The history of Canadian hockey Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The recital of Canadian hockey - Essay ExampleHistorians have argued for the past 2 centuries about the origins of hockey. It is generally hold that hockey was an evolution of the game hurley that had been adapted to p jelling on ice. The name hockey is believed to have bob up from the French word hoquet meaning shepards stick (Origins and Roots). While British historians have tried to lay claim to the game, Canadian experts flatly disagree. British historian Ian Gordon wrote in 1937 that the game of hockey was first contend at Windsor Castle in 1853 by members of the Royal Family (qtd. in McFarlane 1). Still others place the origin in Europe as early as the 16th century. A painting titled Hunters in the coke by Pietr Bruegel from 1565 depicts skaters carrying sticks that resemble recent hockey sticks. One of the figures is about to strike a small bombastic object (The Origins of Hockey). Canadian researchers however are quick to point out that the painting does not show the s kates required to be called hockey. Researchers can also leave Canadian hockey earlier than the 1853 date cited by Gordon.. Hockey historian Howard Dill places the birthplace of hockey at Long Pond in Windsor, Nova Scotia in 1810 (McFarlane 1). This is supported by Dr. Sandy Youngs book, Beyond Heroes A Sport History of Nova Scotia. Dr. Young refers to a quote by Thomas Chandler Halliburton who graduated from Kings-Edgehill School in Windsor in 1810. He recounts playing ... hurley on the long pond on the ice (qtd. in McFarlane 2). Another anonymous student wrote of his experience at the same school and says they used to skate in winter on moonlit nights ... his front teething knocked out with a hurley (qtd. in McFarlane 2). The first documented and verified incidents of hockey seem to have been contend at the beginning of the 1800s in Nova Scotia.Wherever it was originally played, it probably evolved in several places over a period of years and was spread by immigrants and migran t workers. However, there is little debate about modern hockey. The first rules to hockey were laid down in 1879 by a group of Students at McGill in Montreal (McFarlane 2). This laid the foundation for organized college games and set the stage for the future of professional hockey. The National Hockey coalition (NHL) was formed in Canada in 1917 (McFarlane 15). Leagues such as the westerly Coast Hockey League and the Western Canada Hockey League came into existence and passed as suddenly as they came. By the end of the 1920s, six gay hockey had been standardized, the forward pass was allowed in all zones, and the Stanley Cup became the exclusive right of the NHL (McFarlane 15). Hockey go along to expand during the 1930s through the 1960s attracting fans all across North America. Dominated by the Canadian teams of Montreal and the Toronto Maple Leaves, it was also successful in northern American cities such as Detroit, Boston, and Chicago. World War II impacted hockey as it did o ther major league sports. Transportation became a problem and legion(predicate) players were drafted or enlisted in the armed services. However, by 1970 professional hockey was seeing major expansion by the addition of teams all over North America. The league had operated as a six-team unit for 50 years, only had added 10 teams to their ranks in the years 1967-1972 (McFarlane 117). Teams in southern cities such as Atlanta and Los Angeles were taking reward of hockeys