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The Great Game Of Hockey
By Urther Queen
When most people think of hockey, they often associate the game with Canada. But, surprisingly, isn't the national sport of Canada, but the roots of go back to Ireland. Before Canadians began their obsessive need for hockey, the game was played in Ireland under the unlikely name of Hurley. The game was brought over to Canada by Irish immigrants, and around the 1800s began to gain popularity throughout Canada. The game quickly caught on, especially on the East coast, and became popular all over the world.
Five original teams formed the National League (NHL) in 1917. This increased to 30 teams from all over Canada and the USA by the end of the century. One look at some of the fans at the arenas show, they mean business and are passionate about their hockey.
During Stanley Cup, in recent years, the US teams have dominated the playoffs. However, still has a bigger following in Canada. 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.
Hockey stars are among the highest paid in any professional sport. This is partly the reason that many of the top players head to teams in the US. Many Canadian teams have a hard time retaining their homegrown players thanks to high salary demands. This is also the key issue in the 2004 dispute which has resulted in no games thus far for the season.
Hockey is a very violent game, and spectators love to watch the opposing team get crushed against the boards. Many people wonder what this is teaching young fans and, unfortunately, violence is very common in the little leagues. Many leagues have adopted a no tolerance policy for aggressive play, and some have banned this type of contact all together. The NHL however, has yet
to follow suit.
Some of the parents at little league games have become a bit too passionate in recent years. An increasing number of fights between parents and verbal and physical abuse against referees and coaches have prompted many people to shy away from the sport or putting their children in after school programs. It's a frightening prospect when the parents care more about who wins than the kids do.
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 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.
Hockey remains one of the favorite games in North American cities and many fans hope to enjoy during the 2004/2005 NHL season. But even without the pros, there are farm teams and minor leagues teams playing hockey, so fans can still get their fix. If you are curious to see what all the fuss is over, check out a game at your local arena and you'll feel the excitement in the air - and on the ice. No wonder is so popular! Free Article brought to YOU by ArticlesOn.com, where you'll find Articles On Everything! Visit http://articleson.com to get more free content. Urther Queen is the owner of UQ Hockey, a fantastic resource for information about hockey. For more articles on why not visit: www.uqhockey.com/articles
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