Hockey, a sport known for its intensity and raw emotion, has found a surprising second act as a rich source of comedy. From the locker room banter to the on-ice antics, the world of hockey provides fertile ground for humor. This article explores examples of hockey comedy, showcasing how it has evolved into a unique genre that appeals to both sports enthusiasts and comedy lovers.
Shoresy: A Chirp-Serving Spinoff That Scores
One of the most prominent examples of hockey comedy is Shoresy, a spinoff from the hugely popular Canadian sitcom, Letterkenny. Created by Jared Keeso, who also plays the titular character, Shoresy follows the foul-mouthed, chirp-serving, mother-loving fan favorite as he joins a senior AAA hockey team in Sudbury on a quest to never lose again.
Shoresy maintains the magic formula of rapid-fire banter and extreme vulgarity, with just a touch of heart, that made Letterkenny a hit. Even if some of the hockey-specific jokes go over your head, the show is still a treasure to watch. Small details, like the image of big hockey meatheads eating ice cream cones with protective bowls, add to the show's charm. The humor and quick banter are on point. If you don't like Letterkenny, this probably isn't for you. Shoresy even showed some redeeming features.
Canadian cinematographer Brett Van Dyke, CSC stepped into the rink for "Shoresy" Season 4, as the iconic hockey comedy from LetterKenny creator Jared Keeso, pivots into the shows ‘summer break’ arc. Starring the motley band of misfits that make up the Sudbury Bulldogs (newly minted Senior AAA champions), Season 4 spends less time in the rink, focusing INSTEAD on the characters’ antics let loose on the City of Sudburry during the off-season.
Behind the Scenes: Making Shoresy
Jared Keeso is very loyal. A lot of our crew followed him from Letterkenny and many of the crew are Sudbury North Bay locals. We get to shoot Sudbury for Sudbury, and the city welcomes us with open doors everywhere. There’s no hiding local landmarks or putting up signage to pretend it’s another town.
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A lens package was already in place for Shorsey-the team had brought similar gear from Letterkenny. But this season was going to feature a lot of Steadicam work and the Supremes seemed like an obvious choice because they would cut well with the Compact Zooms.The Supremes strike a great balance - sharp but not clinical, with a soft roll-off in the highlights. The show has an established 2.39:1 aspect ratio to avoid filling out the hockey stands with extras, and the lenses perform beautifully in that aspect ratio.
Dan and Sean Skeen-they’re brothers-did the stunt coordinating for all the hockey and then took over as directors for seasons three and four. Something special is that the Shoresy scripts have music beats written in. The music in this show is amazing-really obscure. In the script, Jared (the showrunner) will add timecode to explain what is happening at every beat. It's very specific-each beat matches this exact timecode in the song Jared likes to slow it down and ramp it in the edit, so we shoot almost everything at 60 fps. It's all there on the paper.
The show shoots in the city of Sudbury and we shoot the hockey portions on real ice at the Sudbury Wolves rink. Shooting on ice is tricky. There are some existing tools, like a skate dolly, that has skate blades. But mostly I just grab the camera in my hands and skated handheld. The trick is to skate up to speed, then glide. When you skate with a camera, you have to skate upright, using a shorter stride, so you don’t propel yourself forward by leaning. I also had the key grip skating behind me, to occasionally push me. I also used an Easy Rig to help with the bounce. There’s less action on the ice in Season 4, but Shoresy also refs a league, so we shot those scenes on ice with him.
'Shoresy' shoots fast - sometimes 20 to 30 pages a day - so we keep lighting simple. Shooting exteriors, I work with the sun, bouncing light or bringing in an 18K through a super soft diffusion rag. That’s not usually my approach, but this season I wanted to feel the heat. The on-ice action, for sure. The 29mm Supreme Prime was my go-to for skating shots - it captured the speed and intensity while still holding contrast and detail. Plus when I finally got into the sets I was really impressed with the contrast.
To aid him on his quest, Shoresy enlists the services of a ragtag group depicted by a number of guys with pro hockey experience. Brandon and Jordan Nolan play two of three characters on the show named Jim. The third Jim is played by Jon "Nasty" Mirasty, who spent time in the minors, including two seasons with the infamous Danbury Trashers of the United Hockey League. Ryan plays Ted "Hitch" Hitchcock, a fellow former first-rounder from Newfoundland. Like his character, Ryan has also played in Senior hockey.
