Have you ever heard that most pro hockey players were born in a certain part of the year? What, you’ve never heard that story? Here’s the deal: most pro hockey players are born in the first three months of the year, and many more are born in January than in any other month.
THE JANUARY FACTOR
Why in the world are the largest number of pro hockey players born in January? Shouldn’t all the kids born in December, November, October, June, or May have the same skills on average, the same natural talent on average as the other hockey players? Why in the world are those other kids not being chosen to play professionally? Scientific study has found that National Hockey League teams prefer to draft players born in the first quarter of the year — January through March. In fact, between 1980 and 2007, 36 percent of players drafted by NHL teams were born in the first quarter — January to March — compared to only 14.5 per cent who were born in the fourth quarter — October to December. Here’s why. In Canada — the cradle of professional hockey — kids are selected for all-star teams at an early age. But the cutoff date for eligibility is December 31st. So, if you’re born December 31st, you’re going to play hockey with kids who are 10, 11, almost 12 months older than you. Kids born closer to January 1st will have many natural advantages over kids born late in the year. They’re bigger, faster, more experienced, and more mature. January kids are more likely to be singled out for all-star teams, where they’ll get more practice and play more games and get more experience playing on the road. Coaches will invest more time and effort into training them. They’ll also play against more talented, better- seasoned competitors.
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