From Brooms To Sticks

The best places to find Canadian in the winter is either at a hockey rink or at a curling rink. There are a few other places who can claim the same thing - Minnesota and Wisconsin, perhaps - but Canada is known for hockey as one of its two official sports, and curling is certainly right up there where Canadians always seem to find a podium at international events. Curling has continued to grow as one of the more popular sports in Canada for some time, and over one million Canadians grab a broom at least once per year to curl. With the sport seeing new highs such as equal pay for Canada's men's and women's curling teams and symposiums to open the door to more BIPOC Canadians, it seems that Hockey Canada should have been following Curling Canada's lead. Today, they took a big page out of curling's book as Hockey Canada announced a new addition.

Announced today by Hockey Canada, there's a new leader at the top of the organizational chart for Canada's governing hockey body as Katherine Henderson becomes its next president and chief executive officer. Henderson spent the past seven years as the chief executive officer of Curling Canada where the organization has become financially sound while promoting its corporate governance structure to establish transparency through its policies. It should also be noted that Henderson is elected as a co-chair of the Winter Caucus of Sport which oversees both Canadian Winter Olympic and Paralympic Sports. In short, Katherine Henderson embodies everything that Hockey Canada needed in a leader, and it seems they found her after announcing her appointment today.

It seems that the appointment of Henderson already changed the opinion of one sponsor who had been holding out for change. Bauer Hockey announced it would be reinstating its partnership with Hockey Canada shortly after Hockey Canada's announcement. I would expect that others may follow in the days to come after seeing the work that Henderson did with Curling Canada.

"Together with Katherine and Hockey Canada, we want to help build a strategic plan that grows the game, prioritizes inclusion and restores the trust of the Canadian people," Bauer stressed in a statement made today. "As a leader in the game, our priority has always been ensuring transparency and accountability, as well as driving positive change within Hockey Canada. It's critical that we ensure hockey is safe, accessible, inclusive and welcoming for all children and families."

There will be some work to do before the new boss arrives at the Hockey Canada offices, but Henderson will begin her role with Hockey Canada on September 4. She'll jump straight into the fire as well as she'll be participating at the Beyond the Boards Summit later that week on behalf of Hockey Canada. If she wanted to hit the ground running, that's a good way to do it.

"I am looking forward to working with our board and staff, our athletes, our members and local associations, our corporate and hockey partners, and our fans and participants to ensure that all Canadians have a personal hockey experience that is right for them," she said in the statement today. And while that statement is fairly generic, I suspect that Henderson will have a lot to say when she finally steps into her role in September.

I know it's a major holiday in the US with it being the Fourth of July, but news of this magnitude in Canada had to be mentioned. To all the readers who call the United States of America home, I do wish you a Happy Independence Day and I hope whatever you get up to on this day is fun, has all the friends and family you want near, and is safe by the time the night is over. Enjoy the holiday south of the border for those who celebrate, and we'll see how Hockey Canada looks under new leadership here in the Great White North come September!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!