Tiger Woods once said, "Hockey is a sport for white men. Basketball is a sport for black men. Golf is a sport for white men dressed like black pimps."
Woods's comment is an attempt at humor concerning race in sports. But it's not without a bit of introspection. Professional basketball is played largely by black players, but it is enjoyed by people with every background imaginable. Golf, though a sport with storied traditions and an illustrious history, sees that its popularity has recently crossed over from middle-aged, affluent white men to other groups in society, largely because of Woods's dominance.
Hockey, however, is different. It is the undisputed national sport of Canada. Yet, it has always sat at the bottom rung of the four major sports leagues in the US behind Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and the National Basketball Association. Although many fans and the media stateside haven't cared to notice, hockey has been on a pretty strong uptick since the National Hockey League's ugly lockout five years ago. Certainly some franchises find themselves struggling to gain a foothold in what are considered non-traditional markets - the Phoenix Coyotes are a glaring example, mired in bankruptcy and legal preceedings - but the league has regained many of its fans while finding ways to attract new ones. Add the excitement of the college ranks - the Men's Frozen Four is arguably the best amateur sports event year in and year out - and the game has the same ability to draw fans from cities and towns across the country as its more popular peers.
Labeled a cold weather sport that brings unwanted chills, hockey's biggest detractors aren't just xenophobic Americans who view Canada as a punch line. Many, if not most, ethnic minorities would give you a look of bewilderment if you wax on about the impact Jay Bouwmeester or Chris Pronger will bring to their new teams this season.
"Not to be tasteless," warned David Scott Lee, an avid puckhead from Queens. "I remember a joke on the Don Imus Show where someone said hockey is racist because it's a bunch of white men running around smacking the only black thing on the rink with sticks."
As with any sport, fans gravitate towards success. The local team that captures a championship captures the imagination, too. That's how Pedro Cruz became a New York Rangers fan growing up in the Latino-heavy Bronx.
"The games that first woke me up to hockey were the sixth and seventh contests of the 1994 Eastern Conference finals," said Cruz, who keeps all of his teeth as a fifth grade math and science teacher in his home borough. "It was in Game 6 that Messier guaranteed a victory and backed it up with a hat trick, and well Game 7, 'Matteau, Matteau, Matteau!' Need I say more?"
For other minorities like Jason Upshaw it was a matter of what the kids were playing. "Growing up in a culturally diverse city it was my Portuguese friends that first piqued my interest in hockey," the Boston-area native said. Upshaw, now living in suburban Washington, DC, continued. "I would play street hockey with them during recess. Being from Boston, I have a number of great hockey team choices. The Bruins, the Boston College Eagles, Boston University Terriers, etc., are all great teams to follow. Even the local Division III teams have passionate followings."
But there's more to building a fanbase. More to it than the home team and the neighborhood kids. For many minorities, seeing a player of similar ethnicity brings about a sense of pride, at the very least it captures attention. Most, if not all sports, grew in popularity thanks to minorities who were more than trendsetters, who were elite players. Jackie Robinson. Roberto Clemente. Jack Johnson. Althea Gibson. Arthur Ashe. Fritz Pollard. Legends all of them among many more.
The NHL has Willie O'Ree who, despite a brief career in the elite ranks, notably broke the color barrier as a winger for the Boston Bruins back in 1958. It would not be until Mike Marson suited up for Washington sixteen years later that a black player would skate NHL ice again. There's a Who's Who of minority athletes in the league annals such as Hall of Famer Grant Fuhr, Calgary Flames captain Jarome Iginla, Montreal Canadiens' Scott Gomez, and others.
"Though it was blasphemy to admit it, I was so proud of Scott Gomez while he was with the Devils, and was overjoyed when he came here to play with my Rangers," said Cruz. "Though he's gone now, I felt such pride that a player with similar ethnic makeup had made it in the NFL, and had won Stanley Cups, no less, as a star player."
Upshaw echoed the importance of winning. "Seeing [Mike] Grier and [Anson] Carter play added novelty, but, ultimately, if the team sucks I won't watch."
Identifying ethnically with players doesn't always hook fans, as is the case with Lee. "I guess, Paul Kariya is half-Japanese and I thought that was pretty cool. I used to care a little when I was younger but now I don't really care." Being candid though, Lee felt the lack of an Asian presence isn't much of a surprise or even a demand. "Asians aren't really dominant in any sports," he said. "There are some famous players like Yao Ming, Ichiro, etc., but Asians in general don't seem to pay much attention to these sports."
Exact numbers are hard to come by. The NHL and its teams do not make demographic information of their fans publicy available if that data exists at all. According to an anonymous team source, there is a built-in advantage that helps grow the numbers. "As far as the audiences having a strong minority presence I think that goes back to where we are located," he emailed. "Because there is such a high minority presence [where the team plays] I think it in turn leads to a stronger mix of minorities at the games."
The source mentioned that ticket giveaways and community service are methods his team uses to attract all fans, not just ethnic minorities. Yet, the NHL's "Hockey is for Everyone" initiative is doing its part to build interest through social responsibility. "Hockey is for Everyone," with O'Ree as one of its ambassadors, has introduced the game to thousands of kids from New England to New Mexico.
While "Hockey is for Everyone" is helping break into potentially bountiful markets in the northeast, not every member club has an associated program. One of the writers at the sports blog the Phoenix Pub feels that more teams need to make a concerted effort to reach minorities who are potential fans.
In his piece "Hockey's Place in the Sports World," First Derivative writes, "Now where are these programs in the rest of the NHL? I'm especially looking at you, Florida Panthers, and you, LA Kings. Miami and LA are really big media markets, with large minority presence. So why not go for them? Ticket giveaways, send players out there, all the things that actually would gain positive press. Have Rick Nash play street hockey with a bunch of kids, get out there and do something. If you want to make the big bucks, show that you're worth it."
Cruz believes that hockey already embraces minorities because hockey is used to clawing for an audience. "I think hockey fans, knowing the troubled state in which their sport finds itself, would welcome more minority players with open arms. Just look at what those players have done for the NBA, NFL, and MLB."
The reemergence of the NHL is still an ongoing process. The broadcasting deal with VERSUS and NBC has been much maligned, the weakened economy has taken money from already diminished coffers, and most of the league's players are too foreign for some tastes. Yet, as other successful sports leagues have taken time to work out the kinds, they found that fans of all backgrounds embraced their games. That may very well be the case for hockey as a whole, so long as its caretakers continue to reach out.
[Jason is a staff sportswriter for the New York Beacon, an African-American weekly in New York City. He is also the schizophrenic mind behind a Sports Scribe. Follow him on Twitter to glimpse the rapid-fire method to his madness. To read more by Jason, check out his profile.]
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