The Town of Mount Royal? More like the Town of No Street Hockey
In 1992, kids wanted to play the game in the street, but some grown-ups didn't want them doing that
The way the kids saw it, they were being deprived of an experience that was at the core of Canadian life.
The way the adults saw it, the kids were being deprived of another life experience — serious injury.
That's the way the two sides saw street hockey, which some kids were keen to play on the tidy, well-manicured streets of the Town of Mount Royal back in 1992.
Back then, the kids found themselves up against an old bylaw that had them on the defensive when it came to playing their game in the street.
The grown-ups complained...
"The bylaw dates back to the 1930s, but no one can remember when it ever was enforced," reporter Rosemary Thompson told viewers on The National on Nov. 13, 1992.
"But recently some people complained and the town's security police took action."
John Le Gros, a public security official, explained to CBC News why there was a need to crack down on the playing of the familiar game on the town's seemingly quiet streets.
"We received many complaints from the people in the area about the youngsters playing hockey on the streets and this is why we had to react," he said.
Le Gros also expressed worry about the traffic moving along those same streets.
"I don't want an accident here in Town of Mount Royal if I can get away with it," Le Gros said.
...and so did the kids
Yet the kids had a well-known system for dealing with any incoming traffic during on-the-street gameplay.
"We yell: 'Car,' and move out," said a boy wearing a San Jose Sharks jersey.
Another young lad wearing a patterned toque had a similar and simply stated argument as to why it was worth letting kids play the game on the street.
"It's not a big deal, just playing hockey in the street," he said. "Every hockey player began in the street."
Some things never change
The National's report asked some veteran street hockey players — and eventual NHLers — on how street hockey played a role in their own lives as youngsters.
"Yes, I played hockey in the street very, very much," said Maurice Richard, the legendary Montreal Canadiens star.
Pierre Mondou, who won three Stanley Cups with the Canadiens during the 1970s, shared what made him the most frustrated about playing hockey in the street.
"We were pissed off when the car was going by," he joked.
'Hockey is a religion'
Thompson reported the kids in the Town of Mount Royal had no plans to back down from their fight to play hockey in the street.
But further reporting on the issue suggests the grown-ups and various town officials weren't giving those kids an empty net to score on.
Later that month, the Montreal Gazette attended a council meeting in which the issue was discussed.
"I know that hockey is a religion in Quebec," Mayor Vera Danyluk said at the meeting, according to the Gazette's report.
"But we're in a Catch-22. As soon as a boy gets hit by a car you know who is going to be held responsible."
