Source: Flames Nation

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. Please check out some of the great writing that is happening in the hockey media and blogosphere!

• Alan Maki has a good piece on Canadian minor hockey participation rates, concussions, and the impact of bodychecking bans. [Globe and Mail]
• Chris Peters charts the large growth in hockey participation in the United States since the early 2000s, including a state-by-state breakdown of participation numbers. Overall, participation has climbed by nearly 64,000 people since 2002-03. [United States of Hockey]
• Joseph Vito Deluca looks at the positive impact that the KHL’s growth will have on the game of hockey. Some interesting insight into following professional soccer’s model and the possibility of a Champions League. [The Hockey Writers]
• Ryan Lambert questions the fighting in NHL preseason games, and uses the novel  Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy as a reference. [Yahoo! Puck Daddy]

• Sean Gentille gets an enforcer’s take on the new rules impacting fighting in the NHL, including how to get around the mandatory visors and the new helmet rule for fighters. [Sporting News]
• Great read from Scott Burnside about Chris Pronger’s ongoing health struggles as he recovers from an eye injury and concussion he suffered two years ago. [ESPN]
• The Vancouver Giants announced that they will be paying trubite to the Akali Lake Braves,  a team of aboriginal hockey players who picked up hockey while at residential schools in the 1930’s. [Vancouver Courier]
• Andrea Woo also writes about how hockey provided an outlet for aboriginals at residential schools. [Globe and Mail]
• Dave Lozo has an excellent feature on David Perron, who was traded from the St. Louis Blues to the Edmonton Oilers this offseason, that delves into the behind-the-scenes challenges faced by hockey players as a result of their profession. [Backhand Shelf]
• Dirk Hoag put together an excellent review of “All That Counts”, a novel by Frank Scalise. The book is about a rec-league hockey player  who transitions to a goaltender with unique results. Dirk talks about his own experience of what counts as a recreational player and the impact the game has on individuals and on teams. [On the Forecheck]
• Belmont University Law student Mark J. Burns gets some unique insight from current player agent Ian Pulver regarding the world of sports agents. Pulver works with Red Wings legend Igor Larionov to represent many players including Nail Yakupov and Tyler Seguin. [Sports Agent Blog]