Less kids playing hockey;

[Rip The Mesh]

 

[IBatch]

4 minutes ago, Rip The Mesh said:

 

Not to be dramatic, but costs were an issue in the 70's and 80's too.   It was prohibitive then too. 

[Baratheon]

The blame lies with the management of Canadian NHL franchises.  Kids want to play a sport that they’re interested in.  This year was both relieving and eye opening for me.  My son and his friends at school have never talked about hockey.  It wasn’t even slightly on their radar.  That changed big time this year!  We have a brand new group of kids that suddenly started asking to play hockey.  (My own son wants to play goal )

 

The Canucks success gave them something to get behind.  It should come as no surprise that they’re suddenly interested in playing.  I’m sure Edmonton is experiencing something similar.  

[Rip The Mesh]

9 minutes ago, IBatch said:

Not to be dramatic, but costs were an issue in the 70's and 80's too.   It was prohibitive then too. 

Well, I'd get in trouble if I said one off the main reasons I think. Let's just say different strokes for different folks.

[Canuck You]

My brother and I had the privilege thanks to my parents to play ice-hockey up until midget and I know having immigrant parents how tough and expensive it was for them, It has definitely something to do with the economy, It's a huge commitment for the parents taking kids to 4-5am practices..games, driving them and gas ain't cheap, Not to mention the fees and equipment.

 

I know a lot of parents that have their kids in much cheaper sports like soccer, baseball....and some even in roller hockey..I sometimes drop in the Scotia Barn rinks for stick and puck drop in and see a lot of my friends with their kids shooting around.

Edited June 12 by Canuck You

[sbriggs]

37 minutes ago, IBatch said:

Not to be dramatic, but costs were an issue in the 70's and 80's too.   It was prohibitive then too. 

I spent $65,000 on my girls hockey last season. Theres a big difference between playing in the big cities or playing in rural Canada. The cost today is well beyond middleclass families and getting worse

[Warhippy]

IT's about $3400 to gear a kid out for a few months.  Just equipment for a forward or defence.  Goalie around $4500

 

Then you pay your fees/dues.  There's a few thousand more.  Just for a basic season on the lowest skill end.  Oh your kid is good?  Cool, hey pay $2500 for this single weekend tryout camp.  If your kid wants to progress he HAS to be at this camp to get noticed.  Hey your kid got noticed, it's gonna be $2250 to go to a select camp.  

 

This has only been 5 months.  Not including travel for away games or anything.  And oh damn your kid grew two inches and a skate size and now they need new equipment.

 

Hockey was for the longest time the working persons sport.  Equipment was always a little expensive but the camps, the invite camps etc and the seasonal fees are so obscenely out of touch now that it can cost $10k plus on the average to send your kid to hockey on the simplest and most basic end of things.  As a hobby.  The moment it is a sport that's closer to $30k  The moment they're actually good at it, it's now closer to $50k

 

Kids aren't playing hockey because soccer costs you shoes and a ball.  Baseball costs you a bat and glove.  Basketball is a ball and shoes.  volleyball is a ball and warm weather.

Edited June 12 by Warhippy

[Bounce000]

5 minutes ago, Warhippy said:

soccer costs you shoes and a ball.  Baseball costs you a bat and glove.  Basketball is a ball and shoes.  volleyball is a ball and warm weather.

Ah I see you're also a fan of nude sports

[Ghostsof1915]

Costs go up, Kids playing goes down.

Getting ice time is tough, everyone wants to charge an arm and a leg for camps, expensive equipment.

It's not like you can create a rink in your backyard and your kid can practice for hours.

Not to mention, it's harder even for double income families to pay for it all.

Probably your best bet is hope your kid gets into BCHL, and gets a scholarship to the US and gets free education.

 

 

[grumpyone]

what's REALLY scary is....when was the last time you ever saw a group   of kids playing street hockey?

too many video games being played instead. 

very sad

[Dumb Nuck]

I blame hockey cards, when I was a kid every recess and lunch we’d be buying, trading and playing games for hockey cards. I knew every player in the league. Nowadays hockey cards are nothing more than gambling, pull the expensive card and sell it, toss the rest, no one’s doing hockey card stuff at school anymore.

 

 

 

Edited June 13 by Dumb Nuck

[Rip The Mesh]

25 minutes ago, grumpyone said:

what's REALLY scary is....when was the last time you ever saw a group   of kids playing street hockey?

 

Not as often as I'd like to. The Richmond Ice Centre has had six full sized rinks for roughly 30 yrs. ago, same as North Delta. There are many rinks

that are no longer hockey oriented, ice taken out.

When we couldn't get on ice, we'd find a lacrosse box to play road hockey. That's how hockey oriented it was in, say, 1994.

 

Hockey is still big in some areas of BC, no where near what it was. With so much immigration over the last 25 / 30years, it seems most kids are into Basketball.

Never know, it could rev up again. Saw some real positive action when the Canucks were in the playoffs.  Some have noted the cost. Yah, it's tough to 

dole out so much for gear that will need upgrading pretty much every year.

Did I mention about the Canuck's great year? Oh yah, I did..

