Modern ice hockey was founded by James Creighton in 1875 Montreal, and since then it has established itself internationally as Canada’s sport. O Canada! Your chain might be getting snatched by the Americans again. Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, was also a Canadian. I bet he is rolling in his grave seeing that Canada has zero Olympic gold medals, one NBA championship and two MVPs to show for it — and Creighton should get ready to toss and turn, too.
While Canadians have always been able to cope with the constant losses in other sports by turning to hockey, we might be losing our edge. Most recently, both the men’s and women’s hockey teams lost in the Milan Winter Olympics to the United States. Each of the Canadian teams was composed of the best rosters possible, so there is no excuse. On paper, Canada has the best individual players in the world, from McDavid to Crosby and MacKinnon, but the U.S. beat them collectively with the power of friendship.
We’ve yet to reach the point where it should be said that Canada is washed, but we cannot call ourselves the most dominant country if we are not the number one in the IHF ranking for both men and women. Canada’s men’s team has not won an Olympic gold medal since Sochi 2014, and they did not even make the podium at the 2024 IIHF World Championship, finishing fourth. Nearly half of the NHL’s and PWHL’s players are Canadian, yet not a single Canadian franchise has lifted the Stanley Cup since 1993. If Canada truly dominated modern hockey, you would expect at least one homegrown dynasty. Instead, the Cup has consistently gone south of the border.
Possibly the greatest shame is that Canada does not even produce its own talent; all the women on Team Canada’s roster played NCAA hockey. Let that sink in — not a single one came from USPORTS. If Canada were truly dominant, we would have produced and retained more of our own hockey players through domestic systems.
Perhaps this drought can be attributed to the sport being past its mainstream prime. The popularity of hockey is declining in Canada. Participation numbers among youth have dropped significantly as the sport has become more expensive to play, while the game continues to grow in the United States. The trend suggests that in the near future, the U.S. could realistically take the crown as the top hockey nation. I can corroborate — having had the chance to watch a college hockey game in the United States, Canada comes nowhere close. The U.S. games are simply better eye candy.
In my opinion, the only way Canada can prevent hockey from slipping into the hands of the United States is by making the sport more affordable. However, I’m not sure that is entirely possible. The rising costs of equipment, ice time, and development programs have already made hockey less accessible for many families.
I also think hockey could lose some popularity after the World Cup, especially as soccer continues to grow. Soccer is already gaining more global popularity, has more superstars, and its top players earn significantly more money. In fact, three soccer players have already become billionaires, while no hockey player has reached that level.
Because of this, Canada’s best strategy may not just be lowering costs but making hockey more attractive and culturally visible. That could mean promoting the sport more strongly in colleges and universities and strengthening domestic development pathways so that Canadian players are less inclined to leave for the NCAA. By investing in visibility, accessibility, and development at home, Canada can help maintain hockey’s place at the centre of its sporting identity.
Every great empire eventually crumbles — from Rome, to Mali, to Britain. Even Mickey Mouse had his era; now kids are watching Bluey. Time spares no one, and it looks like the grains in the hourglass may be starting to fall for Canadian hockey.
