Summit Series

The 1972 Summit Series is a hockey series between Canada and the Soviet Union. It took place during the time of the Cold War when the East and West were fighting to prove who was better. The 1972 Summit Series proved that we are the greatest hockey nation creating great nationalism in Canada despite that it was part of the cold war. It showed that Canada is the greatest hockey nation, the Summit Series brought all the people of Canada together and it took place at a time during the Cold War. These points will be further explained in the following paragraphs.Firstly, the 1972 Summit Series proved that Canada is the greatest hockey nation ever. â€Å"The NHL long regarded itself as the world's elite, but the overwhelming superiority of the Soviet Union in international amateur play in the 1960s led to a dramatic 1972 summit series between Team Canada (Canadian NHL players) and the Soviet national team,† (Columbia encyclopaedia, sixth edition). This tells us how before the series the Soviet Union was known as the best international team ever. This series came into play to show who was truly better. Canada ended up winning so it turns out that we are a better hockey nation. Here’s a shot. Henderson makes a wild stab for it and falls,† Foster Hewitt breathlessly described. â€Å"Here’s another shot. Right in front. They score!! Henderson has scored for Canada! † (1972summitseries. com). This quote is when Henderson scored the goal that would put them ahead in the final game of the serious and the goal that would make them win the series! This proves that Canada is the greatest hockey nation because they won the series with this goal. â€Å"What that team did, I don’t think there has been a greater feat in sports. It was an unbelievable comeback against a great Russian team.I’ve never seen anything like it,† said Bobby Orr (1972 Summit Series Quotes). This quote came from one of the greatest hockey players of all time, so that makes it very special. Bobby Orr is explaining how the Russians were a very strong team but we took them down in an amazing series. So it tells us that Canada is better because we beat the amazing Soviet Union team. In conclusion, Canada has earned the title of the greatest hockey nation ever. Secondly, this great series created great nationalism between all Canadians in this beautiful country. â€Å"There was no such thing as francophone or aWesterner, or anything else. We were all Canadians. The series brought us all together. It brought an entire country together. It was Canada playing, not team Canada. It was us against them and every Canadian somehow seemed to have a sense of ownership of that team. I guess war is the only thing that could bring a country together like that series did,† said Paul Henderson (1972 Summit Series Quotes). This quote shows us that this series brought every Canadian together. No matter the race or nationality of the person, they all gathered together to support out country in the 1972 Summit Series.Erik Floren says â€Å"During the series, kids and adults skipped school studies and workplace to amass around radios or TVs. Far from a friendly exhibition- the games exploded into war on ice. The sheer intensity galvanized Canadians of all creeds, colour, and both official languages. † (www. 1972summitseries. com) The Summit Series must have been really important to all Canadians because this quote tells us how every Canadian, even if they don like hockey, skipped out on there duties to watch this exciting seven game series. In Canada today, the Summit Series remains a source of much national pride, and is seen by many as a landmark event in Canadian cultural history† (Global Oneness Encyclopaedia II). The 1972 Summit Series meant a lot to all Canadians, and still does. It is still an important part of our past and always will be. For those who were alive at the time when this occurred, they will definitely never forget this amazing series. This series brought Canadians together like no other event could. Everybody took pride and honour from this victory whether they were hockey fans or not.Lastly, the Summit Series was a part of the Cold War. The Cold War is when the West and East of the world were fighting to prove who was better. A member of the team Canada, Phil Esposito says, â€Å"It was a war, our society vs. theirs† (1972 Summit Series Quotes). He means that it was a war between communism and democracy. Our society is a democratic society, and people over here think that it is better then communism. The Soviet Union is a communist country and they were fighting to show that they were better. â€Å"By the early 1970’s, the Soviet Union was at the peak of its power.The Communist Party remained the sole political force in the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union attempted to assert itself as the world’s dominant superpower† (Cold War (1972-1989): t he Collapse of the Soviet Union). The East was starting to become even more powerful and the West didn’t know what to do to stop them. For every time that Russia had a great accomplishment, the U. S or the West would take a step back instead of forward. The Summit Series helped slow down the East on their rise to the top and gave the West a big step on becoming better. It was war and yes, hell for us whether we wanted it or not† (1972 Summit Series Quotes) said Phil Esposito. This means that team Canada could not back out of this series even if they wanted to. It was a big part of the Cold War and meant so much to all the people in the West. So the players basically didn’t have a choice, they had to play and win or else people would have been angry and it would not have turned out well. This series came alive at a time during the Cold War and helped the West to become the better side of the world.This great hockey serious which took place in 1972, showed the enti re world that Canada is the best hockey nation in the world and that no other country can even compare. The 1972 Summit Series also brought every Canadian together, no matter what race, religion, or gender together like no other event or thing could. Lastly, this epic battle took place at the time of the Cold War, when there was a feud between communism and democracy. They were fighting to prove who was better, the East or West. The 1972 Summit Series could possibly be the most defining point in Canadian history and it will never be forgotten.