The Heart of Hockey

Hockey players are portrayed in the media as being violent and raw. The only time mainstream America hears about hockey is when someone does something aweful on the ice. It's quite unfair.
This story about the Chicago Blackhawks is one of hundreds of stories that arean't usually told but need to be.

"I've played for different teams in juniors and the pros," said the 26-year-old Sharp, from the Ontario hockey hotbed of Thunder Bay. "And you walk into every locker room and you become brothers. Maybe it's rare in pro sports, but it's not rare in hockey, I don't think. We're all in this together. It goes back to growing up in hockey. My older brother played, I played, and my parents made huge sacrifices to drive us everywhere we had to go. Everyone in this game knows how much family means."

I say it has nothing to do with being from Canada and everything to do with hockey. And with shaking your opponents' hands after you've battled them for 3 periods.