Hockey Day in Canada

If you ask any red blooded Canadian "Who invented hockey?" and you’ll hear a non-equivocal “We Did!” although versions of hockey can be traced as far back as ancient Greece. Canadian ice hockey however was thought to have originated amongst the Odawa First Nations people in what is now Algonquin Park. You’ll be hard pressed to prove that ice hockey doesn’t have its strongest roots here in the Great White North. Our forefathers, our parents and our children hold the tradition of playing hockey as sacred in Canada so you better not try to imply that it’s not our game without the possibility of gettin’ a good ol’ Canadian smackdown as retribution!

As a way to commemorate our sport, we Canucks host the annual Hockey Day in Canada celebration. Outdoor rinks and frozen ponds all over the country bustle as the young and the not-so’s don their blades for a game of shinny in celebration of our beloved game. In Ottawa, the city hosts a pond hockey game on the world’s largest skating rink, the Rideau Canal, between the Ottawa Senators alumni and some NHL hockey heroes. On Saturday, Steve and I went to check it out as his buddy Shaun Van Allen was playing for the ex-Sens. It was close to being the coldest day of the year but the guys didn’t disappoint us. They were having a blast despite the weather. Even with the oldest player, I could still see the glint of an 8 year old boy who once played on an outdoor rink shining through. I only slightly froze my fingers taking these shots.