Issue 9: November 7, 2023 | |
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Thank you for joining us to visit highlights of hockey news through the eyes of the “Carnegie Corner.” As you discovered over the past month, hockey remains a microcosm of the attitudes of our wider society.
The announcement to ban Pride Tape on sticks became a focus that aroused much passion. The CI leadership immediately engaged in conversation with the NHL to voice our concerns. We also supported the many other organizations and individuals including several of our board members who chose to use their public influence to share their views. Thankfully, leaders at the NHL, NHLPA, and the NHL Player Inclusion Coalition (PIC) conferred to find a way that guarantees players the opportunities to engage in positive self-expression.
At this time of year, I am reminded of the man who had the most influence in mentoring me, my father Herb Carnegie. I was delighted in 2022 that the City of Toronto recognized his legacy by declaring November 8th Herb Carnegie Day. And last November also saw our family and friends overwhelmed with emotion to see Herb Carnegie inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a Builder.
It is now 104 years since his birth, and I find myself intrigued by how he navigated around the system to affect social change. In his time, he was frequently the lone face of diversity like the title of his autobiography, “A Fly in a Pail of Milk.” I am grateful every day for his fair and kind leadership. I know he would have been championing our present-day work through The Carnegie Initiative.
I, along with Bryant McBride, formed The Carnegie Initiative in 2021 to carry forward the kind of meaningful change initiated by my father. We are encouraged by the progress made in our first full year of operation as outlined in The CI’s 2022 Annual Report which you can access later in this newsletter.
Yet, we are constantly reminded about how much more work needs to be done. This is why we do what we do. Together, we can change the culture of the game. The quote by Herbert Carnegie Trailblazer Award winner Brock McGillis at the end of this newsletter proves that our voices are welcomed and need to be heard in order to foster change.
We are energized by the many individuals and organizations that share our vision. That is why we look forward to continuing to advance these efforts by collaborating with our hockey community at the upcoming 3rd Annual Carnegie Initiative Summit set for Toronto on January 30-31, 2024. Please stay tuned for more information about this year’s program and how you can register.
At the summit, participants – from grassroots to pros and everyone in between – will learn and grow from each other’s experiences. We believe outcomes will be reached that support our common goals of expanding the game so that hockey truly is for everyone.
As we continue our planning for the upcoming summit, we want to hear from you. Please email me at Bernice@CarnegieInitiative.com with any questions or thoughts. We also want to learn more about what you are doing to make an impact on the culture of hockey so we can consider highlighting that work at the summit.
Warm Regards,
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Bernice Carnegie
Co-Chair
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The Carnegie Initiative 2022 Annual Report
We are pleased to share The CI’s 2022 Annual Report with our community that is interested in making hockey more inclusive and welcoming for all.
The publication highlights the progress made during our first full year of operation that includes hosting the inaugural CI Summit in Boston, awarding two academic grants, and establishing the Herbert Carnegie Trailblazer Award (HCTA) program. And, of course, making the year extra special was Herb Carnegie taking his rightful place in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
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Examining the “Ecosystem” of Hockey
Simply put, Dr. Richard Norman’s job is to know hockey, and armed with funding through a grant from The Carnegie Initiative and the National Hockey League, he is becoming one of the foremost experts on the “ecosystem” of ice hockey.
In order to help The CI and other organizations generate positive change in the sport, Dr. Norman has taken a deep dive into the structures and organizations that make up the hockey world.
The goal, he said, is to identify how the structures of the game interrelate and work together, or if they do not. Then, the next step is to provide insight to organizations from the grassroots on up on how to create lasting, meaningful change at scale. In one word, his approach is that of a “futurist.”
“How do we make sure that everyone feels that they're accepted and they belong?” Norman told The CI. “That's where future thinking helps, because when you start to project forward and say, well, what is it supposed to look like? What are we really trying to achieve? I think it's easier to galvanize around a shared vision where we can see that actually there's space for lots of different kinds of folks.
“It's going to be a collective effort of a whole bunch of different kinds of initiatives, people working at the grassroots, people like me working at the systemic level, all working together,” he added.
