa.
And while minor hockey is not about winning and losing, they get to experience the thrill of victory and they learn lessons associated with defeat.
You realize how special of a time minor hockey is for kids when you talk to them after their final youth hockey game. Even if they have the promise of playing junior, senior, post-secondary or even recreation hockey, it’s a tough time when their minor hockey days are over.
You also see the dedication of others associated with minor hockey. Parents take their kids to practices at all hours of the day, and to games in far-flung locations, and coaches dedicate hours each week to practices and games, and to preparation, making sure kids are ready to play.
It’s also encouraging to see that we are doing more to bring minorities and the children of newcomers into the game. The more diverse hockey becomes, the better off we’ll all be.
Is minor hockey perfect? No. You’ll find those who take the kids games way too seriously, or those who place too much of an emphasis on winning. We always have to remember that these are kids we’re talking about here, and the single-most important things are that they have fun, learn the game, learn to love the sport and further their skills.
Let them worry about wins and losses as they grow older.
But the bulk of the people that you meet through minor hockey – kids, parents, coaches, officials and volunteers – are good people who want to see young people love hockey.
It’s a great game. It’s a national passion. And minor hockey is where it begins for so many.
