There’s an old quote that goes “the medium is the message”. In this case, the most watched news network for sports in the US doesn’t cover Hockey, so people don’t care about Hockey.
I find that American fans who are hockey fans really know the game well, and are among the most knowledgeable and objective fans there are. Up in Canada, it's a mix of knowledgeable fans and the silly fanboys who are already booking a parade route on Yonge St.
Ooo, I think we all feel that way. But this may be tainted as many who are watching this video are fans/subscribers...we all watch TheHockeyGuy and love hockey.
I would not be surprised if he said it to create controversy. ESPN loves those personalities who say stupid shit. So does FS1. I've watched hockey for years and have never watched Skip Bayless, Stephen Smith, or Max Kellerman rant about random sports topic of the day.
Kellerman has obviously never really talked to the man on the street in NY Pittsburgh or Boston. And hockey is actually developing a solid fanbase on the west coast of Florida. The ECHL actually draws fairly well.
@mojo That's why I hate when fellow Canadians badmouth hockey in the US. So what if Florida doesn't care as much about hockey as New Brunswick, the fans that are there are still awesome and deserve our respect.
I am a American who love's hockey but honestly I could care-less that a lot of American sport fans don't like hockey I don't need everyone to like it for me understand it is a great sport.
Kellerman is disgusting and ESPN has lost millions of viewers and now is just a shell of former self. ESPN is desperate to attract even a few additional viewers. Screw Kellerman
@@hobonolen2402 that’s seriously the dumbest thing I’ve ever read about sports. You don’t like hockey? Fine. But to say it’s all luck and not skill???? Get the fuck outta here!
Hell I’m Mexican and I love Hockey. I have family who ask me why. I told them, it soccer cranked up to 17. The competition is truly intense and the atmosphere is incredible
Best comment on the board!... I went to college north of Toronto and we had a kid from Mexico City and a Venezuelan on our team, and they became pretty good!
@@pottytheparrot310 that's 15+ years since ESPN's spent more than 5 minutes talking about hockey. Maybe besides Barry Melrose, but even that is a few days out of a year
@@dgonchar98 just as a read that comment, ESPN article pops up with "NHL eyes increasing diversity" so I guess that's the only way ESPN is going to care to cover hockey :p
Well Kellerman has also been saying Brady is declining for the past 4 years, since then he’s won 2 SBs and been to 3. So ya take what he says with a grain of salt
It feels like people tend to fall in love with hockey when they are exposed to it. If it was promoted better in the states it could be considerably bigger, I believe.
@@cope847 Grew up in the UK so hockey coverage was non-existent (our national team hasn't been to the Olympics in decades). Didn't care much for sports outside a few Rugby games. One hockey highlights I watched and I was hooked. Showed it to my flatmates and they're playing Yotes Vs Pens when I'm not even in the house. When people watch hockey, they get hooked 100 percent.
As you said, hockey does well locally because it's a sport you kind of have to watch live in order to fall in love with it. Most people dont know what's going on when it comes on the TV but once they go to even just one game, they start watching it more. It's just a matter of breaking that ice which is hard to do when you live 3-4 hours from the closest hockey game.
This is what happened for me I watched a minor league hockey game and fell in love with the product. I’ll probably start trying to go to at least 2 or 3 Ducks games a season just to help support them.
@@coledoyle1804 We ALL REMEMBER - Teemu #13 Selanne - Rookie Year with 76 Goals ! Many Good players like Dale Howerchuck - Tie Domi - and this Pat Laine ! 5 Goals vs St Louis last season - that was a awake up call to Blues ! They changed everything & Goalie too ! At May - They WON STANLEY CUP !
Born and raised in the US and hockey is probably my favorite sport. It used to be pretty much a tie between hockey and football but football is not the same game. I've often wondered if it has something to do with it not ever playing the game. For some reason many people just don't give it a chance
Since 2016 I have started watching hockey and it is one of the best decisions I ever made. Ive watched more hockey games in the last year than College football, MLB, or NBA games my entire life
I live and go to college upstate and I swear sometimes on campus I feel like I’m on Long Island just because of the Islanders apparel, truly shocked at how loyal their base is
I’ll always use Tampa as an example since they’re my favorite team, we love our lightning down here, we like them more than the bucs and the rays, everywhere is lightning stickers, lightning hats, jerseys shirts, lanyards, everywhere, the lightning bring in a lot of economy for our city, during the playoffs the whole community gets involved, I love our fanbase and our city and we are a huge hockey city
With the Bucs being relevant, they are still the town favorite, just look at and compare the turnout at the boat parades. But you're right, the Bolts have a huge regional fanbase.
@Richard Hostetler nah if America was more interested in hockey it would potentially make it possible to get more teams in Canada. And the players are often Canadian anyways so there's a little pride to have there I guess...
I was interested in hockey before the Whalers became the Hurricanes, And then my Dad and his buddy decided to test drive cars, for free tickets to take my brother and I to a game. April 16 1998 vs the Penguins. And that was all it took. I freakin' LOVE the Canes and team USA, both women's and men's.
@@voidfilan5055 I understand completely. I've been a Devils fan since '91-'92 season, all while growing up in the Boston area and a massive amount of die hard Bruins fans. Now I live in South Carolina.
I hear you. Use to go to 20 games a year but had to move to North Carolina in 2015 to take care of dad. The Hurricanes have a good team but I just can’t switch teams ever. Be safe and take care👍‼️
I grew up in the south. Suffered through the Canes being bad. Had two different minor league teams in my hometown. Played roller until I was in the military and able to afford to play ice minus the small amount of ice I played growing up. Left home and stuck with my teams. The hardest part of this last few weeks for me (and I'm fortunate enough to say that this is the hardest part for me) is that I'm not dragging my ass out of bed at 0430 to play pick up or dying at work the next day from a 2300 beer league game the night before. That the first words I hear around 1930 every game night is John Forslund saying "Sit back and enjoy this one". Stay in your lane, Max. Stick the sports where people make more money to play an easier sport.
@@sportsfanatic2163 they don't really that much, I watch a lot of sportscenter on snapchat and they rarely cover it. Even during the Stanley Cup they just show photos with them adding commentary and will show full clips for basketball, UFC, football, etc. this might just be a sportscenter snapchat thing idk
I live in the US and i'll never understand how "sports" like wrestling, golf and nascar can sometimes be more popular than hockey. Baseball too, although I understand it was America's game for a long time. It's absolutely boring... The vast majority of hockey fans here are rabid fans though. What sucks is that I can turn on my TV and watch football, baseball, nascar, whatever.. broadcast on national TV or local channels, but I can't do that with hockey. When I was a kid in the early 90's, my parents didn't have cable, so I would listen to every game on the radio. I would be so damn excited if a game was actually on tv. Americans absolutely do care about hockey. Once people get hooked, they're hooked for life.
NASCAR Fan here from Canada. We love hockey, but have been robbed of an expansion franchise twice in the last decade, because Bettman wants hockey in American markets, and not Canadian markets. Also, cable networks need to stop taking up the majority of games/NASCAR events. Looking at you, NBCSN and FS1!
@@SMG2fanatic I know right!! Wrestling and NASCAR actually require athletic ability and physical endurance respectively. Golf is people in ugly clothes chasing a ball.
For me, there are 3 major issues that the NHL needs to fix. 1. ESPN. I grew up going to hockey games in Detroit, and I loved to watch them on Fox Sports Detroit, but it wasn't until this year that I found out NBC had Wednesday Night Hockey. Frankly, no one touches NBC outside of Sunday Night Football. Growing up all the kids in school would watch ESPN and since they gave basically zero exposure to the NHL, barely anyone at school would talk about hockey. Keep in mind I went to school in Michigan, during the Red Wings 08 and 09 Stanley Cup Final runs. 2. Minorities. I myself am a minority, but I am hard-pressed to find a single other minority that watches Hockey (The only one I know is my Aunt, who started my love of hockey). Most minorities would much rather watch basketball. This issue I think is a result of lack of familiarity, nearly every school in America has basketball hoops to play on for recess. The most we can get of hockey is floor hockey in PE, and low-income areas often can't spend money on this. 3. Entertainment. I grew up watching tons of fights in Hockey and Niklas Kronwall hits but it is something I rarely see in today's game. This was such a fun part of hockey that is dying out and making it less entertaining for newcomers. I also loved making an enemy, I hated the Penguins during the good days, but now I don't think there is much hatred between teams or players. The NBA is a perfect example of milking rivalries, every time an altercation happens reporters pry at it and make it much deeper (This also kinda plays into the ESPN issue). The Kassian and Tkachuk made me a lot more interested in watching some more games. These small narratives throughout the season make it so much easier to follow for all 82 games.