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"'Letterkenny' did an amazing job of representing different cultural backgrounds, different people of color and then 'Shoresy' is no different," he said. "There's a lot of Indigenous people. There's other people of different colors and backgrounds and cultural backgrounds. Brandon and Jordan grew up in Garden River First Nation and started their organization, 3NOLANS, in 2013 with their father Ted Nolan, the 1997 Jack Adams Award winner as the NHL's coach of the year with the Buffalo Sabres. The trio offer a hockey skills development camp for First Nation youth in communities across Canada.
The Biggest Rat of All Time | Shoresy Season 4
Letterkenny: The Origin of Hockey Banter
Before Shoresy, there was Letterkenny. The show's cold open for the very first episode features its two leads, town tough guy Wayne (Jared Keeso) and his buddy Daryl (Nathan Dales), verbally annihilating two hockey bros (Dylan Playfair and Andrew Herr) who drop off Wayne's sister at their produce stand.
Letterkenny is the kind of show with speedy exchanges and relentlessly recurring in-jokes you really have to sit and pay attention to if you want to get the most out of them, which isn't something you might expect from a sitcom set deep within the grassy farmlands of Ontario. The other members of the town include the "skids," the emo druggies who are constantly coming up with weird schemes; the "natives," the members of the local First Nations reserve who are constantly battling the hicks and the skids for turf; and the constantly losing hockey team made up of a bunch of beefy out-of-towners.
Seven seasons in, the show basically has its own language. A lot of it is hockey slang, which rivals Cockney rhyming slang in its intricacy. The rest is near-Shakespearean wordplay and recurring puns, mainly to show off the intelligence of the kind of folks we'd otherwise dismiss as being stupid.
Rent-a-Goalie: Finding a Netminder in a Pinch
Rent-a-Goalie is a half-hour comedy television series from Canada that aired on Showcase from 2006 to 2008. The show follows Cake (Christopher Bolton), a hockey-mad, recovered-from-everything go-to guy, who runs a rag-tag hockey goalie rental service from Cafe Primo, a family-owned coffee shop in Toronto's Little Italy. Here, at this crazy crossroads of hockey culture and coffee culture, Cake has finally found a home.
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The TV show Rent-a-Goalie provided the idea to make renting a hockey goalie a reality. Several small businesses have opened up to allow recreational hockey teams to easily find and rent hockey goalies for their game.
Hockey - The Musical!: A Slapshot of Song and Dance
Imagine a world where hockey meets show tunes. Mitch Albom’s Hockey - The Musical! is a divine comedy that explores Canada’s love for hockey through music. Detroit’s City Theatre shows this isn’t just for hockey fans. Their hockey arena anthems mix grit with jazz. It turns hockey’s past into dance numbers. This mix of sports and theater raises interesting questions. Can choreographed fights be better than real ones? Do power plays feel more emotional with music?
Hockey theatre is different because it doesn’t always end neatly. The final act might show heroes battered but triumphant, or lying on the ice, questioning their choices. Zambonis become tools for satire. The sport’s absurdity, like flying pucks and fights, invites Monty Python-style jokes. Hockey theatre is subversive because it mirrors punk’s chaos. Players smash boards while following rules. The true magic is audience participation.
What makes these shows great? They use hockey’s drama, like underdog stories and tense moments. The team’s trick is using hockey terms in songs. A faceoff becomes a duet, and the penalty box is a bluesy spot. It’s like sports poetry, for those who think “hat trick” is magic.
They use familiar sounds, like organ chords and national anthem renditions, to tell stories. God is a Canuck turns “O Canada” into a funny roast session. The show’s orchestra is a star for turning arena sounds into Broadway hits. The loud organ riffs during power plays become funny musical moments. This method is like Ain’t Misbehavin’ uses jazz to tell stories. Songs like “Blocker Side Love Song” make fun of power ballads while moving the story forward.
Theater producers are doing something amazing. They’re turning Zamboni drivers into theater fans. Shows like Slapshot Symphony use adaptive hockey music and arena-style settings. These nights include wine tastings and talks from former NHL wives. In Traverse City, Stickhandling: The Musical! celebrates hockey’s working-class spirit. The show’s “Me+3” ticket deals are inspired by hockey’s line changes. They make family outings feel like team efforts.
Hockey is more than just a sport; it’s a stage for drama and music. The mix of hockey stories and live shows is a game-changer. Hockey musicals turn a niche sport into something everyone can relate to. A hockey show about fights could be a hit, unlike a curling one. This genre is not just about hockey; it’s about turning excitement into art. It makes fans feel like they’re part of a grand performance.