Did you enjoy the tournament without NHLers?

[Sergei Shirokov]

I feel the argument with the NHL is the same. It would be a 1st rate tournament that favoures Canada and everyone would think they would win and it wouldn't be any kind of stretch at all among hockey fans.

So whether it's a 1st rate or 2nd rate. I agree with your second paragraph to a certain degree. The annoying part for us from Europe is that a lot of the games were around 4am+, which is the worst time and makes the games less enjoying. Because "no one" will go to bed early to watch a lot of games at that hour. Later games were better, but also collided with events were our nations had gold favorites/outsiders. Also why western teams in the NHL don't have that many fans compared to other teams, because of the time issue. Easier for most to watch that 1am game with a "power nap" than going to bed at 9-10 pm.

This first part is a good point, as a Canadian I guess we don't really think about it that way. I guess 2nd rate in terms of the level of hockey but as far as cheering interests it's alot more open in years like this than NHL years where its Canada/Sweden/USA/Russia as top contenders.

 

[Vancouver Canucks]

Players weren't fast enough on the ice, and the host team was abysmal.

 

[Big Phil]

I voted no. But I didn't care if it favoured Russia or not because it was a nothing tournament. Sorry, Chris Kelly is not my country's captain on a hockey team, he just isn't. Ben Scrivens? He'd better be the water boy. No I didn't watch a minute of it, I didn't care one bit. You can't feed the fans steak and lobster for 20 years (NHLers in the Olympics) and then ask them if they'd settle on a Happy Meal.

 

[PatrikBerglund]

Didn't watch a single game.

 

[Pilky01]

I loved it.

I would be happiest I think if the NHL alternated Olympic appearances. I love seeing the big boys, but I also really like seeing the fringe guys fight like hell.

 

[Dueling Banjos]

It was interesting in it's own way. I saw it as a battle of the European leagues.

 

[SoundAndFury]

I would have enjoyed it if having no NHLers didn't favor Russia as much as it does but it does. So I would really rather this doesn't happen again.

 

[Big Phil]

It was interesting in it's own way. I saw it as a battle of the European leagues.

So............the Spengler Cup? That is exactly the same feeling I had with the 2018 Olympics. And I haven't watched a minute of the Spengler Cup in my life for a reason.

I loved it.

I would be happiest I think if the NHL alternated Olympic appearances. I love seeing the big boys, but I also really like seeing the fringe guys fight like hell.

For what?

 

[Uncle Rotter]

For what?

Costume jewelry.

 

[Jon Riley]

So............the Spengler Cup?

Uhm...no?
How is an invitational tournament mainly without national teams even remotely related to the Olympics?

 

[Jtown]

I didn't even watch one game.

 

[Stephen]

May have accidentally watched 2 minutes of the final on TV at a restaurant but I can honestly say I never had any interest in watching the representatives Canada sent over. Good for guys like Ben Scrivens and Rene Bourque to get the experience as individuals, but if I'm not interested in paying $15.00 for a Marlies ticket to watch that calibre of player in the AHL, I'm not going to be jazzed up pretending like I'm suddenly invested just because they put on Canadian colours. Also, unlike 1994, there were no future stars like Kariya on the team to be curious about either.

 

[Uncle Rotter]

If that is true, then why did the NHL decline to enter the Olympics during the Soviet era, when there was a good chance that the Soviets might have dominated Canada with NHL'ers? The fact is it was the NHL's choice, and they elected to boycott.

NHL players (even ex-NHL players) were barred from the Olympics until 1988.

 

[Instant]

Yes, Russia would have had Kucherov, OV, Geno, Tara etc.... but Canada would have had Crosby, McDavid, Stamkos, Tavares, Benn, Seguin, MacKinnon, Hall, Giroux, Marchand, Bergeron, Doughty, Burns, Subban, Weber, Price.... and the list just keeps going. Stop kidding yourself. Your Gold medal comes with an asterisk.

Yeah, let's not kid ourselves here, Canada was the country that was hurt the most with the NHL players not going.

That's like the perfect roster. It would be SO FUN to watch them all play with each other and not against.

