Assessing the State of Hockey Analytics

March 23, 2013 by 2 Comments

Source: UBC

Source: UBC

Hockey analytics is an excellent example of fans getting immersed in the game and changing the way they consume professional sports. Along with watching games, and following the narratives that surround teams and players, fans can use various software applications to apply their own ideas and models to analyze the game.

Hockey analytics is also gaining prominence among professional hockey teams to make key decisions regarding player acquisitions and team strategies. The continued growth of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, which is attended by teams and managers from various sports, as well as academics, indicates the growing importance of data analytics in the professional sports industry.

Questions have arisen recently about why some NHL teams are not conducting any hockey analytics, as well as why some teams refuse to get into too much detail about their current analytic methods (Friedman, 2013). Questions have also arisen as to why hockey analytics have not reached mainstream status on television broadcasts, such as Hockey Night in Canada (Dowbiggin, 2013).

To answer these questions, the activity of hockey analytics needs to be dissected by first understanding its relationship to information and knowledge development as well the environment is requires to flourish and reach its potential.

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“The Good Ol’ Hockey Game”: The Cultural Resonance of Stompin’ Tom Connors’ “The Hockey Song”

March 8, 2013 by Leave a comment

Image from: http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/sports/photos/2013/03/07/940-stompin-tom-8col.jpg

Canadian musician “Stompin’ Tom” Connors passed away two days ago, at aged 77. Connors is a legend in Canadian music, releasing 40 albums or compilations career and penning a number of Canadian country music hits. But it is one song that made Connors a household name across Canada and amongst hockey fans around the world: “The Hockey Song,” a 1973 track, is routinely played at hockey rinks throughout North America and has become, in many ways, hockey’s version of baseball’s iconic “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”

“The Hockey Song” is a simple, straightforward ode to “the good ol’ hockey game,” with a catchy sing-along chorus that latches itself in your unconscious and doesn’t let go. It is simultaneously a charmingly hokey Canadiana folk song, with its twangy riffs and lyrical simplicity; and an anthemic, arena-sized rock song that is virtually guaranteed to get 15,000 hockey fans singing along together in a packed stadium. In this sense, it manages to symbolically bridge the paradox of hockey’s mythologized representation as a rural game emerging from the frozen Canadian landscape, evoking images of frozen ponds and ramshackle small town rinks, and its contemporary reality as a multibillion dollar, transglobal entertainment industry.

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Review: “Hockey: A People’s History” (CBC TV series)

February 11, 2013 by 1 Comment

Image from: http://tv.fally.ro/showinfo/83923/83923-1.jpg

In 2006, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) aired a 10-part series entitled Hockey: A People’s History (HAPH). Adopting the approach used in its popular 2000 miniseries Canada: A People’s History, the CBC focused in this series on the experience of Canadians with the sport of hockey for over a century. Beginning with early ball and stick games played in various societies over human history, the documentary quickly moves on to introducing European ball and stick games played on ice and First Nations baggataway (the forerunner to what became institutionalized as the sport of lacrosse) as the predecessors to modern hockey. After this very brief homage to hockey-like folk games, the documentary discusses the early organization of ice hockey by amateur athlete in Montreal and proceeds from there to focus entirely on the development of hockey in Canada over a roughly 125 year period.

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Weekly Links: NHLPA and owners begin CBA negotiations; Social media and hockey analytics; Plans for new arena in Markham

June 30, 2012 by Leave a comment

Proposed Markham arena (Image from: http://www.cbc.ca/)

Welcome to Hockey in Society’s Weekly Links post. This feature highlights articles or blog entries that are related to Hockey in Society’s areas of interest and that may be of interest to the site’s readers.

