Izzy Megan *Iman ( Linden ( *Maddie ( * sibcrosdymedia.Much of that culture and the Tumblr fandom model provide a template for the hockey subculture bringing in new female and queer fans.Īdriana gives a shout out to some of the other NHL fans on Twitter who are a part of this new phase for NHL fandom. From Beatlemania to the Twilight craze, it’s the same phenomenon that catapulted K-pop from a regional musical genre to a global juggernaut with a complex fan culture attached. The beautiful blend of Internet jokes and highlighting narratives brings us together in a way that the NHL’s marketing has never – and may never – replicate.Ī lot of what is called popular culture is dictated by youth, particularly young femmes. The people creating this amazing content on Twitter gave me the space to enjoy hockey the way I like to, out of human interest and not analytically.īeing born into hockey fandom, and finding my way back to the new culture, gives me a unique perspective from both the veteran fans and the newbies. The kind of people to take an off-the-wall caption and throw it onto a picture of Niklas Kronwall with cupcake and rainbow stickers for pizzazz, or set clips of Henrik Zetterberg mentoring Dylan Larkin to an ABBA song and make you cry bittersweet tears. Eventually, I was welcomed by a particular sect within the Red Wings Twittersphere. Finding them was challenging and a bit scary. So I did what many netizens do: I took to Twitter to find my people. That renewed self-focus, and Youtube clips of the legendary Red Wings enforcer Bob Probert fighting, brought me back to the little girl who loved hockey.Īfter decades of being only peripherally aware of what was going on in hockey, I was at a loss for where to start finding information that made sense for fans and me to commiserate with. I realized I had been living life on standby mode and not engaging with or directing my passion towards the things that make me feel deeply alive and human. For me, almost losing my sister during a global pandemic, as well as a boatload of therapy, were catalysts to the rediscovery of my love of hockey. Sometimes it takes something major to make you stop and reconnect with your inner child. Rekindling her passion for hockeyįor 15 years, I paid little attention to hockey, only consuming crumbs of news.

If I didn’t know everything there was to know, I might as well kick rocks. It was clear that I didn’t belong and my perspective wasn’t valuable. Overemphasis on metrics, blunt dismissal of newer or uninformed fans, female fans almost being required to “prove” their fandom, and outright disdain for anyone deemed “other” – It all sapped my enjoyment of the great game.ĭespite Detroit being firmly in dynasty territory at the time, my love and interest evaporated around age 10.

I loved watching my brothers play street hockey, seeing Joe Kocur at my uncle’s restaurant on off days, attending Detroit Vipers IHL games, and admiring our family’s growing collection of memorabilia.Īs a young girl unaware of her queerness, the draw was the action and passion, but traditional hockey culture made it hard to foster my love of the game. It was fate that they met and passed their passion for hockey down to their six kids. My dad went all-in on sports, and my mom was all-in on Red Wings player Steve Yzerman. My earliest life memory is the 1997 Stanley Cup parade.

Vox youtube sexism