There is no better time to become a hockey fan as the National Hockey League (NHL) is in the process of expanding to 32 teams as it plans to welcome the Seattle Kraken into the fold in 2021. Just five years after the Vegas Golden Knights took to the ice, the NHL has added yet another team in a major sports market it has shown quiet interest in for years.
And with more teams comes more fans, and for those interested in picking up the game of hockey, here are ten tips to get you started:
1) Pick a Team to Root For
I strongly believe that having an NHL team to root for is an integral part of becoming a hockey fan. Even before you have a good understanding of the sport, having a team to support makes the experience of being a fan that much more enjoyable. Because at the end of the day, rooting for one team to win against another is a core aspect of the sports experience.
The next natural question one might ask is “how do I pick a team to root for?” Well, there are a couple of ways to go about that. The first of which is to simply root for the team you have a personal connection to geographically, whether that be the team from the city you grew up in or the city where you now reside.
But for one reason or another, you might not want to take that path. You could not have an NHL team in your area or you just want to be edgy and take a different path (which isn’t a bad thing). Often someone will become a fan of a team because of a certain star player (which we will discuss more in tip No.2). Or sometimes they will jump in with a team that is just getting started.
When the Vegas Golden Knights joined the league in 2017 not only did the club receive massive interest from its local market, it also picked up lost hockey fans that needed a new team to root for. Fast forward to 2021 and the Seattle Kraken will be making their on-ice debut as the NHL’s 32nd franchise.
The Kraken have already become a massive hit in the Washington area, but considering the fact that the next closest franchise is over the border in Vancouver, there is massive potential for Seattle to grab fans from all across the Pacific Northwest and the United States in general when they hit the ice for their inaugural season.
2) Learn About the NHL’s Best Players
It is a well-known fact that star players are a key marketing component for most professional sports franchises. Even the NHL, which has struggled to market its stars compared to the other three top American pro sports, has seen great success in markets with top talent.
I grew up as a kid in the “Sid and Ovi” era when Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin were just breaking into the league. At the time I was playing youth hockey and those two were the center of the hockey universe.
The Power of Stars
Back then I likely wasn’t paying much attention to teams outside of the Boston Bruins, of which my father and his father were long time fans, but Sid and Ovi I knew all about, even if I didn’t know much about the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Washington Capitals.
That says a lot about the power star players have in influencing the next generation of hockey players and I can imagine the impact that Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews are having on youth hockey players now is similar to what Sid and Ovi did for me and my friends growing up.
However, if you are reading this and just getting into hockey then you likely are well past the years of youth hockey. Yet at the same time, if you don’t already have a team that you follow, and you are looking to find one, choosing a star player you can resonate with is a great start in making that decision.
The NHL has notoriously been known as a league that could do more to market the personalities of its players. But if you look hard enough you can tell that there are definitely some players that are more comfortable in the spotlight, if that is what you’re looking for in a player to support.
Auston Matthews loves fashion, Matthew Tkachuk loves pissing off opposing players, and Robin Lehner, on a more serious level, is very public about his battle with mental illness, and for those who fight that same battle, I imagine being able to resonate with a pro athlete at that level is comforting.
3) Understand the Recent History of the League
Now this section may seem daunting and that isn’t my intention at all here. What I mean by “recent history of the league” is that if you really want to have a good idea of the current climate of the NHL, and be an informed hockey fan, then it is relatively important to know which teams have recently won the Stanley Cup, which teams have been on the cusp of winning for a while, which teams have not yet won.
So for a quick summary, this is a list of the last ten Stanley Cup Champions:
St. Louis Blues (2019) – 1st Stanley Cup Victory
Washington Capitals (2018) – 1st Stanley Cup Victory
Pittsburgh Penguins (2017) – 5th Stanley Cup Victory
Pittsburgh Penguins (2016) – 4th Stanley Cup Victory
Chicago Blackhawks (2015) – 6th Stanley Cup Victory
Los Angeles Kings (2014) – 2nd Stanley Cup Victory
Chicago Blackhawks (2013) – 5th Stanley Cup Victory
Los Angeles Kings (2012) – 1st Stanley Cup Victory
Boston Bruins (2011) – 6th Stanley Cup Victory
Chicago Blackhawks (2010) – 4th Stanley Cup Victory
Two teams have also been perennial contenders during this past decade but have failed to win a Stanley Cup. They are the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers.
Both teams have lost in the Stanley Cup Final in the last ten years, Tampa lost to Chicago in six games in 2015, and the Rangers lost to the LA Kings in five games back in 2014.
