History of Hockey

Hockey can't be traced to one person or event. The game may have evolved from British sports such as Hurley and Shinty. The word hockey may have come from the French word hoquet which means using hooked sticks to hit a ball or cork around. During the winter, people may have tried playing on frozen lakes.

The first documented hockey game was on March 9, 1875 in Montreal, Quebec. The earliest games had nine players on each side of the ice. They played on a square rink with no boards. Over the course of several decades, the game slowly started resembling modern hockey. There were less players, and players started firing shots off the ground which forced goalies to wear thick leg pads and have a wider stick.