9 What Is Canada's Favorite Sport?

Canada's favorite sport is ice hockey. All over Canada today, men, women, boys, and girls play hockey. Hockey began in Canada. But we do not know exactly how it began.

At first, hockey did not have rules. Then, in 1880, Canadian students at McGill University in Montreal made the first rules for ice hockey. These rules changed in 1911 and 1912. The new rules had lines on the ice to make special areas.There were also six players on a team.This is similar to hockey today.

Ice hockey is the world's fastest game. Players often skate thirty miles an hour. They get tired quickly. Often, hockey players leave a game and other players come in. In hockey, players use a stick to hit a puck.A puck is like a ball,but it is flat.It slides on the ice.It is better to use a cold puck because it slides faster. Players put the puck in the freezer before a game. In some games, players use more than thirty pucks!

Hockey looks easy to play, but it isn't easy. Players try to hit the puck into the other team's goal. The puck goes faster than the players. Pucks go about one hundred miles an hour. Hockey is a dangerous game.Many players get hurt. Today, players wear special clothes to protect their bodies. The player near the goal wears a mask to protect his face. A player with no mask can break his nose or teeth. In the past, there were many players with no front teeth.

Professional hockey teams in Canada and the United States play in the NHL. This means the National Hockey League. The NHL started in 1917. Today the NHL has thirty teams in North America. Twenty-four of the teams are in the United States, but most of the players are Canadian. In the spring, millions of people watch the final hockey game of the year on television. The winner gets the Stanley Cup.The Stanley Cup is the prize for the best hockey team.

People around the world play hockey now. It is popular in the Olympics. But hockey will always be Canada's special game.