Hockey Links

  • Lots of chatter about the discussion between NHL owners the NHL Players’ Association as they begin to negotiate a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. David Shoalts has a good overview of the key issues in this negotiation. [Globe and Mail]
  • Meanwhile, Kukla’s Corner has the details of the NHLPA’s 31-man negotiating committee. Lots of prominent players are involved on the committee, including Henrik Zetterberg (Red Wings), Shane Doan (Phoenix Coyotes), Shea Weber (Nashville Predators, and John Tavares (New York Islanders). [Kukla's Corner]
  • Hockey in Society contributor Sunil Agnihotri discusses information overload in the digital age, with specific discussion of the various ways in which hockey fans can consume the sport through (new) media. [Super Fan. 2.0]
  • More social media news: the Detroit Red Wings are hosting a social media meet-up at the Social Media Day Detroit conference. [Kukla's Corner]
  • Daniel Wagner reports on “the next stage in hockey analytics,” discussing an advanced stats tracking system that is becoming popular in the NBA. [Backhand Shelf]
  • The plans for the new hockey arena in Markham, ON have been released. The 20,000+ seat arena is aiming to open 2014 and hoping to host the 2015 World Junior Championships. [TSN]
  • Bruce Dowbiggen reports that the NHL is considering adding a Sunday night Canadian broadcast in addition to the traditional Saturday Hockey Night in Canada broadcast. This may mean that the CBC maintains the HNIC rights while TSN and Sportsnet have the opportunity to broadcast more games featuring Canadian teams. [Globe and Mail]
  • An interesting post by Greg Wyshinki about Sidney Crosby’s new 12-year contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and how the team is unable to insure it because of Crosby’s concussion history. [Puck Daddy]
  • Pete Cunningham writes about the anticipated economic impact of the 2013 Winter Classic for Ann Arbor businesses. The game between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs will take place on January 1, 2013. [AnnArbor.com]
  • Patrick Hoffman with an interesting look at hockey participation and popularity in sunbelt states, including some interesting tidbits about the support NHL hockey teams have given to local hockey teams. The Nashville Predators, for example, were active in the movement to save the University of Alabama-Hunstsville Division 1 NCAA hockey program. [Kukla's Corner]
  • The KHL confirms that it will play two regular season games in 2013 in Brooklyn, New York. SKA St. Petersburg and Dynamo Moscow will face off at the new Barclays Arena. [Puck Daddy]
  • The Phoenix Coyotes sale looks set to move ahead, as a court overturns the lawsuit by the Goldwater Institute to stymie Glendale’s subsidization of the Coyotes’ arena. Lots of politics in this arena situation. [Puck Daddy]
  • I hope to write more about this on this blog, but I wrote a post at Nucks Misconduct about Pavel Bure and his legacy with the Vancouver Canucks. The post is not particularly critical, but more of a fan’s look at the player. However, there are some interesting aspects to the story. Bure, who was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame this week, had a turbulent departure from Vancouver that involved some character assassination in the media. An interesting example of the power of the media to shape popular understandings of a player and his/her legacy. [Nucks Misconduct]

General Sport Links

  • AWESOME BLOG ALERT: Tyler Shipley has started a new blog called Left Hook, which takes a critical look at different aspects of sport. You can read Tyler’s excellent post about the politics between Canada and Honduras and the role of soccer in Honduran politics. [Left Hook]
  • Also on Left Hook: Marty Clark, who co-authored a review of Goon on this blog, examines and critiques assumed “truths” in sport and discusses way of deconstructing these “common sense” understandings. A great read. [Left Hook]
  • Hockey in Society contributor Courtney Szto discusses the gender implications of nude athlete calendars, as Canada’s National Senior Women’s Rugby team releases a fundraising calendar. Are these portrayals empowering or exploitative? Should national sport teams have to resort to nude calendars to raise funds? Lots of interesting questions explored in this post. [The Rabbit Hole]
  • Saudi Arabia will, for the first time, allow women to compete at the Olympic Games. [Globe and Mail]

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Weekly Links: Ownership and CBA issues; Rob Zombie to make Broad Street Bullies film; Why are NHL teams wary of Russian players?

June 23, 2012 by Leave a comment

Image from: http://media.zenfs.com/en/blogs/sptcajuniorhockeyexperts/Mikhail-Grigorenko-went-12th-overall-to-the-Buffalo-Sabres-Getty-Images.jpg

Welcome to Hockey in Society’s Weekly Links post. This feature highlights articles or blog entries that are related to Hockey in Society’s areas of interest and that may be of interest to the site’s readers.