Agreed, hockey is stupid expensive to play in the U.S. that’s why more kids here play baseball,football, and soccer because the gear and tuition is WAY cheaper
Dude the fighting was not that great. It’s fighting on ice skates which is nearly impossible, it just slowed the game down and rarely was there ever a clean fight that landed great hits and a clear winner was obvious. All the penalties that got handed out just slowed the game down tremendously and hockey games could take forever. The game involves so much skill now and that has taken precedence over anything else which is the way it should be. Hockey is growing now so more than ever because of the gravitation towards pure skill
I am a minority. I'm not a hockey fan, but I enjoyed watching college hockey games. A basketball game is so boring due to useless timeouts and free throws
I live in Georgia and I just started following hockey within the last two years. I’ve been a football, basketball and baseball fanatic all my life. I’m mad I didn’t get into hockey before, especially when I was younger. And honesty, I’m looking forward to NHL coming back more than any other sport.
Jeff the Rangers are one of my favorite teams. Zibanejad and Panarin are great players and Lundqvist still has a chance at a cup. They are probably the best team New York has right now.
Max Kellerman is like that annoying guy at work who thinks he knows everything there is to know about sports but in reality he only knows like 3 sports and that's with 1 being Boxing. Now I like Max only , ONLY, as a boxing commentator, where he needs to just stay at. Hes on ESPN, (btw not an NHL channel), because HBO dropped boxing.. he repeats what others say about players and sports leagues when it comes to other sports like the NBA.. So I think its only him that doesnt care about hockey, let alone the NHL!
It's mainly popular in certain regions, specifically the Midwest like Cleveland, Cincinnati Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, and upstate NY like Buffalo. Also, maybe in states like Vermont, New Hampshire, etc. Basically the closer you're to Canada.
Surprised hockey doesn't have NHL teams in Ohio. They had the Barons one season and the Stingers in the WHA but it didn't pan out. Maybe now is a good time.
This makes me really sad. I'm from the UK, where nobody follows hockey, so I envy Americans so much for hosting so many legendary sports franchises in the NHL. I assumed they'd be better supported.
@@badmilk1735 I'm an American who lives in London. There is a group that plays at Alexandria Palace, but it's not a big group. There's a Canadian themed bar (yeah, that's a thing) in Covent Garden that shows games, but other than that, it's pretty barren...
I'm an Australian hockey fan, I think we may be even more rare. I know two people who have even watched hockey, and they're not full "fans", AFL is the only relevant sport here.
South of the border it is defiantly the fourth of the four major sports but it is also way above our mid-major sports remember the US is a country of 330 million so there are millions of us who love Hockey in the US and north of the border it is defiantly number one of the four major sports.
Hockey is very much supported in states that get snow and ice in the winter. Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, etc. Here in Michigan, hockey is massive, and the fact that we can play it ourselves outdoors just like the Canadians across the border really helps.
I enjoyed watching hockey since hearing about the Mighty Ducks back in 2001. They became good and got to the Stanley Cup finals in 2003 and their goalie in Giguere earned the playoff MVP. Then the Ducks won it in 2007 and jumped for joy seeing this victory after going to my dinner with my JV Tennis team. The Kings got their Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014 and Kings fans have fun with those successful runs. The Ducks and the Kings are big rivals with each other. And yes, I love the Paul Kariya Game 6 SCF goal. That was a thing of beauty and Gary Thorne called it perfectly. Overtime thrillers and the nature of ice hockey makes it awesome. So Cal is also a neat hockey hotbed on their own right. I've been watching hockey since 2001.
I live in the STL area and nearly EVERYONE watchs hockey. Most of the US loves hockey. It's just there are more choices that appeal more to some fans. But I love hockey. If ESPN had hockey the viewership would be much higher.
I went to my first hockey game back in January and it was easily the most fun sporting event I have been to. And I've been to all 4 major sports games in the US.
The fact that u don’t know him probably means u live in Canada. So you are kinda prove his point & rest of the people that are saying they don’t know him too also are old people that live in Canada. He said hockey isn’t a major sport in the U.S but is the biggest sport in Canada only. And I don’t see what was wrong in that, It’s not his problem that all of your guys feelings are getting hurt cause the facts are the facts
I’m an American from the inner city and I love hockey. Hell Me and my friends grew up on 90’s hockey. Not going to lie the fighting drew us in but once you’re in it’s hard not to get hooked to the sport. Go Devils
There are a number of problems with the popularity of hockey in the U.S. For one, hockey equipment is too expensive so a lot of kids grow up without every playing it. Playing a sport as a kid goes a long way into its enjoyment in adulthood. Secondly, televised hockey had big problems before the advent of widescreen HD TV. The puck was simply too small and traveled too fast. It does better now. As for watching hockey live, I would love to watch hockey live if, #1, the games were cheaper, #2, it wasn't a hassle just to go to the game and find your seat, #3, refreshments were cheaper and as far away as your own refrigerator, #4, the bathroom was 20 feet away with a clean toilet seat and you could pause the game while you went there.
How is it different from going to any other sport live??? Its cheaper than Basketball and is played in the same arena, with the same concession prices.
I agree on the equipment costs & ticket prices that are totally out of reach for most families....I now call it, Polo on ice. I played goal for 14 years as a kid when we had sponsored neighborhood 'House League rinks' such as the Legion, Rotary, Kinsmen, etc, where at least, all team uniforms and pads were supplied.
@@rpm1796 I cut my teeth on IHL minor league hockey long ago. I played one game, an intramural hockey game in college. In my opinion, the NHL game would be better if they played 4-on-4. Another possibility would be that anytime the goalie touched the puck, the opposing team would get 1 point. A goal would be worth 5. Yeah, I know; strange and too radical. Don't blame me. Blame goalies that unlike yesteryear, now play on their knees, in pads the size of sofa pillows.
Tom babybot yea I agree with you on that but I run into a lot of people who say hockey sucks because they say only Canadians watch it. For example a lot of people in the comments sections of a channel called “Total Pro Sports” say hockey is the worst of the four major sports because of that reason. It also doesn’t help that the channel only uploads NFL and NBA videos just like ESPN.
There’s a lot of reasons that it’s not popular but I feel like the most important reason is that most people just don’t play hockey. It’s really expensive to get into compared to playing basketball or soccer and even football.
MK isn’t wrong. I moved from Pittsburgh to ATL, then South Carolina. Hockey isn’t even mentioned here, even when they were the first thing coming back from covid. There’s huge parts where hockey isn’t just 4th, it’s 6 or 7. The southeast is a hockey wasteland.
A few years back, I used to regularly go to the FB page named "Southern Hockey Problems" where people, hockey fans, from the south east of the United States tended, among others, to bust these myths about their local hockey culture and they would quite strongly disagree with you. :-) P.S. - Unfortunately, the page was growing steadily and was becoming more and more popular (because nobody obviously cares about hockey in the South-East :-D) and one day it became a target of some hackers, got "stolen" and it no longer exists. :-(
Shannon, to answer your question at the end, I think one of the big problems is that the NHL does not know how to market their stars. Look at the NBA for example. How many times did you see MJ in his playing days compared to Gretzky or Mario. Has anyone seen a national commercial of say a Claude Giroux or a Connor McDavid (not sure about Canada commercials so apologize if this is incorrect). Until the the NHL stars market their stars better it will never reach the likes of the major 3. There is no where near the coverage of the NHL in the US and it for the most part was covered as about as well as the original XFL was. Even when it was on ESPN airways I don't recall it having good broadcast coverage even for the playoff games. Gary Thorne and Bill Clement did about as good as they could do but the ESPN crew as a whole did not really take it seriously. But like I originally said, The NFL, MLB and NBA market the stars of their sports much better than the NHL does for their sport. That's why you don't see big things on ESPN for hockey unless its for something like the Todd Bertuzzi/Steve Moore. Its a shame because hockey is the best sport for seeing live by far. As a Flyers fan, my first real experience was the 87 run and one of the first games I went to was Game 7 between the Flyers and Islanders. That year is when I fell in love with the sport and its a shame that the sport is somewhat disrespected in my country media wise.
