Hockey Night is here

Nunavummiut love hockey. That’s one of the key findings in the 2001 Nunavut Household Survey. Interviewers asked residents a series of questions relating to hockey, in addition to questions about more serious matters like employment and marital status.

About 5,816 adults across Nunavut were interviewed. The results are accurate to within one percentage point 19 times out of 20.

• 64 per cent of Nunavummiut have a favourite NHL team.

• 26 of the 30 teams in the NHL have supporters in Nunavut.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs have the most support at 40.9 per cent. The Leafs were the most popular team in all three regions — but just barely so in the Kitikmeot.

• The Montreal Canadiens came in second at 28.6 per cent, followed by the Edmonton Oilers at 9.5 per cent, the Colorado Avalanche at 3.8 per cent and the Ottawa Senators at 3.5 per cent.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs received the strongest support in the Baffin region, the Montreal Canadiens in the Kivalliq region and the Edmonton Oilers by far in the Kitikmeot region.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs have high support from all age groups, while the Montreal Canadiens have higher support among Nunavummiut over the age of 35 than among younger people.

• Almost three-quarters of Nunavut residents support one of the six original NHL teams, but younger Nunavummiut were more likely to support “expansion teams” than Nunavummiut 45 and older.

• More than 85 per cent of Nunavut residents support NHL teams based in Canada, but younger Nunavummiut were more likely to support US-based teams than Nunavummiut 45 and older.