Dr. Norman began his grant research in 2022 while doing post-doctoral studies at Toronto Metropolitan University. He received a second grant from The CI in 2023 to continue and expand the reach of his research.
“Part of the great thing about having The CI and the backing of the NHL is that there is a commitment to this really important thing,” Norman explained. “They understand that this kind of research is really going to set the trajectory for where we're going to go, and we don't have all the answers right now. So continuing to interrogate these issues and explore and try different things is that kind of sweet spot.”
In 2023, Norman joined Curling Canada as its Director of Community Futures and Innovation. Dr. Norman also “rides point” on one of The CI’s major initiatives, The Spirit Project, which is working to envision the future of ice hockey for First Nations communities and players.
He played a major role in The CI’s 2023 Summit in Toronto last January (photo below), where he explained and presented his work to an audience of hockey’s leaders and influencers. He also hosted one of the panels at the Summit.
“There is something unique to what The CI brings to the space and what they do well as a connector of people,” Norman said. “(The CI) is bringing a lot of these people together that have been doing this work… It is an acknowledgment that people have been doing the work even when we're in the Hockey Hall of Fame (during an event at the 2023 CI Summit), it's just sort of, wow, look around the room. There are so many people, black and brown faces, and a huge contingent of women and girls were there. This is really the future of hockey. This is what it needs to look like. And this is what's going to make the existing structures even stronger.”
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Dr. Richard Norman's Thoughts on The CI
Dr. Norman recently reflected on the important role that The Carnegie Initiative plays in changing the culture of hockey.
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The CI Attends CCM’s Introduction of First-Ever Line of Gear for Women and Girls
Co-Chair Bernice Carnegie and her daughter Brooke Chambers, an advisor to The CI, attended a groundbreaking event for women’s hockey at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in mid-October.
CCM, one of The CI’s valued partners, hosted a gathering to announce its first-ever line of hockey gear specifically designed for women and girls. CCM’s Jetspeed FTW line is a step in the right direction regarding gender equality in the equipment game, and the hope is that more equipment companies will soon follow in their footsteps.
The company also announced it signed a deal to serve as the official equipment provider for the new Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) starting in 2024.
"With CCM as an official supplier, PWHL athletes will benefit from access to CCM's high-quality and innovative line of sticks, skates, and equipment when they hit the ice for our inaugural season," Jayna Hefford, Vice President of Hockey Operations for the PWHL, shared.
A recent article in the Cornell Chronicle examined the research behind designs for better women’s hockey equipment. Tulasi Elangovan, one of the researchers, was motivated to find a solution after learning that USA Hockey reported an increase in female registrants in 2017-18 that outpaced their male counterparts by more than 7 to 1.
As she dug deeper, she found that on the website of one of the biggest hockey equipment companies, there were 26 options for men’s shoulder pads but just one model for women.
“It is shocking that the men have so many options and the women have just one,” she stated. “That’s just such an inequality in the market, especially when women’s ice hockey is actually growing at a much faster rate than men’s.” (Read full article: “Researchers have designs on better women’s hockey protective gear,” Oct. 12, 2023)
Bernice and Brooke were honoured to be on hand to witness the advancement in equipment for women and girls.
“Bravo to CCM Hockey!,” Brooke posted on LinkedIn the day after the milestone announcement. “Thank you to the team who put so much time and hard work into making this new line of equipment a huge success!”
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Commemorative Stamp Celebrates the Legacy of Willie O’Ree
Canada Post introduced a special stamp honoring the life and legacy of trailblazer Willie O’Ree.
He made history as the first Black player to compete in the National Hockey League when he took the ice as a member of the Boston Bruins in 1958. Following his playing career, O’Ree served as the NHL’s Director of Youth Development and Ambassador for Diversity. In that role, he inspired countless thousands of children to play the great game of hockey.
O’Ree was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018. Today, he serves on The CI’s Board of Directors.
The design of the stamp features a recent photo of O’Ree in his signature fedora hat with a photo of him as a player. The stamp was designed in black and yellow to represent the uniform colors of the Bruins.