The way he talked about it was condescending and highlighted the fact he and ESPN have no interest in even understanding the sport. He could've pointed out it was the least popular of the 4 major sports leagues in a different way or just not have said anything at all.
Oh yeah, also should mention that I ONLY care about hockey lol. Football: boring Baseball: deathly boring Basketball: predictable and boring Soccer: I watch when hockey is not available.
I live in the US, I can rattle off the names of hundreds of players over the last 20 years with more confidence than I can tell you by a graphical details of my own life, and I have no idea who Max kellerman is, sooooo.......
The NHL needs a new TV deal badly in the US. NBC just does not do a enough good job. The league needs to have another broadcaster to create competition into to improve the presentation.
Or just continue with NBC, but have another network cover games. Especially in the playoffs where NBC can cover Eastern Conference games and the other network covers Western Conference games all the way up to the SCF.
I'm also American and am a diehard hockey fan. To make hockey more popular, the NHL needs to get back on ESPN and ABC, and while they're at it, maybe sign with some streaming platforms such as RUclips Red and Hulu.
I am following you from New Jersey. We have 3 of 31 teams in the local area and yet, you rarely hear any hockey talk on the WFAN or WEPN (NY's ESPN radio), especially during the playoffs. I recall hearing a Yankee preseason exhibition game bump a Devils Playoff game on their main radio outlet. It is so annoying that Bettman continues to expand in the US versus Quebec City!!
Honestly, a lot of sports leagues are localized, but still do better than hockey. I mean, the NBA has four teams in California alone and three in Texas. Basketball does well in the U.S. because NCAA basketball panders to places without NBA franchises. NCAA hockey only really does that in N. Dakota and maybe Wisconsin.
@@brooke-3615 Except the other three American sports leagues have a combined 2 Canadian teams, to which the NHL has 7. That means the NHL has a significantly smaller number of teams in the United States compared to the NFL, MLB, and NBA. Florida only has hockey, because all of the old people from Canada, New York, and Michigan go live there to await death, which created a serious demand for their state to get a team or two. Hockey is predominantly a major sport north of the Mason-Dixon line. On the other hand, you'd be hard pressed to find more than 5 people in the state of Alabama, who know who could tell you who Conner McDavid and/or Austin Matthews are.
That doesn't even *pretend* to answer "why is hockey a regional sport?". What drugs are you on, buddy. You simply gave examples of regions that have many teams. That's not why it's regional, that's the regions it's in professionally regarding the NHL, doofus. Seriously. What is wrong with you.
What’s interesting is that the most watched NHL game of all time was in 1971 between the Blackhawks and Canadians which got a crazy rating of 20.6 in just the US alone. I wonder if the simplicity of the league back then benefited them, rather than expanding too much to not so great markets which will dilute the finals matchup such as Anaheim and Ottawa for example. Like that 1971 Final was really the SuperBowl of the NHL, and I feel like the fact that the league was smaller with bigger market teams made the matchup more iconic and must see television.
I've lived in northwest Ohio about 2 hours south of Detroit my whole life. Grew up playing street hockey and watching the Red Wings. I guess me and all the people I grew up with who watch and play hockey and all the kids I see playing at the local rink are no one.
@@tbfünke I honestly doubt it, the league has managed to bring some of the biggest names in British soccer with Beckham and Rooney and people still dont watch it. Toronto even won a championship and no one cared
@@tbfünke Even with the EPL the games are on pretty early especially on the west coast. I think there could be more kids playing soccer than hockey if there isn't already. The fact that fans in North America don't have as much of an attachment to a European team as an American and the pro rel system that makes it almost impossible to cheer for an underdog definitely will hinder soccer's popularity. I think the World Cup can be big but other than that league soccer won't be as popular in the US compared to hockey.
The so called major league, and NFL ,won't ever let it get bigger than it is . I was a kid in 70's , Pele was in NY , said he would make soccer bigger than all other U.S. sports ...?
@@kevinbrown967 I feel like the rise of Davies I the Bundesliga will make it so more European teams show interest in NA, but I doubt that the MLS or CPL will ever get big with or without Pele or Rooney
To answer your exact question: Exposure and advertising. We had an AHL team for 5 years here in OKC and if I had a nickel every time I heard "we have a hockey team?" I could have bought them myself and kept them here. Plus the advertising. Most NHL games get relegated to the B channel or the regional equivalent. Best example is the "Wednesday Night Rivalry" on NBC. It gets aired on NBCSN which is already a cable/satellite channel. At most NBSCN will air one game a night, most other teams play on their regional network like Fox Sports SW for the Stars, however if the Mavericks or even the Thunder are playing then forget about seeing the game.
I’m an American in the Deep South. I find hockey to be more entertaining than basketball right now, and the more I watch hockey and learn about the game the more I enjoy it.
One of the things to consider with college football, is that it is in every state. It's so big because you have states like Nebraska, Alabama, Kansas, Virgina etc. with no Big 4 Teams. They capture so much more of the market because they have no competition. College football is different because it is tied with academics, and the players don't have the same fat paychecks that those in private leagues get. Mind you, most countries in the world don't put much into collegiate athletics... Hockey is smaller, sure, but people care about it. Hockey teams in many cities draw large crowds, even in Vegas. The NHL has, for the most part done a great job establishing teams where people do care. Your point that it does well regionally, is so accurate. Certain places in the US love hockey, some don't.
i love the nhl but im gonna be honest max was kinda right. he wasnt really saying he doesnt enjoy hockey he was just saying the truth that college football is probably above hockey
I live in Southern California (Pasadena, to be exact), and the only sports I watch are Hockey and College Football. And Hockey is the only sport I keep up with through the year, even in the offseason. And the biggest reason for that is: TheHockeyGuy. You are the best ambassador for the game of Hockey, Shannon. Much credit goes to you for drawing my interest to all things Hockey. But that’s just the opinion of this American. P.S. Your jersey collection videos are the best.
I Love my Rangers, I love hockey. It is actually my favorite of the 4 major sports. Max Kellerman is a boxing guy, basketball/football are next. If NHL was on ESPN, his tone would change.
@Owen Modracek I was not around for the Flames but I watched the Thrashers constantly implode on themselves because of the Atlanta Spirit group's horrible ownership
It's sad but true how many people dont care about hockey in certain areas. I grew up in detroit then moved upward michigan and both areas had tons of hockey fans. But when i moved to ohio in the cleveland area most people didnt even know ohio had a professional league team in the blue jackets tons thought the lake erie monsters (their minor league team) was a pro team
Well, at least they were aware of the Monsters' existence which is a good sign. :-) But this could be largely individual, heavily depending on what circle of people you currently move in. For example, several months ago I chatted here, on the YT, with one HC hockey fan from Cleveland who revealed to me that he got very disappointed in the late '90s when Columbus got their NHL franchise approved, because it automatically killed virtually all chances for Cleveland potentially getting their own team.
How about, no they don't. I know we aren't a big market, but the team is important to the fans that are here. I also know a lot of people outside of the fan base don't realize that. It would be nice if other fan bases stopped trying to push for moving our team, I really don't understand why people just talk about moving teams so nonchalantly. You said you only care about hockey, but I know you must be at least somewhat familiar with the patriots. Before they had all their success they were very close to moving if not for Kraft, and I'm sure many fans today are grateful for still having their team I'm sure. Moving usually isn't the answer. I'm not saying one day the cats are going to achieve that kind of success, but my point is I wish people wouldn't talk about moving a team so lightly. There are fans here that care, I know some won't believe me, but there are. It sucks that Quebec lost the Nordiques ( I don't wish that on any fan), but the NHL had a chance (actually had *two* chances) to put an expansion team there recently but they chose elsewhere. People should be complaining about that instead of calling for FLA to move.
