Brotha discovers hockey and loves it


How many ice skating rinks do you know in the hood? I don't even know if hockey has an urban initiative to teach us the game. The baddest black cat I can remember was Jerome Iginla.
I doubt there are many, but there don't really have to be for people to play. I do wonder about your second point however. Because there are initiatives in sports like lacrosse and baseball to get inner city youth to play.
So my second question is, if there were initiatives, would more blacks play hockey?
 
African-American fans have the highest growth rate among NHL fans at 1.4 times the overall rate, according to Scarborough, a national media research company.

In Chicago, the number of African-Americans who identify themselves as very or somewhat interested in the Hawks increased from 12.6 percent in 2011 to 21.9 percent in 2014.

The number of black fans who watched a Hawks game on TV or listened on the radio grew from 28.1 percent in 2011 to 37.9 percent last year.

They made up 9.7 percent of Hawks fans in 2014, up from 7.1 percent in 2011, which is the only increase among racial groups charted by Scarborough.
Programs such as Hockey on Your Block, which is run through the Hawks, USA Hockey and the NHL, reach out to inner-city youth to expose minority children to hockey. The NHL's Hockey is For Everyone campaign is a similar youth-development program.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...frican-americans-spt-0612-20150611-story.html
 
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African-American fans have the highest growth rate among NHL fans at 1.4 times the overall rate, according to Scarborough, a national media research company.

In Chicago, the number of African-Americans who identify themselves as very or somewhat interested in the Hawks increased from 12.6 percent in 2011 to 21.9 percent in 2014.

The number of black fans who watched a Hawks game on TV or listened on the radio grew from 28.1 percent in 2011 to 37.9 percent last year.

They made up 9.7 percent of Hawks fans in 2014, up from 7.1 percent in 2011, which is the only increase among racial groups charted by Scarborough.
Programs such as Hockey on Your Block, which is run through the Hawks, USA Hockey and the NHL, reach out to inner-city youth to expose minority children to hockey. The NHL's Hockey is For Everyone campaign is a similar youth-development program.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...frican-americans-spt-0612-20150611-story.html
When you win and you see your city doing big things on national tv, more people are going to be interested. The question I still wonder about is, why it taking so long though. Hockey has been the same for years.
 
The NHL doesn't market to minorities, the national games are hard to find on TV, there are few American born black hockey players who black people can identify with and it is a sport considered something whites do.
 
The NHL doesn't market to minorities, the national games are hard to find on TV, there are few American born black hockey players who black people can identify with and it is a sport considered something whites do.
Ehhh, I wouldn't say the games are hard to find on tv, but I agree with your first and last couple of points. But you could say those are the same exact reasons people don't play baseball and lacrosse.
 
Ehhh, I wouldn't say the games are hard to find on tv, but I agree with your first and last couple of points. But you could say those are the same exact reasons people don't play baseball and lacrosse.

How many folks do you know that the NHL has national games on NBCSN?

Participation in baseball has declined because football and basketball are seen as more lucrative financial opportunities for families, institutions and communities at-large. Plus, you have to factor in the socio-economic impact as well.

Also there has never really been a connection with hockey among blacks that there has been with baseball over time. There was no major black hockey league in the US like there was the Negro Leagues for baseball.

There was never a time that NHL featured a large brigade of black talent like pro baseball did from the mid 1940s to the early 1990s that made the sport attractive to blacks.

Blacks, at least in the US, have never really had any attachment or association with hockey to any degree like they have with baseball.

If you see a black player in the NHL, he's usually from Canada, Minnesota, the Dakotas or somewhere along the upper East Coast. Areas where hockey culture is embedded there.
 
How many folks do you know that the NHL has national games on NBCSN?

Participation in baseball has declined because football and basketball are seen as more lucrative financial opportunities for families, institutions and communities at-large. Plus, you have to factor in the socio-economic impact as well.

Also there has never really been a connection with hockey among blacks that there has been with baseball over time. There was no major black hockey league in the US like there was the Negro Leagues for baseball.

There was never a time that NHL featured a large brigade of black talent like pro baseball did from the mid 1940s to the early 1990s that made the sport attractive to blacks.

Blacks, at least in the US, have never really had any attachment or association with hockey to any degree like they have with baseball.

If you see a black player in the NHL, he's usually from Canada, Minnesota, the Dakotas or somewhere along the upper East Coast. Areas where hockey culture is embedded there.

I disagree that participation has declined because football and basketball are seen as more lucrative financial opportunities. Baseball is the highest paid sport, and there are about five times as many players in the MLB than there are in the NBA. Plus minor league teams, so it's easier to become a pro.

I agree there hasn't been a connection to hockey over time. I agree that baseball was once America's past time. I believe in the early 70s, 25 percent of the players were African American.
 
I disagree that participation has declined because football and basketball are seen as more lucrative financial opportunities. Baseball is the highest paid sport, and there are about five times as many players in the MLB than there are in the NBA. Plus minor league teams, so it's easier to become a pro.

