Mark Fraser Says a Change is Coming in Hockey

Mark Fraser says he's trying to help effect generational change in hockey through his role as the manager of culture and inclusion for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

A change is coming in hockey. That much is clear according to Mark Fraser, manager of culture and inclusion for the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. 

While change often feels glacial in hockey, change is “coming regardless because of the ever changing and evolving demographics that we live in and the marketplaces that we as sport teams represent.”

During his NHL career, Fraser spent seven seasons patrolling the blueline for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New Jersey Devils and Edmonton Oilers. Now, after being hired by the Maple Leafs in February 2021, Fraser is responsible for providing education and learning opportunities for players and staff to create a culture of inclusion throughout the Leafs organization.

Fraser said he believes he’s well positioned for his role banking on a lifetime of lived experience.

“My experience as a Black hockey player largely impacted me in getting me to this role, it’s in fact what prepared me for this role,” said Fraser. 

Growing up in Ottawa in the 1990s, Fraser looked up to and watched Jarome Iginla on his rise to stardom with the Calgary Flames, which eventually culminated in being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. When he reached the NHL, Fraser got to see Iginla firsthand. But growing up, he didn’t have peers in hockey who could relate to the unique challenges of being Black in hockey.

“I didn’t really have much support in the hockey world,” said Fraser. “I never had much as far as peers – obviously I had my dad as far as venting, or conversation or any dialogue I wanted to have, but in the game…to have the conversations from a perspective you knew would be understood, I never really had that in the game.”

Fraser has seen that change through his role in the NHL and with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He now sees more diversity in the sport and recognizes that young players have more opportunities to see a representation of Black people in hockey, not only as players but as coaches, GMs and administrators.

“I woud say that I see a shift, but I’d also say the shift is often slower than we’d like,” said Fraser of the changing face of hockey. 

“I’ve talked to 65- and 70-year-old Black hockey fans in the Toronto area, and they, for the first time, see themselves.” - Mark Fraser

Fraser knows any change he can enact is crucial and will be long-lasting for Black hockey players and fans.

“The change I’m trying to help play a role in creating is generational, it’s going to take a long time,” said Fraser. “There are fixed mindsets and practices and ways the institution of hockey have operated that are systemic and deep-rooted in a long history of operating in a specific way, so that change is not going to come overnight. But in the two years I’ve had this role, I have seen change come, I have seen a growth mindset, I have seen more of an appetite to engage with new perspectives, but it definitely at times does feel slow moving.”

While Fraser is working to enact change, his father, Hugh Fraser, was recently appointed to one of the most crucial positions in the effort to improve equity, diversity, inclusion, and safety in hockey – the chair of Hockey Canada’s board of directors.

Even there, Mark Fraser sees the role his 70-year-old father plays in providing representation for youth and an older generation of Black hockey fans.

“I’ve come to realize since he’s had this position that he’s not just a symbol for current Black hockey players, he’s not just a symbol for young Black hockey players or fans who are growing up loving the game,” said the younger Fraser. “I’ve come to realize for the first time he is a presence and representing a demographic that has been in love with the game for 60-plus years but hasn’t felt represented themselves.

“I’ve talked to 65- and 70-year-old Black hockey fans in the Toronto area, and they, for the first time, see themselves. What my father represents and the demographic he represents, he’s giving an older demographic of Black fans for the first time a high-profile representation in a hokey position.”

Undoubtedly the Fraser family, including Mark and Hugh, are leaving a lasting mark on not only Black athletes and fans in hockey but on the entire hockey world. According to Fraser, hockey is changing, and it’s a change that won’t be prevented. With the Maple Leafs, and through his father’s work with Hockey Canada, Mark Fraser hopes that as demographics change, the game is ready and waiting to welcome a new generation of diverse hockey lovers.

“There is a change that is coming and I do believe that we can’t ignore it,” said Fraser. “It is slow moving, but I am certainly encouraged in my position and role to see what young hockey players look like in the Toronto area and what hockey fans look like and the many different diverse demographics that haven’t always been acknowledged or faced barriers from an inclusion perspective, but are very much still fans and lovers of the sport.”

Whether it’s now retired NHLers like himself or Jarome Iginla, administrators and off-ice managers like his father Hugh or San Jose Sharks GM Mike Grier, or the wave of young Black stars on the ice including Sarah Nurse, Quinton Byfield, K’Andre Miller and Laila Edwards, the face of hockey is changing.

“That’s beautiful and that’s someting that’s just going to continue to grow,” said Fraser. “The change is happening, the change is coming.”