As a Canadian, I feel like as a country we are almost obligated to like hockey while growing up to some extent by the time your family is 2nd or 3rd generation, essentially having enough exposure to our culture. The US is so different with so many pro sports that draw people's interest in different directions. Hockey has always been tied to a grassroots type of fandom, if you play it once you will love it for the rest of your life (usually). That makes it difficult when the cost to play it is so high and so inaccessible to places where you can't experience even skating easily. The NHL needs to advertise in the US better, market their players better, show them their personality to get people to watch hockey. It's something they have never been good at, so lots of room for improvement
Countries that care: Canada Finland Sweden Czech Rep Slovakia Siberia 🤔 Russia (average office worker knows nothing, unless Mother Russia won something). Certainly Moscow and St.Petersburg are clueless. I’m a hockey junkie but I know that it’s not the easiest sport to watch
Never realized your account was called “the hockey guy” Found your power rankings last NFL season and really enjoyed it, but lost your channel and couldn’t find it for the life of me until now
He just says that because ESPN doesn’t have a deal with the NHL
There’s an old quote that goes “the medium is the message”. In this case, the most watched news network for sports in the US doesn’t cover Hockey, so people don’t care about Hockey.
ESPN actually has a lot of hockey people.
He thinks Boxing is a major sport, so I don't take him seriously.
Gen C I watch a lot of his videos. He’s not that dumb, but I get why you say that. I agree with him sometimes
Also, I see that you now have covered that about halfway through the video. I made this comment as soon as I tuned in, so sorry about it
Nah he says that cause he a moron. He the same person that keep saying Tom Brady a bum, and says JJ Watt does stuff for PR not that he a nice guy.
I’m American and I love Hockey and I don’t care what he says
I find that American fans who are hockey fans really know the game well, and are among the most knowledgeable and objective fans there are. Up in Canada, it's a mix of knowledgeable fans and the silly fanboys who are already booking a parade route on Yonge St.
Ooo, I think we all feel that way. But this may be tainted as many who are watching this video are fans/subscribers...we all watch TheHockeyGuy and love hockey.
Matthew Shepard I know we all do but still he doesn’t know what he’s talking about
I'm american and i love hockey too.hockey is the first sport i came to like before the other sports.
I’m Latino (🇸🇻 | 🇺🇸) and I’ve been a huge fan of hockey since when the Mighty Ducks was popular. 🏒 Max better shut the f**k up about it!
Max Kellerman doesn't know a thing about hockey. So his word carries no weight. I'm an American and I can say that hockey is my favorite sport.
The last two words of the first sentence should be left off. The guy is a moron.
I would not be surprised if he said it to create controversy. ESPN loves those personalities who say stupid shit. So does FS1. I've watched hockey for years and have never watched Skip Bayless, Stephen Smith, or Max Kellerman rant about random sports topic of the day.
He is a boxing expert .
@@vidgameguy33 The guy is actually quite intelligent, he is paid to say stupid stuff to generate ratings like everyone on that network.
Same
Many Americans may not care about hockey but for us who do, we are very passionate about the game just as passionate as a Canadian fan would be
I feel like the people who like hockey really like hockey buy the merch go to games watch them alot
Kellerman has obviously never really talked to the man on the street in NY Pittsburgh or Boston. And hockey is actually developing a solid fanbase on the west coast of Florida. The ECHL actually draws fairly well.
@@davidtuttle7556 I don't think kellerman has ever talked to a man on any street period lmao
@@davidtuttle7556 I live on the gulf coast of florida about 30 minutes north of tampa. I can confirm Hockey is alive and well here.
happy to hear it from a canadian ! cheers
Something tells me that ESPN personalities will not be saying this now that their network has a $400M deal for half of the rights.
This pisses me off as an American who loves hockey!
@mojo That's why I hate when fellow Canadians badmouth hockey in the US. So what if Florida doesn't care as much about hockey as New Brunswick, the fans that are there are still awesome and deserve our respect.
Facts!!! Bring a team to Houston!!! Max kellerman is the worst figure in sports media
I am a American who love's hockey but honestly I could care-less that a lot of American sport fans don't like hockey I don't need everyone to like it for me understand it is a great sport.
Never had any respect for Max in the first place, now it’s in the negatives
Kellerman is disgusting and ESPN has lost millions of viewers and now is just a shell of former self. ESPN is desperate to attract even a few additional viewers. Screw Kellerman
His boxing knowledge is insane. His hockey comment is just a hot take to get clicks
@@KUFreak4Ever I assume since boxing has a cult like following compared to a universal following . ESPN moved him to Skip Bayless's former spot.
Never liked Max. Will Cain, although very right winged, is easier to listen to and would have made First Take a better show
Nobody watches ESPN anymore.
Never have and never will
It's a dodo bird ...
Yup. It's basically sports gossip at this point. FS 1 isn't much better
ESPN is basically CNN at this point.
@@Poway19 Yeah. ESPN is the CNN of sports. Its fake news! Its so biased towards certain teams.
POV: you're watching this after the NHL and ESPN just signed a 7 year, $400 mill AAV deal...
exactly MAX just does not like it!!!
who cares nba deal is 8 billion and nfl is 110 billion
@@jalenc233 who cares nfl is boring and nba full of divas
@@hobonolen2402 that’s seriously the dumbest thing I’ve ever read about sports. You don’t like hockey? Fine. But to say it’s all luck and not skill???? Get the fuck outta here!
Hell I’m Mexican and I love Hockey. I have family who ask me why. I told them, it soccer cranked up to 17. The competition is truly intense and the atmosphere is incredible
Best comment on the board!... I went to college north of Toronto and we had a kid from Mexico City and a Venezuelan on our team, and they became pretty good!
Agree, very similar to soccer !
Not suprising max said this. Espn hates hockey
Hypocrites. ESPN actually aired the Cup Final before 04.
Thank you. People will focus on what he said, but the truth is, ESPN has neglected and disrespected hockey for decades.
@@pottytheparrot310 that's 15+ years since ESPN's spent more than 5 minutes talking about hockey. Maybe besides Barry Melrose, but even that is a few days out of a year
@@dgonchar98 just as a read that comment, ESPN article pops up with "NHL eyes increasing diversity" so I guess that's the only way ESPN is going to care to cover hockey :p
@@TinnieTa21 because they have no rights
Well Kellerman has also been saying Brady is declining for the past 4 years, since then he’s won 2 SBs and been to 3. So ya take what he says with a grain of salt
He should stick to boxing and arguing with that loud mouth Steven a smith. What a joke.
He may be right about Brady though he did not play that well last year and it is not like he played well when the Pats beat the rams
@@davidfox9947 Just won his 7th super bowl. Still declining tho eh 😂
i’m a african american male tht fell in love wit hockey when i went to montreal at age 10, max is a goof
It feels like people tend to fall in love with hockey when they are exposed to it. If it was promoted better in the states it could be considerably bigger, I believe.
I can agree that going to a game can really change somebody's mind.
@@cope847 Grew up in the UK so hockey coverage was non-existent (our national team hasn't been to the Olympics in decades). Didn't care much for sports outside a few Rugby games. One hockey highlights I watched and I was hooked. Showed it to my flatmates and they're playing Yotes Vs Pens when I'm not even in the house. When people watch hockey, they get hooked 100 percent.
@@cope847 I agree 100%. I had never really been a hockey fan until 2016 when I went to a Stars game. I've been a die hard ever since.
Same man. I fell in love with the sport back in 2014, so I’m still kinda new idk. I’ll never lose interest in hockey.
Just watch Bill Burr's rant on "fixing" hockey. Making something more popular is not the same as making something better.
As you said, hockey does well locally because it's a sport you kind of have to watch live in order to fall in love with it. Most people dont know what's going on when it comes on the TV but once they go to even just one game, they start watching it more. It's just a matter of breaking that ice which is hard to do when you live 3-4 hours from the closest hockey game.
This is what happened for me I watched a minor league hockey game and fell in love with the product. I’ll probably start trying to go to at least 2 or 3 Ducks games a season just to help support them.
