Dear Linechange reader,

We're happy to announce a slight shift in branding for our newsletter!

Why? Lots of people have started using Linechange as a brand in hockey recently ( Angela Price's awesome clothing line & more recently Ian Kennedy has started using the same terminology)

We also wanted to align it better with our overarching brand: Hockey of Tomorrow.

Nothing else will change though, and we'll still be the newsletter keeping you informed of anything hockey + tech + culture + positive impact.

Here are the top stories this week:

• Diversity in Hockey keeps shaking the boat

• How the Premier Hockey Federation is Changing the Game for Women

• The first-ever IIHF Women’s Development Cup Crowns Columbia Champion

More and more players are tired of the status quo

Jagger Joshua is a forward for the Michigan State University men’s hockey team. On Monday night, he published the tweet below saying that on November 11, an opposing player called him a racial slur multiple times. While he points out that the Ohio State player that made the comment was given a game misconduct and that while the Big Ten Conference did take action behind closed doors, neither the conference nor the opposing school (The Ohio State University) has done anything publicly to condemn the actions of the player or address what happened. They only released a statement 10 days after the incident occurred.

It’s unbelievable that in 2022 we’re still dealing with these things. While these incidences may never go away, we do have to change the way we deal with them and make it known publicly that hockey at every level is supposed to be for everyone.

How the Premier Hockey Federation is Changing the Game for Women

You may not have heard of the Premier Hockey Federation, but its salary cap grew by 150% over the last year and it’s already been around for eight seasons. Reagan Carey is the commissioner and her goal is to not only grow the women’s game at the professional level but to prove that investing in it is a viable business proposition for sponsors, fans, and other key stakeholders

She published an interesting editorial a few days ago where she points out that growing the women’s game is about showing the work. Carey points out that her league raised over $25 million last year and that NCAA participation at the Division I level has grown over 200% since women’s ice hockey was added to the program at the Winter Olympics in 1998.

Her perspective is quite interesting and definitely a recommended read.

The First-Ever IIHF Women’s Development Cup Crowns Columbia Champion

The IIHF Women’s Development Cup came to a close recently. It was a tournament featuring six nations going head-to-head in of all places, Kuwait City. Columbia went undefeated in the tournament, winning each of its five games by at least four goals. Victories included wins over Kuwait, Ireland, Andorra, the United Arab Emirates, and Luxembourg.

Think about that for a second. When was the last time you heard of those nations featured in a men’s tournament? It’s clear that growing the game in non-traditional hockey markets becomes more than about hockey itself. It becomes a powerful tool to promote the equality of women across the globe.

Congrats to Columbia!

Those are the top stories for this week.

Please feel free to give us feedback on the Hockey of Tomorrow. We want to continue to find our voice and dive deep into the stories that shape our game but don’t necessarily occur when the park is in play.

And also…. Please do share our newsletter with all your friends and family. You could be entered into a draw for a chance to win a genuine, authentic NHL jersey.

See you again next week,

Tom Sychterz, Founder

If you don't feel like ever being bothered again, then it's super easy peasy: just click unsubscribe below. We apologize for not being worth 5 mins of your time ( really, we mean it, no sarcasm.)