Before the Lights Go Out

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A love letter to a sport in crisis, this work from one of Canada's top sports writers addresses the troubling state of Canadian hockey. The game is becoming increasingly expensive and exclusive, alienating many potential fans. Youth registration is stagnant, and efforts to engage new Canadians often fall flat. As a lifelong hockey fan and father of a mixed-race son who loves the game, Sean Fitz-Gerald seeks to understand these challenges through a season with the Peterborough Petes, a once-great OHL team now struggling in a changing demographic landscape. Fitz-Gerald profiles players, coaches, and staff, showcasing a blend of aspiring NHL talents and locals with more modest dreams. Their diverse experiences reveal who plays hockey in Canada and why. He intertwines the season's action with insights from public figures who have influenced the sport, including authors, politicians, and broadcasters. Fitz-Gerald captures community meetings filled with frustrated season ticket holders and sterile boardrooms of hockey's institutional leaders, who remain mired in tradition and conflict. This moving, humorous, yet unsettling narrative paints a vivid picture of a sport at a crossroads, ultimately conveying a heartfelt message: it’s not too late to save hockey in Canada, but action is needed.