According to Toronto Star, the coach for Canada's Olympic hockey team Steve Yzerman requests players to shave their beards. Steve Yzerman made a similar request to players during the time when he coached for Canada's Olympic team in Vancouver 2010, where he got to guide the team to a gold medal with Sidney Crosby's overtime-winning goal. Though there was still no official decision made, it has caused a stir-up in the hockey community, with both agreements and disagreements. It has always been a ritual for hockey leagues, not just the NHL, (National Hockey League) to grow playoff-styled beards. Playoff beards were a superstition for hockey players who once they're in the playoffs, to not shave his beard until they are defeated or have won. This tradition started when the New York Islander players did not shave when they were in the playoffs, and ended up Stanley cup champions for four years in a row (1980-1983).
Yzerman's reasoning on why he wanted players to shave for the Olympics were so that players looked more "respectable". People who disagreed and thought that players shouldn't shave would state that it was always a tradition and should be carried over to the Olympics. Play-off beards were more than just beards, but a symbol showing the unity in a team. Though there weren't too many people who agreed to shaving, they thought that growing playoff beards was a stubborn idea, and should have been ditched long ago. They thought that shaving would make players look more respectable.
In my opinion, I disagree with Yzerman's idea. I think that players should have the choice whether they want to grow a beard or not, because that's their problem. Some players may be superstitious, and if you just suddenly told them to stop doing something that they've always believed in, it may change them mentally or even physically. It doesn't matter how you look on the ice because everyone is too busy giving all their attention to the puck, not to mention the speed of players when they're skating.
Resource(s) :
1. The history behind play-off beards You can read the original reason on how it all started and why people kept it.
2. Thoughts of playoff beards Andrew Podnieks throws his opinion out on playoff beards.
3. Do play off beards really work? A sided opinion on someone's thought if play off beards really work.
Hi Wendy! Great job on your post. You did a great job paraphrasing the article, as well as presenting both points of view. Just remember to avoid using the "I" voice in the paragraph about your point of view. I agree with your opinion: hockey isn't about how much facial hair a player has. The references were very helpful! Well done.
ReplyDelete