The stamp was unveiled at an October 28 event as part of the Heritage Classic festivities in Edmonton and officially issued two days later. A number of hockey dignitaries were on hand for the event including former NHL player and TNT announcer Anson Carter; Brian Jennings, Sr., Executive Vice President, Marketing, and Chief Branding Officer for the NHL; and Canada Post President and Chief Executive Officer Doug Ettinger.
Also appearing at the unveiling was women’s hockey star Sarah Nurse and Hockey Hall of Famer Grant Fuhr, both members of The CI’s Board. Current NHL players paying tribute to O’Ree were Evander Kane of the Edmonton Oilers and Nazem Kadri of the Calgary Flames.
|  | The stamp issue is canceled in Fredericton, New Brunswick, where O’Ree was born and raised. (Photo: Courtesy of NHL and Canada Post) |
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The Win Column, a hockey website that provides critical analysis on trends and statistics for the Calgary Flames as well as the NHL, states that it “proudly supports diversity and inclusion initiatives including Black Lives Matter and created the first Hockey Diversity Pledge to encourage accountability and antiracism in hockey.”
Full in-depth breakdown of this season’s NHL rosters.
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Sarah Nurse is a Canadian professional ice hockey player with the Toronto PWHL team and the Canadian women's national ice hockey team
She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin School of Business where she also played four years of Division I hockey, earning All-American, All-Conference and All-Rookie honours while helping her team capture three straight WCHA Conference Championships and making four Frozen Four appearances. Sarah earned a Silver medal at the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea; and then set an Olympic record for most points en route to Canada winning the Gold Medal at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, China.
Sarah is a member of The CI’s Board of Directors and the NHL Player Inclusion Committee.
The CI: Congratulations on the contract with the Toronto team in the newly formed Professional Women’s Hockey League! What about Toronto attracted you to signing with them?
SN: Toronto is such an incredible hockey market and being able to play here so close to home was hard to turn down. In speaking with our GM, Gina Kingsbury, I aligned with the vision, culture and direction of the organization. Signing alongside players like Blayre (Turnbull) and Renata (Fast) was very special.
The CI: How do you hope the PWHL makes an impact off of the ice?
SN: I hope we’re able to bridge the gap and make everyone feel like they have a place in hockey. From players to staff to our fan base, we have the opportunity to create an inclusive space and set the standard globally.
The CI: How vital is it for youth BIPOC and minority hockey players to see diverse representation in the highest levels of hockey?
SN: It’s incredibly important to have something to aspire to. Having diverse representation on the ice, behind the bench, in the owner’s box and in the stands, lets BIPOC and minority hockey players know that their love of the game can bring them to any level and place in hockey.
The CI: Was there a particular instance in your life you recall as the moment you fell in love with hockey?
SN: The first few times I skated in a local park with my dad, I loved the motion. It was so unique and he couldn’t get me off the ice. I never thought I was going to play in the NHL. But, when I first watched women play hockey (2002 Olympics), I couldn’t believe so many women played and that's when I knew there was an opportunity to accomplish a dream.
The CI: What do you deem as the most immediate challenges The CI must focus on to see more progress in making the sport more inclusive and welcoming to all?
SN: Retention in the sport. Introduction to hockey is great but how do we retain our BIPOC and minority players for years, and empower them to not only play but, if desired, pursue different careers in hockey.
The CI: What are you reading at present, and what book(s) would you recommend for others involved in making hockey more inclusive and accepting?
SN: Not a hockey book, but I just picked up “Queen of Urban Prophecy!”
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Calendar
November 12-14, 2023 - 16th Annual PrimeTime Sports Management Conference and Trade Show Presented by MLSE (Co-chaired by The CI Board Member Brian Burke) at Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto, Ontario.
January 30-31, 2024 - The CI Summit in Toronto, Ontario.
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Help Blaze the Trail
The CI gratefully appreciates donations, large and small, that help us with our mission: “Work to ensure that hockey is inclusive, supportive, and welcoming to all.”
Please consider a donation today.
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Brock McGillis is a former OHL and professional hockey player, and a LGBTQ+ activist. He was one of seven inaugural Herbert Carnegie Trailblazer Award winners. |
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