Hockey Dads

While I'm far from being the most diehard hockey fan, and am not an avid cheerleader of the uber-Caucasian, Molson Canadian image that so often gets blasted upon hockey in this country, Canada’s dismal upset to the Czech Republic at the World Hockey Championships on Sunday afternoon was enough to make a grown man cry.

But with our team’s lazy work ethic throughout the three periods, Canada didn’t deserve the gold anyway. Czech mate.

What's really astounding is that even with the National Hockey League on hiatus in a seemingly endless lockout, Canada’s love affair with the game remains intact. If you aren’t convinced, TSN expected a record number of TVs tuning in for the final match. Indeed, hockey really does matter to Canadians.

However, for some of us it matters a tad too much.

I’m not talking about the testosterone-fueled twenty-somethings running around half-naked on the “Red Mile” a year ago. I’m not even referring to the guy who hacked off the back of his car and transformed it into a Flames-mobile.

I’m talking about the over-obsessed hockey dads who push their kids to the extreme limits of the sport. I realize this issue has been mulled over and shoved in the limelight of ugly contention for a considerable time now. Yet, it seems fitting to raise it again for two reasons:

Firstly, the issue is somewhat a microcosm of the larger – and not any less ludicrous – NHL lockout issue.

And secondly, after two reigning years with the gold medal, Canada’s loss to the Czech Republic is a testament to the old sports proverb: “It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.”

Unfortunately, it seems that some parents simply don’t follow this wisdom because once again this year, Hockey Canada bombarded viewers with gripping commercials transposing parents’ irrational behaviour at the rink with their involvement in children’s games such as hide and seek. The idea is to highlight how ridiculous their attitudes are.

Yet, any parent who has spent a hefty sum of money under the Tom Cochrane-esque dream that their "boy's gonna play in the big league" won't be calmed down by a few TV spots. Many of these hockey dads are living vicariously through their kids, trying to reclaim their own glory years or grab a victory they never experienced. Incidents of parents abusing their kids over missed shots, attacking coaches over ice time and getting into shoving matches with the parents of rival teams are becoming commonplace in the sport.

The problem has become so bad that some arenas have decided to outright ban parents from tryouts and some scheduled practices. Considering that for every negative parent, there are probably 20 encouraging parents, this “off limits” approach may seem excessive. But where do we draw the line? After all, it really is just a freaking game.

This article also appears in the Calgary Herald