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Two Canadian teams have made it to the second round of the NHL playoffs this year. The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Edmonton Oilers are both vying for a position in the final, arousing hope that Canada’s decades-long Stanley Cup drought might be coming to a close. (Although after last night's game, it looks like Leafs fans might be waiting a while longer yet....)
But their successes have also jump-started an age-old debate among Canadian hockey fans: As a Canadian, do you owe your allegiance to one of these teams — even one you usually hate?
Today in The Conversation Canada, Taylor McKee from Brock University writes about the connection between Canadian national identity and the National Hockey League. He explains that the NHL plays a significant unifying role in Canadian culture.
But, McKee points out, some rivalries between Canadian teams simply run too deep for national solidarity to overcome.
Also today:
All the best,
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Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares celebrates his game-winning goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs on April 29 in Tampa, Fla. It’s the Leafs first playoff series win since 2004.
(AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Taylor McKee, Brock University
Why do many Canadian hockey fans feel the urge to support teams they would ordinarily delight in rooting against?
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A highway loops around a tailings pond at the Syncrude facility in Fort McMurray, Alta. The proximity of such toxic wastewater ponds to nature threatens its biodiversity.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario; Chloe Robinson, Queen's University, Ontario; Chris K. Elvidge, Carleton University
As toxic water continues to spill from tailings ponds across mining developments, decades of scientific research provides evidence of how wildlife will be affected.
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A Vancouver police cruiser is seen on city streets. The Vancouver Police Department is under fire for the suicide of a police officer and other alleged misconduct that highlight the dangers of the ‘blue wall of silence.’
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Jason Walker, University Canada West
Chan had been subjected to a pattern of abuse by senior members of the Vancouver police force starting when she was being recruited to the department.
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An Air Canada jet takes off from Montréal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport on June 30, 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
John Gradek, McGill University
While it is critical that air passengers be compensated for airline delays and cancellations, it is equally — if not more — important to address the underlying causes of such disruptions.
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Un affût de canon d’État transporte le cercueil de la reine Elizabeth II, drapé dans l’étendard royal avec la couronne impériale d’État ainsi que l’orbe et le sceptre du souverain, après les obsèques à l’abbaye de Westminster, à Londres, en septembre 2022.
(Mike Egerton/Pool Photo via AP)
Annie St. John-Stark, Thompson Rivers University
Le rapatriement des joyaux de la Couronne renforcerait la monarchie britannique contemporaine à un moment où elle a grand besoin de se moderniser.
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Arts
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David Arditi, University of Texas Arlington
The writers strike lays bare all the ills of working on one of the lowest rungs of the entertainment industry.
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Health
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Simon Nicholas Williams, Swansea University
COVID no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern, but we need to be better prepared for future pandemics.
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Politics
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John Mukum Mbaku, Weber State University
Sudan’s current conflict will have economic, social and political ripple effects across a number of countries
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Charles R. Hunt, Boise State University
It doesn’t make for inspiring politics, but political scientists have determined that for candidates, it’s more valuable to have an unpopular opponent than to be personally popular yourself.
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