Teams still in search of their first Stanley Cup victory are the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Ottawa Senators, San Jose Sharks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, and Winnipeg Jets.
The League’s Best Rivalries
Now for the sake of time, I won’t go into detail on all these rivalries, though they are worth looking up on your own, but it is important to have a general idea of which teams don’t particularly care for each other.
Boston vs. Montreal
This is perhaps the oldest and most notorious rivalry in the NHL. The Bruins and Canadiens, both part of the NHL’s “Original Six” franchises have been battling it out for decades. The rivalry has come to a bit of a halt over the last decade largely due to the Canadiens lack of success, but who knows what the future has in store for these two clubs.
Edmonton vs. Calgary
Known simply as “The Battle of Alberta” these two teams first found hatred for each other in the ’80s, and for years following could never get to the point where both teams were competitive at the same time and the rivalry dwindled.
However, the 2019-20 season was huge for renewing that rivalry thanks in no small part to Zack Kassian (EDM) and Matthew Tkachuk (CGY). For more on the recent antics between these two clubs, I recommend checking out this piece where I previewed playoff matchups I would have liked to have seen heading into the 2020 postseason.
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia
Sometimes referred to as “The Battle of Pennsylvania” This rivalry most recently peaked from 2008-2012 when the two cross-state rivals met three separate times in the playoffs over a span of five years.
Since then, the rivalry has been quiet largely due to the fact that the Flyers have not been a major contender to win the Stanley Cup, however, the Penguins did dispatch the Flyers most recently in 2018 postseason, a first-round series that lasted six games.
LA vs. San Jose vs. Vegas
I am Not particularly sure what to call this rivalry but there is enough to it for it to garner its own section. The Kings and Sharks met four times in the postseason from 2011-2016, with each team winning twice. And their rivalry is sometimes referred to as “The Battle of California”, (maybe you are sensing a theme with nicknames).
Then, Vegas hits the scene in 2017, and many believed a natural rivalry would form between LA and Vegas, given that the two cities are separated by only about a four-hour drive.
However, any snarky hockey fan will tell you that rivalries are built during the playoffs. Which, don’t get me wrong, definitely has merit to it. But I also don’t think its much of a coincidence that all of the teams in these rivalries aren’t far separated geographically from one another. But I digress.
In the Golden Knight’s first season, if you are not familiar already, Vegas made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, sweeping LA in the first round, and beating the Sharks in six games in the second.
The following year Vegas blew a 3-1 series lead to the Sharks in the first round, and as if losing three-straight wasn’t bad enough, Game 7 was about as controversial as it gets with a call on Cody Eakin which is likely one of the greatest officiating gaffs in the history of the National Hockey League.
Both LA and San Jose failed to qualify for the 2019-20 postseason, and it is unclear when either Californian team will be competitive again, but it sure did look like a Vegas vs. San Jose rivalry was beginning to brew, and ask any Golden Knights fan which team they dislike the most and I bet they have the Sharks somewhere in their top two.
4) Become Familiar with the Rules
This point is pretty straight forward, and here is a link to the Official Rules of the National Hockey League. If you aren’t familiar with the rules of hockey, start with learning the basics like offsides and icing, read about the different types of penalties. If you can get those things down you are well on your way to better understanding the game.
Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions! Sometimes the sports world is an intimidating place for newbies who just want to learn, and quite frankly if you are already a hockey fan that loves the game you should want to welcome anyone who takes interest in your sport, not make them feel bad for not knowing all the rules.
Feel free to leave a comment below with any questions you might have, or message me on Twitter @jeremyperrigo if that works better. I really enjoy helping people learn about hockey, and I completely understand that it is one of the more difficult sports to pick up.
5) Connect With Other Hockey Fans
Once you have decided on a team to root for, the next thing to do, which makes the game more enjoyable for me personally, is to find a way to connect with other fans.
Two great ways to do that online are through Facebook and Twitter. Facebook groups are huge in the hockey world and nearly every NHL team has at least one group that is active and is regularly discussing their team of preference.
On Twitter, a no-brainer is to follow the team you want to support. Twitter is beginning to roll out features where you can “follow” a certain topic like the “Boston Bruins” or “San Jose Sharks”. This will allow you to see what people are saying about the team, including journalists and others who cover them.
Being active on social media is particularly important if you don’t live in the market of the team you support. But if you do happen to live near the team you root for, consider heading to a bar or restaurant where you know your team will be on the TV.
