A Canadian Saturday Night: Hockey and the Culture of a Country

Ian A. Andrews is a high-school social sciences teacher and editor of the New Brunswick Teachers’ Association’s Focus.

Few would argue that hockey is not an important aspect of the Canadian
identity. Many associate Saturday night with Hockey Night in Canada.
Andrew Podnieks, the author of over 30 books, has chosen 65 icons
associated with Canada’s infatuation with hockey and explains, through
pictures and words, how each of these has contributed to the Canadian
hockey psyche. Some may suggest additions or oversights, but few would
disagree with Podnieks’s choices.

The book’s design is appealing. Each of the featured topics is
represented by a full-page photograph with a facing page of commentary.
Tangibles like puck, stick, the toque, goalie mask, and Zamboni are
easily recognized; concepts like “the three stars,” “hockey
smarts,” and “car!” are represented, respectively, by an Imperial
Oil poster featuring Murray Westgate and Foster Hewitt, students
learning under father Athol Murray in a classroom at Notre Dame, and
children enjoying a road hockey game. The illustrations will elicit fond
memories, especially for baby boomers who grew up before the excessive
commercialization of hockey. Roch Carrier’s The Hockey Sweater relates
more to a traditional rural Quebec and Canada, in contrast to “The
Richard Riot” where a sporting event signalled inherent political
change. Defining moments, like Phil Esposito’s heartfelt speech and
Paul Henderson’s winning goal at the 1972 Summit series, are included,
along with associated paraphernalia like table-top hockey, “used
ice,” hockey cards, and souvenir programs.

The influence of outspoken Don Cherry and entrepreneur Tim Horton on
Canadian social history are both featured. The impact of Stompin’ Tom
Connor’s “The Hockey Song” and the Hockey Night in Canada theme
provide iconic music associated as much with game as the “National
Anthem” sung by Roger Doucet or Lyndon Slewidge.

The final four items—“A New Game,” “Madonna of the Rink,”
“the Dream,” and “the Skate”—show both the present and future
of the game: participation of females, hockey as a religion, youthful
hope, and oldtimers hockey. A Canadian Saturday Night provides an
excellent potpourri of images that depict a nation’s passion.