 

[Big Phil]

Uhm...no?
How is an invitational tournament mainly without national teams even remotely related to the Olympics?

Team "Canada" was made up of castaways that were once good enough to be in the NHL but were picked from guys playing over in Europe. Sort of like...................the Spengler Cup?

 

[PBandJ]

I loved it.

Watching Canada sleepwalk through Vancouver and Sochi was beyond boring,.

 

[varsaku]

I loved this tournament since it was so unpredictable and almost every team had an equal shot at gold. The fact that Germany won silver shows the parity in the tournament. Ideally you should not be actively looking to create parity in an international tournament but this was a nice change from the prior Olympics that Canada dominated.

 

[bottomofthefoodchain]

I only watched 2 periods. They were both awful.

 

[Uncle Rotter]

I loved it.

Watching Canada sleepwalk through Vancouver and Sochi was beyond boring,.

First off, how in hell was 2010 boring? Also, do you find Usain Bolt boring?

 

[Yakushev72]

NHL players (even ex-NHL players) were barred from the Olympics until 1988.

I have seen posters (Canadians, I think) make this assertion, but they have never been able to back it up by quoting specific IOC regulations. Can you provide such documentation of this claim? And if so, why did it suddenly become acceptable to have pros participate beginning in 1988?

 

[Bmessy]

Where is the "I didn't watch because there were no NHLers" option

 

[Uncle Rotter]

I have seen posters (Canadians, I think) make this assertion, but they have never been able to back it up by quoting specific IOC regulations. Can you provide such documentation of this claim? And if so, why did it suddenly become acceptable to have pros participate beginning in 1988?

Near the end of the 1960s, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) felt their amateur players could no longer be competitive against the Soviet team's full-time athletes and the other constantly improving European teams. They pushed for the ability to use players from professional leagues but met opposition from the IIHF and IOC. Avery Brundage, president of the IOC from 1952 to 1972, was opposed to the idea of amateur and professional players competing together. At the IIHF Congress in 1969, the IIHF decided to allow Canada to use nine non-NHL professional hockey players[166] at the 1970 World Championships in Montreal and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.[167] The decision was reversed in January 1970 after Brundage said that ice hockey's status as an Olympic sport would be in jeopardy if the change was made.[166] In response, Canada withdrew from international ice hockey competition and officials stated that they would not return until "open competition" was instituted.[166][168] Günther Sabetzki became president of the IIHF in 1975 and helped to resolve the dispute with the CAHA. In 1976, the IIHF agreed to allow "open competition" between all players in the World Championships. However, NHL players were still not allowed to play in the Olympics until 1988, because of the IOC's amateur-only policy.[169]

Olympic Games - Wikipedia

 

[Zine]

Wow, bunch of hockey snobs this thread is.

Just because you have no emotional attachment to a tourney doesn't mean it can't be entertaining, or enjoyable.
I mean I couldn't give two craps about the NCAA, but it's frequently on when I'm in the States and I watch because....well because it's hockey. I enjoy it.

The "I don't care about 2nd rate hockey" crowd confuses me when I simultaneously see them caring to post about the CHL, NCAA, AHL, etc. Funny how that works.

 

[3074326]

Wow, bunch of hockey snobs this thread is.

Just because you have no emotional attachment to a tourney doesn't mean it can't be entertaining, or enjoyable.
I mean I couldn't give two craps about the NCAA, but it's frequently on when I'm in the States and I watch because....well because it's hockey. I enjoy it.

The "I don't care about 2nd rate hockey" crowd confuses me when I simultaneously see them caring to post about the CHL, NCAA, AHL, etc. Funny how that works.

For me, the games weren't compelling enough without NHL players. I didn't have the desire to take time off work (or doing pretty much anything else, for that matter) to watch a bunch of guys who are worse than what I'm used to watching (for the most part).

I didn't watch a single game, either. I used to be as excited for Olympic hockey as anything, but now it just makes me sad.

 

[Maple Leaf]

Where is the "I didn't watch because there were no NHLers" option

Same
I did not watch this
Good times