That’s what happened for me. I went to my first Blue Jackets game in 2019 and I went from a casual fan to a diehard fan in the blink of an eye.
Kellerman is paid to be a troll. He's their new Skip Bayless.
Both him and Stephen A are. The shtick has gotten very old.
He said like 5 years ago Tom Brady would be a bumb. He won 3 superbowls after that lol.
Thkiip thkiiip come on thkiip. Not what he said thkiiip not what he said.
@@arthasmenethil4297 should have won 3 straight. Actually 2 outta 3. Point is still well taken and I agree completely.
Exactly, how's a boxing guy gonna talk about hockey? He doesn't even watch hockey.
Honestly you need to take almost anything from ESPN with a truck load of salt.
ESPN has turned into the 24x7 social justice network
ESPN is so salty towards hockey like wtf
Jets fan from Chicago here.
My apartment looks like a gift shop in Winnipeg. To me football is a sport, but hockey is a LIFE STYLE.
Ken Wanlass very true
Amen bro!
Winnipeg is a Great Hockey City ! Everybody LOVES HOCKEY THERE !
Holo Holopainen as a winnipegger I can vouch for that
@@coledoyle1804 We ALL REMEMBER - Teemu #13 Selanne - Rookie Year with 76 Goals ! Many Good players like Dale Howerchuck - Tie Domi - and this Pat Laine ! 5 Goals vs St Louis last season - that was a awake up call to Blues ! They changed everything & Goalie too ! At May - They WON STANLEY CUP !
Well, I’m a Texan and Hockey is my number one! I’m doing my best to spread the word down here y’all!
That’s fantastic. Hockey sound of the Mason-Dixon is the best.
Man, the amount of effort you put into every video... Respect. Other channels just do a rant.
Max Kellerman: In the US no one cares about hockey.
Stephan A Smith: Well you’re wrong and here’s why.
Hhahaha
Stephen A doesnt care about Hockey either
Stephan A. Smith also said he doesn’t wanna see Toronto ever win a championship again Canadians can stick to hockey.
Stephen A. Smith is a basketball and football guy. He probably doesn't even know the rules of hockey.
I was born in America, lived here my whole life, hockey is always #1
He also said that Tom Brady would decline 5 years ago
Robby Burns good one and like your avatar
I live in Tampa and I rather watch the Lightning instead of the Buccaneers with Brady.
@@wm.patrickmilford4589 you should watch both Tampa bay is title town nothing wrong with supporting both
@@zegobot9674 NFL lost me with the pandering, now our MLB Rays are going to have to pay for their spring training facility.
Born and raised in the US and hockey is probably my favorite sport. It used to be pretty much a tie between hockey and football but football is not the same game. I've often wondered if it has something to do with it not ever playing the game. For some reason many people just don't give it a chance
Since 2016 I have started watching hockey and it is one of the best decisions I ever made. Ive watched more hockey games in the last year than College football, MLB, or NBA games my entire life
If anything hockey is only
Getting more popular. Hockey is an amazing sport with amazing fans.
As a brazilian NHL fan, I can confirm
@@miguelitomarques8 Sweet buddy, welcome to the hockey family.
The hockey guy: Hot takes on other people’s hot takes
I live on Long Island and almost everyone here watches hockey
Let’s go islanders
Go Isles!
I live and go to college upstate and I swear sometimes on campus I feel like I’m on Long Island just because of the Islanders apparel, truly shocked at how loyal their base is
1980-84 Islanders were the best sports team ever !! 4 Cups in a row and 19 consecutive playoff series wins !!
I don't really watch hockey and don't know how I got here but this was alot of effort for a video.
I subscribed.
Shannon is the hardest working man on RUclips
I’ll always use Tampa as an example since they’re my favorite team, we love our lightning down here, we like them more than the bucs and the rays, everywhere is lightning stickers, lightning hats, jerseys shirts, lanyards, everywhere, the lightning bring in a lot of economy for our city, during the playoffs the whole community gets involved, I love our fanbase and our city and we are a huge hockey city
I figure the 'ice factor'🍦🧊🍺 when it's burning outside, might have something to do with it.
With the Bucs being relevant, they are still the town favorite, just look at and compare the turnout at the boat parades. But you're right, the Bolts have a huge regional fanbase.
I live in freaking North Carolina and im a die hard hockey fan. Not a fan of any other sport.
@Richard Hostetler Not necessarily Quality goes over Quantity and Canada has that over USA
@Richard Hostetler nah if America was more interested in hockey it would potentially make it possible to get more teams in Canada. And the players are often Canadian anyways so there's a little pride to have there I guess...
Go canes
Cant we love all sports!? I played hockey golf and football my whole life. Hockey is my favorite.
I was interested in hockey before the Whalers became the Hurricanes, And then my Dad and his buddy decided to test drive cars, for free tickets to take my brother and I to a game. April 16 1998 vs the Penguins. And that was all it took. I freakin' LOVE the Canes and team USA, both women's and men's.
ESPN is a shell of what it used to be. As a die-hard Devils fan I've loved hockey since I can remember.
Same here from devils fan since the beginning in 82, but unfortunately now living in North Carolina. Go devils and NHL‼️
@@voidfilan5055 you're further from the team but you're saving a boatload of money living down there
Let’s go devils
@@voidfilan5055 I understand completely. I've been a Devils fan since '91-'92 season, all while growing up in the Boston area and a massive amount of die hard Bruins fans. Now I live in South Carolina.
I hear you. Use to go to 20 games a year but had to move to North Carolina in 2015 to take care of dad. The Hurricanes have a good team but I just can’t switch teams ever. Be safe and take care👍‼️
Hockey has gotten better on tv with HD over the years. It’s fun to watch on tv
facts
I love hockey bcs its unpredictable.
hd tv will never replicate being live on location for a playoff game. believe that!!
@@adelaidecorpuz2077 Isn't that Pizza Steve
I grew up in the south. Suffered through the Canes being bad. Had two different minor league teams in my hometown. Played roller until I was in the military and able to afford to play ice minus the small amount of ice I played growing up.
Left home and stuck with my teams.
The hardest part of this last few weeks for me (and I'm fortunate enough to say that this is the hardest part for me) is that I'm not dragging my ass out of bed at 0430 to play pick up or dying at work the next day from a 2300 beer league game the night before. That the first words I hear around 1930 every game night is John Forslund saying "Sit back and enjoy this one".
Stay in your lane, Max. Stick the sports where people make more money to play an easier sport.
This is beautiful ! ! !
St. Louis loves its Blues hockey. Even before the cup win.
espn doesn’t talk about hockey. nhl doesn’t have a deal with them.
They talk about it on SportsCenter but that's about it.
Other than their ESPN+ shows.
@@sportsfanatic2163 they don't really that much, I watch a lot of sportscenter on snapchat and they rarely cover it. Even during the Stanley Cup they just show photos with them adding commentary and will show full clips for basketball, UFC, football, etc.
this might just be a sportscenter snapchat thing idk
@B Swifty yet a canadian team won the nba finals?
yeah that was a dumb move by the NHL. Typical.
now they do😂😂
I live in the US and i'll never understand how "sports" like wrestling, golf and nascar can sometimes be more popular than hockey. Baseball too, although I understand it was America's game for a long time. It's absolutely boring...
The vast majority of hockey fans here are rabid fans though.
What sucks is that I can turn on my TV and watch football, baseball, nascar, whatever.. broadcast on national TV or local channels, but I can't do that with hockey.
When I was a kid in the early 90's, my parents didn't have cable, so I would listen to every game on the radio. I would be so damn excited if a game was actually on tv.
Americans absolutely do care about hockey. Once people get hooked, they're hooked for life.
Baseball doesn't have a clock. You have to face things head on, you can't run out the clock.
Baseball during the playoffs is more fun the fans literally make a difference
NASCAR Fan here from Canada. We love hockey, but have been robbed of an expansion franchise twice in the last decade, because Bettman wants hockey in American markets, and not Canadian markets.
Also, cable networks need to stop taking up the majority of games/NASCAR events. Looking at you, NBCSN and FS1!
How dare you lump golf with wrestling and nascar
@@SMG2fanatic I know right!! Wrestling and NASCAR actually require athletic ability and physical endurance respectively. Golf is people in ugly clothes chasing a ball.
