Power Play

Hit the ice for hockey night in Osaka

For most people, the coming of spring conjures up feelings of renewal and fresh beginnings; however, for many a red-blooded Canadian, it’s the onset of autumn and the start of hockey season that truly warms our wintery souls. Along with the crisp air and the coloring of the leaves, it’s the flooding of the rinks, the dusting off of stanky old equipment, and the initial drop of the puck that tells Canucks: our season has arrived.

Hockey was one of the pleasures I had to forgo when I made the leap to Osaka, and although it wasn’t sorely missed at first, its absence did begin to gnaw at me. Fortunately, fate came in the form of a rooftop beer garden (as it so often does). On a sweltering, pint-laden summer night I was introduced to Ken Kawai, who not only confirmed the existence of a Kansai league, but also invited me to catch his teams–The Kobe Stars–next game.

The game was to be contested in Namba at the Naniwa Sports Center. Having lived in Osaka for more than a few years already, I had no idea that there was a rink so readily at hand. Located directly behind the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium (home to the sumo Haru Basho), the 7-story public sports complex is home to a weight room, swimming pool, regulation-size gym, and finally, hiding out in the basement, an ice rink.

The sights, sounds and chill of the rink while watching the Kobe Stars in action were enough to set me twitching like a junkie, and instantly I knew my hockey fix would need satisfying. As soon as the final whistle blew, I begged Ken and the lads to let me suit up for the squad. Luckily for me, they told me I could join up next season. All I had to do was procure some equipment, which was easily accomplished by calling my equally hockey-mad father back in the Great White North.

Before I knew it, I was strapping on my blades as a member of the Kobe Stars, hitting the ice in the Kansai Businessman’s League, which is comprised of five eight-team divisions. The Stars were formed in 1994 as an amalgamation of the Konan and Kansai University old boys, and when I joined, the squad was in the B division. But after a lackluster first season, relegation loomed as we slid down to C. Management re-tooled and added a deuce of stellar players in the form of dynamic sniper Kaoru Takahashi and bruising rearguard Chris Sheen, and once again, the Stars were in the ascendancy: the C title and privilege of promotion was ours.

Back in the B division last season we once again got to play a couple of games in the Naniwa Sports Center. Twice, on a blustery winter Friday, we were able to rally a raucous group of puckheads to come down to the rink and immerse themselves in hockey. Hockey Night in Osaka was born. Boisterous fans, new and old, from all backgrounds and ages were treated to some very amateur, yet swift-skating, hard-hitting, slick-passing and clutch goal-scoring action. So, if you’re up for a cheap slice of Canadiana, grab some brews at the conbini, cobble together a homemade noisemaker, and come holler yer guts out at, in the immortal words of Stompin’ Tom, “the Good ‘Ol Hackey Game! It’s the best game you can name!”

The first big Hockey Night game of the season is Friday, November 13 at 9pm. The Kobe Stars take on old nemesis the Nara Cosmos at the Naniwa Sports Center. Admission is free. See the Facebook group Hockey Night in Osaka for more information.

Text by Gregarious
Photos by Mauyra Brady