Hockey Links

  • With the NHL Draft being held this weekend, there was lots of talk about NHL teams’ aversion to drafting Russian players and the possible xenophobic underpinnings of this decision. Damien Cox explores the cultural and business issues affecting the declining numbers of Russians in the NHL in light of the draft and Evgeni Malkin’s recent Hart Trophy win. [The Star]
  • Cam Charron looks at the perceived risk of drafting Russian players in the first round. [Backhand Shelf]
  • Meanwhile, Dominik at Lighthouse Hockey raises lots of interesting questions about judging “work ethic” in 18 year-olds – an issue that contributed to Russian prospect Mikhail Grigorenko slipping over a number of months from being the consensus second pick to being selected 12th overall. [Lighthouse Hockey]
  • Joe Pelletier writes that, unlike when the players were cast as villains in the last NHL labour dispute, the owners will be the villains if this summer’s CBA negotiations do not go smoothly. [Greatest Hockey Legends]
  • Meanwhile Roy MacGregor pessimistically cautions that there may be no NHL season in 2012-13. [Globe and Mail]
  • The New Jersey Devils could, like the Phoenix Coyotes, be bought by the league if the current owner cannot pay back the team’s debt or a new owner cannot be found. [Puck Daddy]
  • Speaking of the Coyotes: Greg Wyshynski also explores whether a referendum by Glendale voters could derail the latest bid to purchase the team. [Puck Daddy]
  • The NHL will not allow Bell and Rogers, co-owners of the Toronto Maple Leafs, to co-purchase the rights to Hockey Night in Canada when they are negotiated next summer. Good news for the CBC and its efforts to hold on to the program. [Globe and Mail]
  • Musician and filmmaker Rob Zombie has announced that he will produce a film about the infamous Philadelphia Flyers teams of the 1970s, AKA the Broad Street Bullies. [Backhand Shelf; IMDB]
  • Ken Dryden reflects on the career of Montreal hockey journalist Red Fisher, who recently retired after nearly 60 years. [Globe and Mail]
  • Interesting story on the one year anniversary of the Vancouver Stanley Cup riots: the Museum of Vancouver has a public exhibit displaying the art and messages that Vancouverites drew on the boarded-up windows of stores that were damaged in the rioting. [Puck Daddy]
  • Finally, a good read from Ross Bonader about homophobia in hockey and what it will take for the first openly gay player to come out. [The Hockey Writers]

General Sport Links

  • Courtney Szto discusses the murky area of athlete migration and national identity in an era of elite sport and globalization. [The Rabbit Hole]
  • Jerry Sandusky has been convicted for the many sexual assaults he perpetrated while an assistant football coach at Penn State. [Globe and Mail]
  • Dave Zirin takes journalist Brent Musburger, who infamously slammed Tommie Smith and John Carlos for their civil rights protest at the 1968 Olympics, for never apologizing for his irresponsible and slanderous reportage of the protest. [Edge of Sports]

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Weekly Links: Derek Boogaard and prescription drug abuse; CBA and Phoenix Coyotes ownership updates

June 10, 2012 by 2 Comments

Image from: http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/images/photos/001/476/601/85576901_crop_650x440.jpg?1323223473

Welcome to Hockey in Society’s Weekly Links post. This feature highlights articles or blog entries that are related to Hockey in Society’s areas of interest and that may be of interest to the site’s readers.

Hockey Links

  • We all remember John Branch’s excellent reporting in The New York Times on the life and death of Derek Boogaard. Branch has written a follow-up story that provides shocking insight into Boogaard’s abuse of prescription drugs and the ease with which he secured prescriptions from multiple medical personnel. [New York Times]
  • Branch’s story drew lots of reaction from the hockey blogosphere. Justin Bourne had a solid response that called on the NHL to implement a system for the dispensation of prescription drugs. [Backhand Shelf]
  • And a couple other responses, from Harrison Mooney and Ellen Etchingham respectively. [Puck Daddy; Backhand Shelf]
  • RoseTintedVisor has a great interview with Adam Proteau of The Hockey News. Not only was it a great read, but also a reminder that I still need to review Proteau’s book Fighting the Good Fight on this blog. [Puck Buddys]
  • Courtney passed me this link, which is a little old but still a good read. The post begins by talking about the Women’s World Hockey Championship and the competitiveness of international women’s hockey, before exploring the gender politics behind different rules between the men’s and women’s version of the sport. [After Atalanta]
  • Bruce Dowbiggen weighs in on the CBC show While the Men Watch, a topic that Courtney has covered on this blog and which has drawn widespread reaction from bloggers and journalist. [Globe and Mail]
  • The Phoenix Coyotes’ ownership situation continues to drag out. The most recent news: the city council for Glendale, AZ voted to subsidize the team’s new owner $300 million over the next 20 years, paving the way for Greg Jamison to move ahead with the purchase of the franchise. [Puck Daddy]
  • Speaking of the business of hockey: with CBA negotiations on the horizon this summer, the NHL has temporarily set the salary cap at $70.3 million for 2012-13, way up from the $39 million cap in the first post-lockout season of 2005-06. The figure is based on revenues for the NHL of $3.3 billion in 2011-12. [SB Nation]
  • Sidney Crosby may soon sign a 10 year contract extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins, despite his concussion history. [Puck Daddy]
  • Mark Ascione reflects on the legacy of 1972 Summit Series star Paul Henderson, who is currently battling cancer, including whether Henderson merits induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame or the Order of Canada. [The Hockey Writers]
  • Finally, Vladimir Krutov – one of the first superstars to leave the Soviet Union to play in the NHL – passed away this week. Greg Wyshynski reflects on his legacy. [Puck Daddy]