I’m American and hockey is the only sport that matters
Sal Vulcano is this the real sal? hahaha
J D3 It’s an opinion
JD3 must be a liberal, no one is allowed to have an opinion.smh
Truer words were never spoken. Sal is %100 correct!! 🏒
ehhhh
For me, there are 3 major issues that the NHL needs to fix.
1. ESPN. I grew up going to hockey games in Detroit, and I loved to watch them on Fox Sports Detroit, but it wasn't until this year that I found out NBC had Wednesday Night Hockey. Frankly, no one touches NBC outside of Sunday Night Football. Growing up all the kids in school would watch ESPN and since they gave basically zero exposure to the NHL, barely anyone at school would talk about hockey. Keep in mind I went to school in Michigan, during the Red Wings 08 and 09 Stanley Cup Final runs.
2. Minorities. I myself am a minority, but I am hard-pressed to find a single other minority that watches Hockey (The only one I know is my Aunt, who started my love of hockey). Most minorities would much rather watch basketball. This issue I think is a result of lack of familiarity, nearly every school in America has basketball hoops to play on for recess. The most we can get of hockey is floor hockey in PE, and low-income areas often can't spend money on this.
3. Entertainment. I grew up watching tons of fights in Hockey and Niklas Kronwall hits but it is something I rarely see in today's game. This was such a fun part of hockey that is dying out and making it less entertaining for newcomers. I also loved making an enemy, I hated the Penguins during the good days, but now I don't think there is much hatred between teams or players. The NBA is a perfect example of milking rivalries, every time an altercation happens reporters pry at it and make it much deeper (This also kinda plays into the ESPN issue). The Kassian and Tkachuk made me a lot more interested in watching some more games. These small narratives throughout the season make it so much easier to follow for all 82 games.
Agreed, hockey is stupid expensive to play in the U.S. that’s why more kids here play baseball,football, and soccer because the gear and tuition is WAY cheaper
Dude the fighting was not that great. It’s fighting on ice skates which is nearly impossible, it just slowed the game down and rarely was there ever a clean fight that landed great hits and a clear winner was obvious. All the penalties that got handed out just slowed the game down tremendously and hockey games could take forever. The game involves so much skill now and that has taken precedence over anything else which is the way it should be. Hockey is growing now so more than ever because of the gravitation towards pure skill
@@BrazzersJordi Baseball is just as expensive to play and few African Americans play it.
I am a minority. I'm not a hockey fan, but I enjoyed watching college hockey games. A basketball game is so boring due to useless timeouts and free throws
I am an American, a resident of the Deep South, and I love hockey and enjoy it very much. Max Kellerman is a dope.
I live in Georgia and I just started following hockey within the last two years. I’ve been a football, basketball and baseball fanatic all my life. I’m mad I didn’t get into hockey before, especially when I was younger. And honesty, I’m looking forward to NHL coming back more than any other sport.
I live in GA as well and it has become my favorite sport to watch. Not super popular down here but they don’t know what they’re missing!
Well clearly this dude has never heard hockey fans at a rivalry game in a playoff series.
Jeff the Rangers are one of my favorite teams. Zibanejad and Panarin are great players and Lundqvist still has a chance at a cup. They are probably the best team New York has right now.
Jeff Yeah and they had the great Mark Messier on that team.
Max Kellerman is like that annoying guy at work who thinks he knows everything there is to know about sports but in reality he only knows like 3 sports and that's with 1 being Boxing. Now I like Max only , ONLY, as a boxing commentator, where he needs to just stay at. Hes on ESPN, (btw not an NHL channel), because HBO dropped boxing.. he repeats what others say about players and sports leagues when it comes to other sports like the NBA.. So I think its only him that doesnt care about hockey, let alone the NHL!
Grew up in VA and hockey is my favorite sport. Max Kellerman not relevent.
It's mainly popular in certain regions, specifically the Midwest like Cleveland, Cincinnati Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, and upstate NY like Buffalo. Also, maybe in states like Vermont, New Hampshire, etc. Basically the closer you're to Canada.
Surprised hockey doesn't have NHL teams in Ohio. They had the Barons one season and the Stingers in the WHA but it didn't pan out. Maybe now is a good time.
Ever since I moved to Pennsylvania it's amazing how big hockey is here.
Yaaa buddy!!!
philly or pens
He is saying that his personal opinion speaks for everyone in the country. In some areas and towns hockey is bigger.
This makes me really sad. I'm from the UK, where nobody follows hockey, so I envy Americans so much for hosting so many legendary sports franchises in the NHL. I assumed they'd be better supported.
I’m currently in the UK and I’ve met one person who plays/watches hockey. Moving to Canada is clearly the thing to do
@@badmilk1735 I'm an American who lives in London. There is a group that plays at Alexandria Palace, but it's not a big group. There's a Canadian themed bar (yeah, that's a thing) in Covent Garden that shows games, but other than that, it's pretty barren...
I'm an Australian hockey fan, I think we may be even more rare. I know two people who have even watched hockey, and they're not full "fans", AFL is the only relevant sport here.
South of the border it is defiantly the fourth of the four major sports but it is also way above our mid-major sports remember the US is a country of 330 million so there are millions of us who love Hockey in the US and north of the border it is defiantly number one of the four major sports.
Hockey is very much supported in states that get snow and ice in the winter. Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, etc. Here in Michigan, hockey is massive, and the fact that we can play it ourselves outdoors just like the Canadians across the border really helps.
Huge hockey fan in sunny Southern California!!! We got some die hard ducks and kings fan clashing down here!
I enjoyed watching hockey since hearing about the Mighty Ducks back in 2001. They became good and got to the Stanley Cup finals in 2003 and their goalie in Giguere earned the playoff MVP. Then the Ducks won it in 2007 and jumped for joy seeing this victory after going to my dinner with my JV Tennis team. The Kings got their Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014 and Kings fans have fun with those successful runs. The Ducks and the Kings are big rivals with each other. And yes, I love the Paul Kariya Game 6 SCF goal. That was a thing of beauty and Gary Thorne called it perfectly. Overtime thrillers and the nature of ice hockey makes it awesome. So Cal is also a neat hockey hotbed on their own right. I've been watching hockey since 2001.
I live in the STL area and nearly EVERYONE watchs hockey. Most of the US loves hockey. It's just there are more choices that appeal more to some fans. But I love hockey. If ESPN had hockey the viewership would be much higher.
I went to my first hockey game back in January and it was easily the most fun sporting event I have been to. And I've been to all 4 major sports games in the US.
What team?
Shannon I watch your channel far more than ESPN
wcny 👍😂😂
Doen Max have even ANY IDEA - Howmuch Hockey is Talked about ?
I got no idea who Max Kellemen is so that pretty much sums up the validity of his opinion
The fact that u don’t know him probably means u live in Canada. So you are kinda prove his point & rest of the people that are saying they don’t know him too also are old people that live in Canada. He said hockey isn’t a major sport in the U.S but is the biggest sport in Canada only. And I don’t see what was wrong in that, It’s not his problem that all of your guys feelings are getting hurt cause the facts are the facts
I’m an American from the inner city and I love hockey. Hell Me and my friends grew up on 90’s hockey. Not going to lie the fighting drew us in but once you’re in it’s hard not to get hooked to the sport. Go Devils
You a Newark guy?
Them TV viewership numbers are nothing tho in the US of A
I like how this pops up on my recommended right after espn signs a deal with the NHL
There are a number of problems with the popularity of hockey in the U.S. For one, hockey equipment is too expensive so a lot of kids grow up without every playing it. Playing a sport as a kid goes a long way into its enjoyment in adulthood. Secondly, televised hockey had big problems before the advent of widescreen HD TV. The puck was simply too small and traveled too fast. It does better now. As for watching hockey live, I would love to watch hockey live if, #1, the games were cheaper, #2, it wasn't a hassle just to go to the game and find your seat, #3, refreshments were cheaper and as far away as your own refrigerator, #4, the bathroom was 20 feet away with a clean toilet seat and you could pause the game while you went there.