In my experience, you will often be able to connect with other fans that are also watching the game, and this isn’t a terrible way to make friends with other fans of your team!
Obviously, COVID-19 makes being an in-person hockey fan a bit more difficult, but a lot of restaurants are operating well since adjusting to the “new norm” of life in a pandemic, so if you’re comfortable, this is still a great way to connect with other fans.
6) Being an Up to Date Hockey Fan
This might sound obvious, but watch the games! Coming from the Boston sports market where everyone has an opinion and they aren’t afraid to yell it in your face, you’d be surprised how many of the loudest fans don’t actually regularly watch games.
If being an informed hockey fan is important to you, try and watch as many of your team’s 82 regular season games as possible. I know it isn’t likely you will catch every second of every game, but the more you watch the better you will understand not only the sport but the league in general. And when someone wants to tell you why your opinion stinks you’ll be able to defend yourself!
7) Consume Hockey Media
This ties into a few of the points above, but the best way, other than watching the actual games, of staying connected with your team is to follow them on social media. This means not only following the team itself, but following journalists who cover the team regularly.
Now, that being said, some journalists are better than others. And what market you are in determines the kind of personalities you will find.
At The Puck Review, we have written a review on a journalist from just about every team, which you can find in our Trusted Journalist section.
Beware, some definitely like to rile up their readers with controversial takes, but for the most part the best journalists you’ll want to follow because the quality of the content they produce is top-notch, not because they know how to piss off a bunch of people.
8) Learn to Play the Game
Now, this point isn’t necessarily for everyone I will admit right away. For a variety of reasons, health, access to ice, and other resources, not every hockey fan can enjoy playing the game the same way they enjoy watching.
Though I do recommend that if you are physically able, and have the time to do it, that you try and learn to skate at the very least. If you live in an area without access to a sheet of ice, consider buying rollerblades and learning that way.
While skating and rollerblading have their differences they are relatively the same. And chances are if you live in a hotter climate where rollerblading is the only option, there is likely a roller hockey league to join. And if not, what better time to start one!
There truly are hockey players in every market, and as some of the non-traditional hockey markets continue to gain traction in the sport, more and more arenas are being built to accommodate the youth demand in the area. So if your area doesn’t have a rink now, it might be worth doing the research to see if there are plans for one in the future.
9) Purchase a Jersey
I suppose purchasing any piece of team merchandise falls into this category, but there is something special about owning and wearing a hockey jersey. Being able to support your team by wearing the same logo on your chest as the team on the ice is an experience every hockey fan should have.
While official team jerseys are expensive, to me they are more than worth the investment. The National Hockey League is now partnered with Addidas, and at the beginning of the partnership and transition from Reebok, it was difficult to get your hands on anything other than a home or away jersey. But most teams are now releasing awesome third jerseys through Addidas which gives even more variation to what you can buy.
10) Watch and Have Fun!
At the end of the day, the most important thing about sports is having fun with friends and family. And yes it sounds cliche, but there are people, particularly in the online space, that will occasionally try and ruin the fun of others for their own personal gain.
Don’t get me wrong, I am all for hockey fan trash talk so long as it doesn’t go too far. And the struggle that the NHL, and the hockey world in general, has had with racism and other forms of hate speech are well documented.
Fortunately, it seems as though the NHL is finally taking a hard stance against these issues in its sport and I would be remiss if I did not mention the Hockey Diversity Alliance which was formed by former and current players to “change the face of hockey”.
Share With a Friend
I hope this article is helpful to those just getting started in the hockey world. And if you are already a hockey fan but you have someone in your life that is just getting into hockey, I hope this will be a great resource for them in their journey.
As I mentioned before, feel free to reach out to me anywhere, I am always here to assist in growing the game I fell in love with many years ago.
Below is a revision that did not appear in the original version of this article.
Experience the Game
After feedback on this article I would like to include one final recommendation that might seem obvious, but is an integral part of fully enjoying hockey.
That recommendation is to attend a hockey game in-person.
Obviously, due to our current climate, it is nearly impossible to attend a hockey game as a fan at the moment. However, when leagues begin to host fans in the future, make it a point to attend a game.
It doesn’t have to be an NHL game, although that is where you will find the top talent. Often junior or college hockey games can be just as entertaining. The games are fast-paced and the hitting is hard.
And often the lack of NHL structure provides for high-scoring games, the result of mistakes and offense-first playing styles that are far more common at this level.
Watching hockey in-person and experiencing the intense and exciting atmosphere the sport attracts is a must, and many have cited it as the reason that they were drawn to hockey in the first place.
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