[Alflives]

So sad the direction our once great hockey country is taking. Kids want to be basketball or soccer players first. Two of the most stupid and useless games ever when it comes to teaching toughness. We are raising marshmallows. 

[Cromeslab]

Guaranteed Oil are juicing,I demand a drug test…

[CanuckDownUnder]

The time and monetary commitment has become too much of a burden for the average family - its not surprising minor league participation is declining.

[Ilunga]

8 hours ago, Ghostsof1915 said:

 

It's not like you can create a rink in your backyard and your kid can practice for hours.

 

 

 

Tell that to the Gretzky's.

 

I read about this in a book about the history of hockey a friend in Canada gave me to read on the flight home years ago. 

 

His family bought a sprinkler at sears, turned it on at night for a couple of weeks until they had about 6 inches of ice. 

 

" For Hockey's Wayne Gretzky, Greatness Began in an Icy Backyard "

 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/for-hockeys-wayne-gretzky-greatness-began-in-an-icy-backyard-1477409583

 

[Maninthebox]

Declining population. Prohibitive costs. Demanding regimen. Disgusting politics. Disturbing parental behavior.

 

It isn't fun anymore.

[Gurn]

Graham James

 

The Chicago/ Brad Aldrich

 

Team Canada investigations

 

Some parents, with kids the right age to play hockey, won't let them, due to these men, and incidents.

---------------------------------------------

Then horrible hours for ice time- the outrageous costs-- the macho, macho bullshit that is still very prevalent.

More risk of serious injury.

-----------------------------------

 

it would be interesting to see if participation is dropping in all sports, or just hockey?

[stawns]

On 6/12/2024 at 3:20 PM, Warhippy said:

IT's about $3400 to gear a kid out for a few months.  Just equipment for a forward or defence.  Goalie around $4500

 

Then you pay your fees/dues.  There's a few thousand more.  Just for a basic season on the lowest skill end.  Oh your kid is good?  Cool, hey pay $2500 for this single weekend tryout camp.  If your kid wants to progress he HAS to be at this camp to get noticed.  Hey your kid got noticed, it's gonna be $2250 to go to a select camp.  

 

This has only been 5 months.  Not including travel for away games or anything.  And oh damn your kid grew two inches and a skate size and now they need new equipment.

 

Hockey was for the longest time the working persons sport.  Equipment was always a little expensive but the camps, the invite camps etc and the seasonal fees are so obscenely out of touch now that it can cost $10k plus on the average to send your kid to hockey on the simplest and most basic end of things.  As a hobby.  The moment it is a sport that's closer to $30k  The moment they're actually good at it, it's now closer to $50k

 

Kids aren't playing hockey because soccer costs you shoes and a ball.  Baseball costs you a bat and glove.  Basketball is a ball and shoes.  volleyball is a ball and warm weather.

 

Soccer is, by far, the most popular sport and it's not even close

[Nucker67]

4 minutes ago, stawns said:

 

Soccer is, by far, the most popular sport and it's not even close

 

a ball is cheap

[stawns]

14 minutes ago, Nucker67 said:

 

a ball is cheap

 

That's part of it, for sure.  But, kids enjoy it more and our cultural make up is shifting and there's a ton of kids whose parents come from countries where football is  the top of the heap

[RWMc1]

Another minor factor could be the climate. We used to have 6 different outdoor rinks within walking distance when I was a kid. We also had unofficial tournaments in an outdoor rink with normal rounded walls but with chainlink instead of glass. I think many cities don't invest in those anymore because of the cost and shorter seasons. A lot of kids got hooked and joined a league.

[Scott72]

I have also noticed that kids don't play hockey now days like they did back in the days. 

 

I personally never played Ice Hockey myself as I was never good at ice skating. But after school we did play ball hockey out on the street (was lucky to have cut de sac to play ball hockey). I don't see kids playing hockey anymore. 

 

It wasn't like just elementary kids playing. I was in high school grade 9 and there were kids from grade 11/12 whom I used to play ball hockey on street. I am hearing a lot of people saying, oh hockey is expensive, yes ice hockey is expensive but for ball hockey on street? just need a net, a hockey stick and a hockey ball. 

 

I think about this often and then I realize the way things are in our society like crime, abduction, etc. As a kid would I feel safe to play outside? Also the way some lunatics drive on inner roads? some people drive at 70+ on inner roads. If a kid is out on the streets playing and these guys drive around, would they have time to even stop? 

[Gnarcore]

On 6/13/2024 at 1:24 AM, Ilunga said:

 

Tell that to the Gretzky's.

 

I read about this in a book about the history of hockey a friend in Canada gave me to read on the flight home years ago. 

 

His family bought a sprinkler at sears, turned it on at night for a couple of weeks until they had about 6 inches of ice. 

 

" For Hockey's Wayne Gretzky, Greatness Began in an Icy Backyard "

 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/for-hockeys-wayne-gretzky-greatness-began-in-an-icy-backyard-1477409583

 

That works in most of Canada...not on much of the west coast though

[cripplereh]

Real reason is kids just want to play on screens now instead of doing any work.

 

 

See it in jobs and it starts as kids.Parents don't kick the kids out to play anymore,instead watch tv go on a screen,play video games.