How is it different from going to any other sport live??? Its cheaper than Basketball and is played in the same arena, with the same concession prices.
@@danmac6185 when attending games, the argument is the same be it hockey or basketball and it can be divided into two categories; hassle and cost.
I agree on the equipment costs & ticket prices that are totally out of reach for most families....I now call it, Polo on ice.
I played goal for 14 years as a kid when we had sponsored neighborhood 'House League rinks' such as the Legion, Rotary, Kinsmen, etc, where at least, all team uniforms and pads were supplied.
@@rpm1796 I cut my teeth on IHL minor league hockey long ago. I played one game, an intramural hockey game in college. In my opinion, the NHL game would be better if they played 4-on-4. Another possibility would be that anytime the goalie touched the puck, the opposing team would get 1 point. A goal would be worth 5. Yeah, I know; strange and too radical. Don't blame me. Blame goalies that unlike yesteryear, now play on their knees, in pads the size of sofa pillows.
@@timjansen7694 HOLY FUCK
Max Kellerman is a boxing guy, no one has watched boxing in 10 years. What the hell does he know?
😂 so true!
This is why I never watch ESPN. They have nothing good to say about the NHL and they never talk about it. They only focus on the NBA and NFL.
Chadwicked B it also gets overlooked because of it being a “Canadien” sport.
Tom babybot yea I agree with you on that but I run into a lot of people who say hockey sucks because they say only Canadians watch it. For example a lot of people in the comments sections of a channel called “Total Pro Sports” say hockey is the worst of the four major sports because of that reason. It also doesn’t help that the channel only uploads NFL and NBA videos just like ESPN.
I'm Oriental and I get bashed to just stick to martial arts
There’s a lot of reasons that it’s not popular but I feel like the most important reason is that most people just don’t play hockey. It’s really expensive to get into compared to playing basketball or soccer and even football.
MK isn’t wrong. I moved from Pittsburgh to ATL, then South Carolina. Hockey isn’t even mentioned here, even when they were the first thing coming back from covid. There’s huge parts where hockey isn’t just 4th, it’s 6 or 7. The southeast is a hockey wasteland.
A few years back, I used to regularly go to the FB page named "Southern Hockey Problems" where people, hockey fans, from the south east of the United States tended, among others, to bust these myths about their local hockey culture and they would quite strongly disagree with you. :-)
P.S. - Unfortunately, the page was growing steadily and was becoming more and more popular (because nobody obviously cares about hockey in the South-East :-D) and one day it became a target of some hackers, got "stolen" and it no longer exists. :-(
Yea...and Max Kellerman is a huge fan of a sport that's been labeled as "dying" for as long as I can remember. Boxing.
10:36 "Here's the new Jock Cam!"
"Why do we want to see everything from crotch-level? Yet we can't look away!"
This is some stand up grade material
This is the fate of commentator: "Being overread and being misunderstood"
Max's comment didn't really age well since Disney went in on the NHL.
terrific analysis shannon, thanks for the hard work you put in
Shannon, to answer your question at the end, I think one of the big problems is that the NHL does not know how to market their stars. Look at the NBA for example. How many times did you see MJ in his playing days compared to Gretzky or Mario. Has anyone seen a national commercial of say a Claude Giroux or a Connor McDavid (not sure about Canada commercials so apologize if this is incorrect). Until the the NHL stars market their stars better it will never reach the likes of the major 3. There is no where near the coverage of the NHL in the US and it for the most part was covered as about as well as the original XFL was. Even when it was on ESPN airways I don't recall it having good broadcast coverage even for the playoff games. Gary Thorne and Bill Clement did about as good as they could do but the ESPN crew as a whole did not really take it seriously. But like I originally said, The NFL, MLB and NBA market the stars of their sports much better than the NHL does for their sport. That's why you don't see big things on ESPN for hockey unless its for something like the Todd Bertuzzi/Steve Moore. Its a shame because hockey is the best sport for seeing live by far. As a Flyers fan, my first real experience was the 87 run and one of the first games I went to was Game 7 between the Flyers and Islanders. That year is when I fell in love with the sport and its a shame that the sport is somewhat disrespected in my country media wise.
The way he talked about it was condescending and highlighted the fact he and ESPN have no interest in even understanding the sport. He could've pointed out it was the least popular of the 4 major sports leagues in a different way or just not have said anything at all.
Contrary to popular belief, I love hockey, I love my yotes, and I live in the Sonoran desert.
Oh yeah, also should mention that I ONLY care about hockey lol.
Football: boring
Baseball: deathly boring
Basketball: predictable and boring
Soccer: I watch when hockey is not available.
You're going to be f****d when the Coyotes leave Arizona one day lol
@@gamma21285 straigth to Quebec city :)
@@TheChronicFiend That would be good if they did. And bring back the Nordiques name
I live in the US, I can rattle off the names of hundreds of players over the last 20 years with more confidence than I can tell you by a graphical details of my own life, and I have no idea who Max kellerman is, sooooo.......
Max Kellerman or as most of us know him, “who?”. Sincerely never heard of him til this hit.
Kellerman got exactly what he wanted by saying that: publicity.
Which is ironic considering his statement
The NHL needs a new TV deal badly in the US. NBC just does not do a enough good job. The league needs to have another broadcaster to create competition into to improve the presentation.
Exactly!
Or just continue with NBC, but have another network cover games. Especially in the playoffs where NBC can cover Eastern Conference games and the other network covers Western Conference games all the way up to the SCF.
I'm also American and am a diehard hockey fan.
To make hockey more popular, the NHL needs to get back on ESPN and ABC, and while they're at it, maybe sign with some streaming platforms such as RUclips Red and Hulu.
Put the NHL on Netflix.
@@djtrankilo231 I doubt Netflix will be able to pay the NHL since they have a massive debt.
I am following you from New Jersey. We have 3 of 31 teams in the local area and yet, you rarely hear any hockey talk on the WFAN or WEPN (NY's ESPN radio), especially during the playoffs.
I recall hearing a Yankee preseason exhibition game bump a Devils Playoff game on their main radio outlet. It is so annoying that Bettman continues to expand in the US versus Quebec City!!
I’m literally from Florida and love hockey
From what I’ve noticed, living in Southern California, there’s a fatigue happening in other fan bases.
In other sports?
For America, there's countless restaurants and bars that will have 10 tvs with the same football game on
Kevin Crabtree sooooooo true
I live in Buffalo and it's all hockey and football, but we're basically southern Canada.
@@cope847 yep. It's all Bills and Sabres here.
That's the worst. I go out and it's multiple TV's showing the same sport and not one showing the Kings game. I have to ask to have it turned on 😔
It's the most popular sport by far.
To answer why hockey is a regional sport, 17 out of the 31 teams are in Canada, California, Pennsylvania, Florida, and New York.
Honestly, a lot of sports leagues are localized, but still do better than hockey. I mean, the NBA has four teams in California alone and three in Texas. Basketball does well in the U.S. because NCAA basketball panders to places without NBA franchises. NCAA hockey only really does that in N. Dakota and maybe Wisconsin.
@@brooke-3615 Except the other three American sports leagues have a combined 2 Canadian teams, to which the NHL has 7. That means the NHL has a significantly smaller number of teams in the United States compared to the NFL, MLB, and NBA. Florida only has hockey, because all of the old people from Canada, New York, and Michigan go live there to await death, which created a serious demand for their state to get a team or two. Hockey is predominantly a major sport north of the Mason-Dixon line. On the other hand, you'd be hard pressed to find more than 5 people in the state of Alabama, who know who could tell you who Conner McDavid and/or Austin Matthews are.
kakarroto007 I don’t know who Austin Matthews is either.I know Auston Matthews.Lol I know what you meant I’m just joking with you
That doesn't even *pretend* to answer "why is hockey a regional sport?". What drugs are you on, buddy. You simply gave examples of regions that have many teams. That's not why it's regional, that's the regions it's in professionally regarding the NHL, doofus. Seriously. What is wrong with you.
I think once a person sees a hockey game live they become a hard core fan. For me, it happened when I was 6 years old and I've been hooked ever since.
