National identity and Canadian hockey: Narratives on the 1972 Canada-Russia series

Abstract

National identity in Canada is rooted in ice hockey. Research on the cultural, social and political significance of hockey have codified Canada’s identity, especially on the international stage. The 1972 Canada-Russia Series, also known as the Summit Series, is not only a national memory – it has helped forge the Canadian identity. By this token, a sense of belonging became central to Canadians while their shared experience of the Series showed how it affected the national consciousness. As expressions of nationalism, Canada’s identity was created, challenged and defended during the Series. In this context, my thesis attempts to illuminate how Canadian hockey revealed integral elements of the Canadian identity – on the ice, off the ice, in the newspapers and in the streets. From a Canadian perspective, primary source newspapers which covered the Series drive the narrative of this thesis. Eight themes on national identity and hockey uncover the stages, or progression, of Canada’s identity during the course of twenty-seven days in September 1972.