With the number of children registering for organized hockey dropping dramatically, Hockey Canada has launched a campaign to draw immigrants to Canada's national pastime.
Enrolment dropped from 584,000 players in 2008 to 577,000 in 2010, and the numbers are expected to continue falling this year.
"We believe that with that shrinking base, if we continue to do business the way we are right now we are going to have a lot less players to choose from in 10 years time," said Glen McCurdie, the organization's vice-president of member services.
Critics say that hockey is too expensive and too elitist compared to other sports such as soccer, which don't require hundreds of dollars worth of gear.
Making matters worse, enrollment in organized hockey is on the rise south of the border -- to the point where it almost matches Canada's.
"It is growing like a bad weed" in the United States, said public health and safety advocate Emile Therien. "It's unbelievable."
So in the hopes of drumming up interest among a more diverse group of youngsters, Hockey Canada has made its annual planner, which is mailed out to more than 230,000 registered minor hockey players younger than 10 years of age, available in a dozen languages.
They're targeting players like 12-year-old Prasanthan Aruchunan, who has been skating for less than a year since moving to Canada from Sri Lanka.
"I like the skating, I also like playing hockey," he said. "It is pretty fun."
Canada is now dotted with smaller hockey programs geared to promote the sport to a new demographic -- and some have had remarkable success.
Mark Babiy, vice principal Brookview Middle School in Toronto, says half of the kids who play organized hockey there were born outside Canada.
"English is not their first language," he said. "But they took to it like ducks to water."
With numbers like that, Hockey Canada hopes the sport can carve out a niche among recent immigrants and help rejuvenate it among younger players.
With a report from CTV's Scott Laurie
