TORONTO, Ontario – Hockey Canada has announced that the third Beyond the Boards Summit will take place Nov. 13 in Toronto, Ontario, with subject-matter experts and individuals with lived experiences participating in sessions focused on discrimination in hockey.

The first summit in 2023 explored toxic masculinity in hockey, while last year’s session examined the outcomes of unhealthy hockey culture.

“On our journey to building a healthier hockey in Canada, hosting the third Beyond the Boards Summit will be an important step to further explore issues in hockey that are negatively impacting participants across the country,” said Katherine Henderson, president and chief executive officer of Hockey Canada. “The first two summits were incredibly valuable to our organization, Members and other guests, and we look forward to continuing our education in Toronto this fall.”

The summit will be moderated by Dr. Richard Norman, a renowned strategist and researcher known for sparking transformation and inclusivity in sport, and includes greetings from Dr. Wilton Littlechild, who also participated in the inaugural summit in Calgary.

Ted Nolan, who was recently appointed to the Order of Canada, is scheduled to open the summit and Olympian Waneek Horn-Miller is set to be the evening’s keynote speaker.

Beyond the Boards will feature two panels with Ed Aliu, Bob Dawson, Moe Hasham and Karl Subban addressing racial discrimination in hockey, and Dean Smith and Kelly VanBuskirk speaking to collaborative approaches for addressing maltreatment.

In addition to delivering a presentation on reimagining justice in hockey, Shades of Humanity Consulting will facilitate a workshop for all summit guests to design restorative frameworks for teams. 

Jahmiah Ferdinand-Hodkin, the founder of Sport Dispute Management, and Natasha Johnston, Hockey Canada’s vice-president of sport integrity, will also present More than metrics: Uncovering the real impact of racial discrimination.

“Beyond the Boards has brought people together from across the country to listen to experts and those with lived experiences, including athletes, coaches and parents, as we strive to build environments that are as strong as our participants,” said Denise Pattyn, senior vice-president of people, culture and inclusion for Hockey Canada. “We are looking forward to further learning from those who will join us at this upcoming third session and applying those learnings to better our sport.”

The full agenda for Beyond the Boards can be found here.

Media interested in attending the summit are kindly asked to RSVP to media@hockeycanada.ca by Nov. 6.

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