What’s interesting is that the most watched NHL game of all time was in 1971 between the Blackhawks and Canadians which got a crazy rating of 20.6 in just the US alone. I wonder if the simplicity of the league back then benefited them, rather than expanding too much to not so great markets which will dilute the finals matchup such as Anaheim and Ottawa for example. Like that 1971 Final was really the SuperBowl of the NHL, and I feel like the fact that the league was smaller with bigger market teams made the matchup more iconic and must see television.
I've lived in northwest Ohio about 2 hours south of Detroit my whole life. Grew up playing street hockey and watching the Red Wings. I guess me and all the people I grew up with who watch and play hockey and all the kids I see playing at the local rink are no one.
He also thinks Magic Johnson is a better shooter than Steph Curry! Magic is a hall of famer but 🤦🏻♂️. He’s good for the controversy.
From Fort Wayne? Me too!
Tom Davis I live 40 min north of Fort Wayne but yes
As a proud soccer fan I am not ashamed to say that the MLS will never be bigger than any of the big 4 sports
Your pfp is upside down
@@tbfünke I honestly doubt it, the league has managed to bring some of the biggest names in British soccer with Beckham and Rooney and people still dont watch it. Toronto even won a championship and no one cared
@@tbfünke Even with the EPL the games are on pretty early especially on the west coast. I think there could be more kids playing soccer than hockey if there isn't already. The fact that fans in North America don't have as much of an attachment to a European team as an American and the pro rel system that makes it almost impossible to cheer for an underdog definitely will hinder soccer's popularity. I think the World Cup can be big but other than that league soccer won't be as popular in the US compared to hockey.
The so called major league, and NFL ,won't ever let it get bigger than it is . I was a kid in 70's , Pele was in NY , said he would make soccer bigger than all other U.S. sports ...?
@@kevinbrown967 I feel like the rise of Davies I the Bundesliga will make it so more European teams show interest in NA, but I doubt that the MLS or CPL will ever get big with or without Pele or Rooney
To answer your exact question: Exposure and advertising. We had an AHL team for 5 years here in OKC and if I had a nickel every time I heard "we have a hockey team?" I could have bought them myself and kept them here. Plus the advertising. Most NHL games get relegated to the B channel or the regional equivalent. Best example is the "Wednesday Night Rivalry" on NBC. It gets aired on NBCSN which is already a cable/satellite channel. At most NBSCN will air one game a night, most other teams play on their regional network like Fox Sports SW for the Stars, however if the Mavericks or even the Thunder are playing then forget about seeing the game.
I’m an American in the Deep South. I find hockey to be more entertaining than basketball right now, and the more I watch hockey and learn about the game the more I enjoy it.
One of the things to consider with college football, is that it is in every state. It's so big because you have states like Nebraska, Alabama, Kansas, Virgina etc. with no Big 4 Teams. They capture so much more of the market because they have no competition. College football is different because it is tied with academics, and the players don't have the same fat paychecks that those in private leagues get. Mind you, most countries in the world don't put much into collegiate athletics...
Hockey is smaller, sure, but people care about it. Hockey teams in many cities draw large crowds, even in Vegas. The NHL has, for the most part done a great job establishing teams where people do care. Your point that it does well regionally, is so accurate. Certain places in the US love hockey, some don't.
i love the nhl but im gonna be honest max was kinda right. he wasnt really saying he doesnt enjoy hockey he was just saying the truth that college football is probably above hockey
Yeah college FB is bigger than either hockey or the NBA. NFL draft matches the NBA
College Football is my favorite but ever since the season is over I switch to Hockey or any other sport
I live in Southern California (Pasadena, to be exact), and the only sports I watch are Hockey and College Football. And Hockey is the only sport I keep up with through the year, even in the offseason. And the biggest reason for that is: TheHockeyGuy. You are the best ambassador for the game of Hockey, Shannon. Much credit goes to you for drawing my interest to all things Hockey. But that’s just the opinion of this American.
P.S.
Your jersey collection videos are the best.
As much as I hate the guy, I’d rank Hockey in the US behind the NFL, NBA, MLB, Nascar, WWE, and College Football without hesitation
WWE is so fake and Nascar is so boring.
POV: You’re a Florida Panthers fan watching this after they won the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at home and has seen attendance grow year after year
congrats happy to see you guys get your first still waiting as a Jackets fan for a ECF lol
I Love my Rangers, I love hockey. It is actually my favorite of the 4 major sports. Max Kellerman is a boxing guy, basketball/football are next. If NHL was on ESPN, his tone would change.
I live in Atlanta, the city that lost 2 teams... I still live and die by NHL hockey. Gotta say no Max watch a game or two especially a playoff game
Do you have a team you root for?
@@jarryd8167 Go Preds go!
@Owen Modracek I was not around for the Flames but I watched the Thrashers constantly implode on themselves because of the Atlanta Spirit group's horrible ownership
Max Kellerman tried being a rapper (lol look it up) and that didn't work out so now he trolls
The song that you mentioned is Rumble Young Men Rumble!! He & his late brother released that single back in 1994.
@@wilnerolivier7971 not gonna lie, I kinda like it
It's sad but true how many people dont care about hockey in certain areas. I grew up in detroit then moved upward michigan and both areas had tons of hockey fans. But when i moved to ohio in the cleveland area most people didnt even know ohio had a professional league team in the blue jackets tons thought the lake erie monsters (their minor league team) was a pro team
Well, at least they were aware of the Monsters' existence which is a good sign. :-)
But this could be largely individual, heavily depending on what circle of people you currently move in.
For example, several months ago I chatted here, on the YT, with one HC hockey fan from Cleveland who revealed to me that he got very disappointed in the late '90s when Columbus got their NHL franchise approved, because it automatically killed virtually all chances for Cleveland potentially getting their own team.
Max Kellerman needs to go to a Sharks game in San Jose. It'll change his view of life
As a New Englander, I only care about hockey, and also they need to move the Florida Panthers to Quebec City.
How about, no they don't. I know we aren't a big market, but the team is important to the fans that are here. I also know a lot of people outside of the fan base don't realize that. It would be nice if other fan bases stopped trying to push for moving our team, I really don't understand why people just talk about moving teams so nonchalantly.
You said you only care about hockey, but I know you must be at least somewhat familiar with the patriots. Before they had all their success they were very close to moving if not for Kraft, and I'm sure many fans today are grateful for still having their team I'm sure. Moving usually isn't the answer.
I'm not saying one day the cats are going to achieve that kind of success, but my point is I wish people wouldn't talk about moving a team so lightly. There are fans here that care, I know some won't believe me, but there are.
It sucks that Quebec lost the Nordiques ( I don't wish that on any fan), but the NHL had a chance (actually had *two* chances) to put an expansion team there recently but they chose elsewhere. People should be complaining about that instead of calling for FLA to move.
@@pepelepieux8925 Fuck off.
Pundits say asinine things all the time. Its because of the "hot take" culture surrounding sports media.
As a Canadian, I feel like as a country we are almost obligated to like hockey while growing up to some extent by the time your family is 2nd or 3rd generation, essentially having enough exposure to our culture. The US is so different with so many pro sports that draw people's interest in different directions. Hockey has always been tied to a grassroots type of fandom, if you play it once you will love it for the rest of your life (usually). That makes it difficult when the cost to play it is so high and so inaccessible to places where you can't experience even skating easily. The NHL needs to advertise in the US better, market their players better, show them their personality to get people to watch hockey. It's something they have never been good at, so lots of room for improvement
I too am a CANADIAN. Who really cares if the best sport in the world HOCKEY isnt popular in the US
Fans of the sport:
-Mich, Mass, Min
-City of Buffalo
When their team is playing:
-Philly, Pitt, Denver, LA, SJ, NYI, some ppl in Chi
Countries that care:
Canada
Finland
Sweden
Czech Rep
Slovakia
Siberia 🤔
Russia (average office worker knows nothing, unless Mother Russia won something). Certainly Moscow and St.Petersburg are clueless.
I’m a hockey junkie but I know that it’s not the easiest sport to watch
@@megfilms1185 It is more like a dozen countries care
Never realized your account was called “the hockey guy” Found your power rankings last NFL season and really enjoyed it, but lost your channel and couldn’t find it for the life of me until now