Where are the "hockey towns" of the world?

[robwangjing]

With the title I mean to ask which city or region in your own or other countries that could be described as The hockey town, where hockey is no doubt the most popular.

So I can start with China. Here I would have to say the city of Harbin in Heilongjiang province. Basically because it's the only place where hockey exists, so there it's the most popular.

So, which city and/or region/province in your own or other countries is the most popular hockey place?

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[ficohok*]

Bern is a hockey town. Ten years in a row they are most attended club in Europe with avarage of 17.000 fans per game.

 

[Claudi27]

Spanish town of Jaca is the only hockey town in the country:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaca

 

[Siamese Dream]

Nottingham and Sheffield are the "hockey towns" of the UK

 

[Deleted member 93465]

Delete

 

[Pajicz]

Couple nominees, correct me if I'm wrong...

Denmark: Herning
Hungary: Székesfehérvár
Italy: Bolzano
Poland: Nowy Targ
Slovenia: Jesenice

 

[The Noot]

More of a village, but the team of Ambri-Piotta averages 5778 spectators per game.










Ambri-Piotta has a population of 1003 people.

 

[ficohok*]

Nottingham and Sheffield are the "hockey towns" of the UK

Isn't Belfast the hockey town of the UK ?

 

[smitty10]

Toronto is probably the largest 'hockey town' in the world, but Edmonton and Montreal also produce a ton of professional players for Canada.

In the USA I want to say that it's Detroit, Minneapolis or Philadelphia. Lots of small towns play hockey and produce professional players as well.

In Latvia it's definitely Riga.

In Kazakhstan it's Ust-Kamenogorsk.

 

[Siamese Dream]

Isn't Belfast the hockey town of the UK ?

Not really.

Belfast attendances are lower than Nottingham and Sheffield, and they haven't really got any lower levels of senior hockey there or much of a junior development system.

Sheffield has a senior team at every organised league level from pro to amateur, 4 university teams, and their junior development produces more talent than any other. Nottingham get slightly better attendances than Sheffield, have one other senior team, 3 university teams and a decent junior system.

 

[ozo]

Toronto is probably the largest 'hockey town' in the world, but Edmonton and Montreal also produce a ton of professional players for Canada.

In the USA I want to say that it's Detroit, Minneapolis or Philadelphia. Lots of small towns play hockey and produce professional players as well.

In Latvia it's definitely Riga.

In Kazakhstan it's Ust-Kamenogorsk.

Yes, for Ust-Kamenogorsk, but no for Riga, because Latvia has no real hockey towns as such.

 

[BalticWarrior]

Yes, for Ust-Kamenogorsk, but no for Riga, because Latvia has no real hockey towns as such.[QUOTE]

I would REALLY like to hear your explanation on this one.

 

[ozo]

Yes, for Ust-Kamenogorsk, but no for Riga, because Latvia has no real hockey towns as such.[QUOTE]

I would REALLY like to hear your explanation on this one.

I'm sure, even you can figure this one out yourself - Riga is not the only place in country where hockey is loved as such. Just because most of our hockey players come from Riga is explained by sheer fact that more than half the population lives there and there is more than one rink there. You can find regions, cities that could be labelled as handball/floorball/etc cities. But hockey is country wide phenomenon.

 

[Den]

Khabarovsk
Omsk
Magnitogorsk
Kazan
Chelyabinsk
Yaroslavl


As of late: St Petersburg.

Ufa, kind of... somtimes

 

[Den]

Yes, for Ust-Kamenogorsk, but no for Riga, because Latvia has no real hockey towns as such.[QUOTE]

I would REALLY like to hear your explanation on this one.

Probably meaning "DR belongs to all of Latvia"...?

 

[Ivan94]

Croatia: Zagreb - only city where hockey is played seriously
Austria: Feldkirch - small town, big hockey history
Germany: Mannheim

 

[Forsberg21Sakic19]

Actually conducting a study on the "Hockey Towns" in the world right now. I'll post a link to the results/final product when I have it but just off of some obvious preliminary observations
I've listed a few below.

Ornskoldsvik - Sweden
Kladno - Czech Republic
Tilburg - Netherlands
Miercurea Ciuc - Romania (although Hungarian ethnically)

 

[ficohok*]

Croatia: Zagreb - only city where hockey is played seriously
Austria: Feldkirch - small town, big hockey history
Germany: Mannheim

For Germany could be Landshut, Rosenheim...towns with rich hockey history.

Austria - I think there are two real hockey towns and those are Villach and Klagenfurt. I would put them above Feldkirch (although Feldkirch has rich hockey history).

 

[Siamese Dream]

Actually conducting a study on the "Hockey Towns" in the world right now. I'll post a link to the results/final product when I have it but just off of some obvious preliminary observations
I've listed a few below.

Ornskoldsvik - Sweden
Kladno - Czech Republic
Tilburg - Netherlands
Miercurea Ciuc - Romania (although Hungarian ethnically)

Sheffield definitely needs to be on there for the UK

 

[651*]

All in MN:

The East Side of St. Paul
South St. Paul
Edina
Roseau
Warroad
Eveleth

Any and all of them >>>>> Detroit

 

[ficohok*]

Actually conducting a study on the "Hockey Towns" in the world right now. I'll post a link to the results/final product when I have it but just off of some obvious preliminary observations
I've listed a few below.

Ornskoldsvik - Sweden
Kladno - Czech Republic
Tilburg - Netherlands
Miercurea Ciuc - Romania (although Hungarian ethnically)

There are enough material for one very good book

 

[connor macdavid]

Miercurea Ciuc in Romania - saw Dave Bidini's documentary "Hockey Nomad" and it seems as though hockey is as much a part of the people there as politics, government, and survivalist feelings.

I disagree with a previous poster- I'd say that Minnesota and Boston are the only true 'hockey hotbeds' of the US. While the Red Wings have a good following Detroit, it's not a city I think automatically about hockey, i.e. Minnesota.

In Canada, I'd say that Edmonton is the truest sense of a 'hockey town' with a pro team. Winnipeg would be up there as well, but they don't have the same history and tradition of the Oilers.

 

[Kamzik]

Trencin Slovakia - though it is a great sports city in general, producing great athletes of other sports also.

 

[FiLe]

In Finland, hockey is crazy popular all over, and pretty much any town with a decent team is a hockey town in some sense - but if there's one that truly carries the mantle, that has to be Tampere. First indoor rink was built in the city, and a determining part of the townscape is the rivalry between Liiga teams Ilves and Tappara. Also, the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum and HOF is located there.

 

[Mathradio]

With the title I mean to ask which city or region in your own or other countries that could be described as The hockey town, where hockey is no doubt the most popular.

So I can start with China. Here I would have to say the city of Harbin in Heilongjiang province. Basically because it's the only place where hockey exists, so there it's the most popular.

So, which city and/or region/province in your own or other countries is the most popular hockey place?

If I am not mistaken about Chinese hockey Qiqihar is also in the running...

Kushiro for Japan, is that possible?