General Sport Links

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Outrage, Frustration, Dismay: A Round-up of Hockey Writers’ Reactions to “While the Men Watch”

June 4, 2012 by 1 Comment

When the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation announced that it would be launching a new online feature for the Stanley Cup Finals, a feature called While the Men Watch (WTMW) that provides alternative “girl talk” commentary to the Hockey Night in Canada play-by-play, it was met with outrage by many bloggers and media members. The show has been nothing if not controversial, generating huge amounts of discussion before it even debuted during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Los Angeles Kings and New Jersey Devils. So what have hockey writers been saying about WTMW?

Before exploring this question, first read the description of the feature from CBC:

Longtime friends Lena (Sutherland) and Jules (Mancuso) host an alternate live online game broadcast offering a distinct female-centred, fun, provocative and entertaining perspective on the 2012 Stanley Cup Final. Available for each game of the 2012 Stanley Cup Finals, WhileTheMenWatch Hockey Night provides a different view on a traditional game.

Seems straightforward and inoffensive enough, right? Leaving aside the name of the show, you could read the description and view WTMW as a good-hearted attempt to engage and inform novice female fans who may face challenges gaining acceptance in traditionally male-dominated sport fan cultures. However, the description of WTMW from its website (Sutherland and Mancuso launched the online commentary during the Super Bowl and provided commentary for a variety of sporting events) provides a different understanding of the show:

WhileTheMenWatch is a first of its kind, live sports talk-show for women.  An overnight sensation, hailed as Sex in the City meets ESPN. . . . Hosted by real-life girlfriends in New York and Toronto, the female-friendly commentary keeps women entertained. . . .  The lively discussion follows sports from a woman’s point of view including everything from interpreting the rules of the game to coaches in need of a makeover.

Borne out of frustration with their sports-addicted men, Co-Hosts Lena Sutherland and Jules Mancuso created WhileTheMenWatch doing their own version of sports commentary that women actually want to hear.

 This description highlights many of the issues that angered hockey fans, including the assumption that women do not like sports and would rather gossip about the players than watch the game; and the essentialist understanding of the relationship between men and sport fandom. After the jump, you can read a sampling of the many reactions to WTMW. Read more of this post

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Weekly Links: Reactions to “While the Men Watch” and reflections on hockey media; US participation rates rising; New arenas in Detroit, Edmonton, and Seattle

June 3, 2012 by Leave a comment

Image from: http://media.avclub.com/images/articles/article/75/75805/20120530_WWTM_jpg_627x325_crop_upscale_q85.jpg

Welcome to Hockey in Society’s Weekly Links post. This feature highlights articles or blog entries that are related to Hockey in Society’s areas of interest and that may be of interest to the site’s readers.

[Note:Sorry folks, I have again been behind on these Weekly Links posts. I will continue to try to get them up each week, but please bear with me right now if they are posted somewhat irregularly.]