I agree there hasn't been a connection to hockey over time. I agree that baseball was once America's past time. I believe in the early 70s, 25 percent of the players were African American.

You get that football money a whole lot faster in football and basketball than baseball. Ben Simmons has a shoe deal and hasn't even played a single game in the league yet.

Yeah, the baseball contracts are more lucrative and secure, but a player has to be in a position to get that contract. After the first round, there is a steep drop in contract earnings. It is why MiLB has been under scrutiny in recent years in regards to salaries.

And then you have to work your way through the minors. MLB is littered with guys who were high draft picks and never made it to the show.

And then you have to stick on the roster to make it to that second and third contract.

Finally, kids are steered toward football and basketball because those sports bring back the big return financially for everyone (individual athletes, families, coaches communities, etc.). that sort of return doesn't exist for baseball or hockey.
 
You get that football money a whole lot faster in football and basketball than baseball. Ben Simmons has a shoe deal and hasn't even played a single game in the league yet.

Yeah, the baseball contracts are more lucrative and secure, but a player has to be in a position to get that contract. After the first round, there is a steep drop in contract earnings. It is why MiLB has been under scrutiny in recent years in regards to salaries.

And then you have to work your way through the minors. MLB is littered with guys who were high draft picks and never made it to the show.

And then you have to stick on the roster to make it to that second and third contract.

Finally, kids are steered toward football and basketball because those sports bring back the big return financially for everyone (individual athletes, families, coaches communities, etc.). that sort of return doesn't exist for baseball or hockey.

So few kids make the NBA. Really out of an NBA draft, maybe 20 will be on NBA rosters. Some riding the bench. 5 a year will be starters some day. And in the NFL, the average retirement is 3.5 years in the league. Most money in football isn't guaranteed. Baseball is the only league without a cap and guaranteed money. And even minor league players make six figures and up.
 
So few kids make the NBA. Really out of an NBA draft, maybe 20 will be on NBA rosters. Some riding the bench. 5 a year will be starters some day. And in the NFL, the average retirement is 3.5 years in the league. Most money in football isn't guaranteed. Baseball is the only league without a cap and guaranteed money. And even minor league players make six figures and up.

Some minor league players make six-figures, but the average player doesn't.

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/03/minor-leaguers-working-poor-lawsuit-mlb-bud-selig
 
The NHL doesn't market to minorities, the national games are hard to find on TV, there are few American born black hockey players who black people can identify with and it is a sport considered something whites do.

Not true, completely. Hockey does market to minorities ... children at least, with their inner city programs in the NHL cities. Willie O'Ree, the first official black NHL player either still leads or was leading this effort. I only know this because I am a huge hockey fan (Penguins since 1991), and I have written for a minor league team in Baton Rouge when I was in college.

The rinks are scarce, the money to play the game is way more than basketball, football, or soccer (since I'm here in Houston .... the largest U.S. city without NHL hockey). I definitely agree with your last point though. It is still considered a "white sport" even though we have made some serious strides in the game.

Example .... each team still playing in the playoffs has a black player .... Penguins (Trevor Daley), Lightning (J.T. Brown), Sharks (Joel Ward), and Blues (Ryan Reaves).

There are a number of black guys coming through now as well like P.K. Subban (Montreal) and his two brothers, Jordan (Vancouver) and Malcolm (Boston), Emerson Etem (Rangers), Anthony DuClair (Arizona), Seth Jones (Columbus), Wayne Simmonds (Philadelphia), Iginla (Colorado), Kyle Okposo (Islanders), Devante Smith-Pelly (Devils). American born players are limited though.
 
Game 7 of the ECF between Pittsburgh and Tampa was play last night and I forgot it was on. In fact, I didn't see anyone I follow on Twitter talking about it. Everyone was into the Warriors-Thunder.
 
Game 7 of the ECF between Pittsburgh and Tampa was play last night and I forgot it was on. In fact, I didn't see anyone I follow on Twitter talking about it. Everyone was into the Warriors-Thunder.

Duh .... I didn't see one mention of Warriors-Thunder on mine. ONLY Pens-Bolts. It's all into who we follow man. If you're not a fan, it going to take something to bring you to it. Just like I didn't care to watch basketball last night and didn't even know it was on.
 
Yall do know Hockey was created by black ppl in Nova Scotia 1st

Know your history

Also, to add, yall do know Memorial Day was created by black ppl
 
Duh .... I didn't see one mention of Warriors-Thunder on mine. ONLY Pens-Bolts. It's all into who we follow man. If you're not a fan, it going to take something to bring you to it. Just like I didn't care to watch basketball last night and didn't even know it was on.

You're a Pens fan, if I remember. You're obviously going to be more interested in Game 7 than the basketball.

I follow a pretty diverse array of accounts on Twitter. Aside from three hockey-related accounts I follow, the rest were into the Thunder-Warriors.
 
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