Feminism in Hockey

Feminism is alive and well in 2014, according to Robin Morgan’s article titled “Feminist is a 21^st Century Word. A review of history illustrates how powerful women have been and their impact on major social issues in the United States since its existence. Women have led the way in their support of equality, environmentalism, and peace. Their efforts have not always been popular, particularly with the establishment whose efforts to deny women equal rights continue to this day. With the help of the Internet, we can experience the feminist voice across the globe. Feminism has not always been seen as cool but right now, it is very hot.

So what about feminism in hockey? I can say from personal experience, growing up as a girls’ hockey we always got crap from the boys our age about not being as good as them. In the article titled, “Women’s Hockey: Not So Equal After All”, Bert Perry states, “they can’t skate nearly as forcefully or quickly as their male counterparts, nor do they shoot the puck as hard or as-accurately as men do. They also lack the ability to stop, turn and reverse direction as well as male players” (Perry, 2014). While that may be true, it doesn’t mean that women don’t enjoy the game as much as men do. I think that men need to stop giving off the impression that they are superior to women just cause they can skate faster or shoot harder.

Now lets talk about the girls who are called “Puck Sluts”. If you don’t know what that is, they’re girls that have never played hockey a day in their lives, but they are the BIGGEST fans ever. They practically drool over hockey players, just because they play hockey. I don’t know if they hope to become NHL wives one day, or just want to act like they know the game for attention. What I do know is that calling them Puck Sluts isn’t okay. Slut is a derogatory term that shouldn’t be used so casually, or at all.

So in conclusion, I guess you could say that there are feminists in hockey. I’m sure the term “Puck Slut” just burns their ears every time they hear it. I’m also pretty confident in saying that feminists that do play hockey get so upset that their face turns purple where they hear guy hockey players say they are better in everyway than the girl players.

 Perry, Brett. "Women's Hockey: Not So Equal After All." The Thinking Housewife. Web. <http://www.thinkinghousewife.com/wp/2014/02/womens-hockey-not-so-equal-after-all/>.

 Morgan, Robin. "Robin Morgan on Why 'Feminist' Is a 21st Century Word." Time. Time. Web. <http://time.com/3588846/time-apologizes-feminist-word-poll-robin-morgan/>.

Feminism in Hockey

For women playing hockey is tough because of all the stigma that comes with it. The game women play is much less violent because it is not the norm for girls to fight and hit each other. I think that a good feminist stance in hockey would be to make the rules the same. From a fans point of view i think that the NHL does not do a very well job trying to approach feminism at all. Most teams today have ice girls who shovel the ice in tight, skin revealing cheer leading uniforms. Although it is the woman's choice to be out there all teams should at least give the girls the option to choose their own uniforms.
 Some of the teams do give their ice girls the option and it is very distinguishable.  

Also women fans are treated like they know nothing about the sport at all. They are also treated as "puck sluts" thinking that the girls are just there cause they are trying to find cute players. Being 2014 equality is a big value in america and i think that hockey does not display feminism very well.



Findlay, Ben. "Does the NHL Need Feminism?" Poets on Sports. N.p., 30 July 2014. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://poetsonsports.wordpress.com/2014/07/30/does-the-nhl-need-feminism/>.

"The Hockey Feminist." Running To Stand Still. N.p., 30 Oct. 2009. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://michellekenneth.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/the-hockey-feminist/>.

NHL Nice

When you think of hockey you think of fights and aggression. But for some players being nice is much more rewarding. Phoenix captain Shane Doan is one of the friendliest players in the NHL. He is such a good friend that people put him as their job reference (Halford).But what makes him such a good friend and leader? Well Shane listens to his teammates and treats them all with respect. This is essential to and friendship. 

    But could building friendships be risky? James Neal who got traded from Pittsburgh to Nashville created friendships before he knew he was getting traded. He eventually had to play against the friends from the team he just got traded from.  Neal said that "It's going to be weird at the start, but after the first few shifts it's another hockey game. We're out to do a job and to keep what we've built going in here" (Stanley). So yes you can make friendships but if they get traded and you play them your friendship is on hold during game time. 

Halford, Mike. "Datsyuk Tops Poll as NHL’s Nicest Player." Nbcsports.com. N.p., 24 Feb. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http%3A%2F%2Fprohockeytalk.nbcsports.com%2F2012%2F02%2F24%2Fdatsyuk-tops-poll-as-nhls-nicest-player%2F>.

Stanley, Robby. "Nashville Predators' James Neal Feeling Right at Home in New City." NHL.com. N.p., 25 Oct. 2014. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=736026>.

                                        Feminism              Created by The Tyler Lawry

Feminism in hockey does exact and does play a huge role in the way the game is played. In girls hockey, Women are not allowed to body check which is the most important part of the game in mens hockey. The people who make the rules say it is to help protect women because their bodies are more "fragile". 

Many girls who play the game today wish they had the same rules as the men because they know how important to the game it is. 

A girl from Iowa in a newspaper wrote "I wish we could check just as the guys can. I want to show people that us girls are tough and we can handle that part of the game and shouldn't be discriminated on just because of their gender."

Referees also tend to call on average 2 times as many penalties for a girls game as opposed to a mens game. 

Mind Over Mass Media- Tyler Lawry

Mind Over

                        Mass Media    By Tyler lawry

Many people have been saying that the new technology in the game of hockey is not a good thing but i disagree. I believe that technology in sports is a good thing and has been used to take the game to a whole new level of competitiveness. 

“The spring mechanism reduces the impact on the user’s joints to help prevent joint damage,” he said.  “It also allows the player to transition smoothly from the flat-footed to the forward-angled stance, which reduces the likelihood of developing shin splits.

This quote comes from a student studying mechanical engineering and for his design project he decided to create a skate that would lower the risk of injury and improve speed and performance.

Skates are not the only thing that are progressing in technology. Almost every other piece of equipment is also taking on huge upgrades in the design and performance or the equipment. 

Sticks have also come a long way in the development of technology. Sticks used to be old stiff and wooden which really restricted players as far as being able to control the puck. Technology in this game is good and whenever old people tell you the opposite tell them what you have learned here and i guarantee it will turn them into a believer.