Hockey Links

  • There has been no shortage of reaction in the blogosphere to the CBC’s new venture, While the Men Watch, including Courtney Szto’s initial reactions and review of the show on this blog. I will do a separate roundup of these reactions, but in the meantime here are some excellent posts by Ellen Etchingham, Cassie McLellan, and Julie Veilleux respectively. [Backhand Shelf; Raw Charge; Puck Daddy]
  • Great post from Cam Charron about the monopoly on sports expertise by ex-players or entrenched media members, how it partly explains the slow uptake on advanced statistics by NHL personnel, and how the blogosphere (thankfully!) offers a wide variety of ways for fans to understand and conceptualize hockey. [Backhand Shelf]
  • Speaking of advanced statistics and new media: Please do check out Sunil Agnihotri’s excellent blog, Super Fan 2.0. His work uses sociocultural theory to examine issues related to new media and hockey fandom. As someone who is also interested in this area, I find his work fascinating and insightful. Give it a look yourself! [Super Fan 2.0]
  • Chris Peters reports that hockey participation in the US has risen to nearly 595,000, and examines some of the reasons for this increase in various areas, including sunbelt NHL markets. [United States of Hockey]
  • Daniel Wegner debunks Don Cherry’s jingoistic (and excessively pro-Ontario) rehtoric about the players needed by teams that enjoy success in the postseason. [Backhand Shelf]
  • Wayne Gretzky would like to see the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s playoff MVP, renamed after Montreal Canadiens legend Jean Beliveau. [TSN]
  • The KHL continues its global empire building, announcing plans to play regular season games at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NYC. [Puck Daddy]
  • Canadian media giant Rogers may attempt to snatch the rights to Hockey Night in Canada away from the CBC. A potentially sad day for Canada’s public broadcaster. [The Province]
  • Matt Hendricks of the Washington Capitals is the latest hockey player to support the You Can Play project, which targets homophobia in hockey. [Dump 'N Chase]
  • The World Junior Championships proved to be a cash cow for Hockey Canada and the province of Alberta, bringing in revenues of $22 million. [TSN]
  • The Red Wings press ahead with plans to build a new arena in downtown Detroit, hiring an architect to begin designs. The arena, if built, will replace the Joe Louis Arena, which opened in 1979. [Detroit News]
  • More arena news: Greg Wyshynski updates Seattle’s plans for a new hockey arena and briefly touches upon the new arena that is being constructed for the Oilers in downtown Edmonton. [Puck Daddy]
  • Jamaica has been admitted to the International Ice Hockey Federation, and is aiming to ice a team at the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang. [Puck Daddy]
  • Finally, Ellen Etchingham explores “hockey’s complex relationship with booze.” A fascinating article. [Backhand Shelf]

General Sport Links

  • Hockey in Society’s Courtney Szto examines the efforts to curb HIV transmission during the 2012 Euro Cup in Poland and Ukraine. [The Rabbit Hole]
  • ESPN’s fascinating 3o for 30 documentary series is returning with a new slate of films. [Grantland]

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“While the Men Watch” gave me a headache

May 31, 2012 by 13 Comments

Photo from Dan – Manifest Photography

I figured as a hockey blogger who agreed with all of the naysayers when the announcement about While the Men Watch came out that I owed it to the ladies to at least watch some of their show to give them the benefit of the doubt.  Well, I did and I could only take one period.  I’m not sure how many of you watched the live stream of While the Mean Watch during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals but it was one of the most painful experiences of my life.  It is one period of hockey that I will never get back and I think that I should be able to sue the CBC for those minutes of my life back.

Their stream was filmed in a studio at CBC headquarters with a traditionally feminine set that would make more sense for The View than for a sports commentary, alternative or otherwise.  The ladies, Jules Mancuso and Lena Sutherland, introduced Sunny their CBC producer and Jamie Ordolis, Senior Producer of CBC Live. The entire webcast centered around dialogue between these four, and of course tweets from the Twitterverse.  Right off the bat we had Sunny, the only man on the webcast, explaining to Mancuso and Sutherland basics of the game (e.g. the playoff record of the LA Kings).  Sunny was their go-to-guy for anything actually related to the game: players, stats, facts, and explanations.

After the anthem one of the women commented ”Martin Brodeur looks like he’s getting into a straddle position” in reference to his pre-game stretches.  Then they said that “Brodeur is looking like a rooster with the red and the chest puffed out. He is a good looking man, once you take off all of that transformer gear…he’s quite a dashing man. I’m partial to the older ones.”  Really CBC? This is what you call alternative commentary? I would call it mindless drivel, but wait it gets better, er, worse. Read more of this post

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“While the men watch”: ESPN meets “Sex & the City”

May 24, 2012 by 1 Comment

Photo from Winnipeg Free Press

Cross posted on The Rabbit Hole.

The CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) has come up with a, shall we say, intriguing gimmick for the Stanley Cup finals this year.  It will be introducing While the Men Watch, a

live, sports talk show for women. Hosted by Lena Sutherland and Jules Mancuso, the program [will follow] the discussion of two women watching sports “from a woman’s point of view including everything from interpreting the rules of the game to coaches in need of a makeover.”  Apparently, it’s been called ESPN meets “Sex & the City.”

Ya, because that’s what the world needs – ESPN and Sex & The City in one show.  ”Female non-hockey fans” will be able to go online to “listen to an alternate commentary from [Sutherland and Mancuso].” CBC has received considerable backlash from both genders concerning the show synopsis:

As two women married to sports fanatics, there was really no escaping hockey on TV – especially during playoffs. As our men were glued to the game, we were on the phone talking to each other about what we saw on the ice in a way that was completely different than what our guys or the real announcers were saying.  Why were the players getting a seat and a drink in the penalty box if it’s supposed to be a punishment? And how exactly did that coach pick out a brown suit and tie combo four sizes too big?

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