While the sport of pro wrestling is not done on the ice, three of the high-flying Canadian stars of Total Nonstop Action (TNA) have roots in the world of hockey that run deeper than you might think.

The worlds of professional hockey and professional wrestling are quite similar. 

In both businesses, you spend much of your life on the road. In both lines of work, you spend much of your time in arenas across North America and the world in general. In both professions, you pay a massive physical price for doing what you love. 

All you have to do is talk to wrestlers – as we did in early March when we spoke to three Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling stars – to see they may as well be hockey players.

“A lot of the worlds are similar,” said TNA superstar wrestler Eric Young. “The truth is, we live everywhere. In (TNA) alone, there’s probably 60 different cities we travel to. And growing up, I wanted to be an NHL player. I wasn’t a good player on an elite level, but that was my delusion.”

“It’s very similar,” added Raj 'Champagne' Singh, another TNA star. “Growing up playing hockey as a kid in Calgary, it really prepared me to have that professional lifestyle.”

Singh played at a decent level, but growing up in a wrestling family, he had an open lane to plying his trade in the squared circle. There weren’t many hockey players of his Punjabi ethnicity to aspire to emulate on an elite level, but he didn't take for granted the chance to lace up a pair of skates and compete at his best against other Canadian kids.

“Growing up, I had some offers from the NCAA and junior hockey,” Singh said, before discussing the Grade-A memory that’s common among wrestlers. ”I could tell you goals I’ve scored, fights I’ve had. You play it over in your head. You do the same thing with wrestling. When you relive it, it becomes more than a memory embedded in your DNA.”

Another TNA star wrestler, French-Canadian Pierre Carl 'PCO' Ouellet, played AA hockey in Quebec and in the Quebec Major College League. The 56-year-old native of Sainte-Catherine, Que., became known for his brute force and dogged determination to be a difference-maker. And Ouellet believes his current profession is more taxing than hockey was to him.

“I think it’s harder to wrestle than play hockey,” Ouellet said. “Bob Probert and the tough guys, every seventh or eighth game you have to drop the gloves. You have to respect them. It’s not an easy job to do. When you play pro, it’s not like you play in a beer league. You get slashed between the glove and the elbow pad, you’re cross-checked in front of the net. That takes a toll. Those type of guys, I respect. Joe Pavelski, Corey Perry, they take a lot of punishment.”

As an Ontario kid, Young faithfully watched Maple Leaf Wrestling on TV, so he saw Maple Leaf Gardens as the mecca it was. When he got a chance to wrestle at the Gardens, Young was blown away. 

He’s also been a guest speaker for NHL teams and is one of the key movers and shakers when it comes to wrestler-hockey players in Nashville, where he and TNA are based. He’s become friends with former NHLers, such as longtime Predators forward Mike Fisher, and he hosts a fantasy hockey show that’s about as popular as his Animal Planet TV show centered around fishing. But Young always tries to motivate top hockey players by pointing out the ties that bind the two professions.

“I got to speak at the (Preds’) prospects camp when they drafted Seth Jones and Ryan Ellis,” Young said. ”I’m doing this presentation about being the best at what you do. Yes, you’ve made it to the NHL, and I’ve made it to (World Wrestling Entertainment) and TNA, but the work really starts once you get here.”

For Singh, seeing NHL players of South Asian descent, such as Robin Bawa and, more recently, Arshdeep Bains, is a positive development that makes the game more inclusive. But like every fan, Singh has his favorite team and his favorite all-time player.

“Being from Calgary, I’m a Flames fan, that’s who I cheer for,” Singh said. “I’m also a (Jaromir) Jagr guy. But I watch (Oilers star forward Leon) Draisaitl the most. He’s eerily similar to old man Jagr. When I’d see (Jagr) as a young guy, he was a hot shot. He eventually cut the hair, because it was time to grow up. But he always showed it was still time to have fun.”

The life of a pro hockey player or pro wrestler is not all fun and games. You pay a tremendous physical price in both lines of work, and you experience other people’s sense of tribalism as they either boo you or cheer you. And whether you enjoy hockey as a viewer, or whether you get out on the ice as much as you can (as Young does in Nashville), you’re indulging the urge to enjoy yourself and experience the exhilaration of being on the ice and competing.

When you’re driving hundreds of miles at a time, and you’re in a hotel room by yourself, eating chicken out of your bare hands, there’s not a lot of glamor in either the hockey or wrestling worlds. But those who do excel in hockey and wrestling wouldn’t trade it for anything. And they’re delighted to see the game rise to new heights.

“When I was in WWE (in) '93, '94, '95, you could talk hockey, and nobody would know,” Ouellet said. “Now, it’s total growth in the USA. There’s good indicators that hockey is pretty healthy in the states.”

“Hockey and wrestling are so similar in this way: you truly can’t see how amazing it is until you see it live,” added Young. “I bring people to (hockey) games, get them to understand it that way. Both in hockey and in wrestling, the best experience is live.”