BRAMPTON, Ontario (AP) — All four ice rinks at Susan Fennell Sportsplex are full of action on this winter Saturday morning, the air filled with the sound of hockey skates grinding through ice and pucks clanging off the glass.
The scene is as familiar as the sunrise in countless rinks across Canada. Hockey remains a beloved pastime, a source of pride and joy and something that has knitted the vast nation together for more than 150 years.
Behind the scenes of the goals and celebrations is an alarming trend: Youth hockey participation in the cradle of the sport has decreased by nearly a quarter over the past decade and a half, a decline that began well before the pandemic from a peak of over half a million kids taking part as recently as 2010.
Because of growing costs for everything from equipment and ice time to specialized coaching and travel programs, families are choosing other sports like soccer and basketball over hockey. There are concerns about the future of grassroots hockey in the country that has nourished it into the popular, vibrant sport that is seeing growth elsewhere, including the United States.
“It does sadden me,” said Alex Klimsiak, who coaches two teams in Brampton as his way to giving back to the game he still plays recreationally in suburban Toronto at the age of 44. “Enrollment’s probably been declining for the last five, six years. Definitely before the pandemic you could see it. A pandemic just put a magnifying glass and escalated it.”
