Pre-Game Talk: 2022 World Junior Hockey Championship

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

With the rules of forfeit when a guy is positive. Some team was going to hit the quarters and be forfeited. Imagine if it was Canada?

Needed a bubble!

They needed expanded rosters and an extra 5 days, with far less restrictive protocols than to cancel games with 1 test.

 

[Czechboy]

They needed expanded rosters and an extra 5 days, with far less restrictive protocols than to cancel games with 1 test.

pfft.. like the Czechs have 5 extra players that can play at that level... we don't even have 20 to begin with.haha

Jokes aside, I feel the exisiting bubble system would've worked great. Edmonton is great at that. No roomates in hotel rooms. No wedding receptions in the players hotels or old people refusing to mask up in the same elevator with the players.

Normally I'd even put some blame on the players for 'catching it'. I don't think they were out partying. I think they followed the protocols. Same with the 5 refs that were announced today as having caught it as well.

 

[boredem]

Let another country host if they do the redo. Just imagine if they failed again.

Seriously get the tournament out of Canada and it will be fine, this country is scared of it's own shadow these days.

 

[booyakasha]

Seriously get the tournament out of Canada and it will be fine, this country is scared of it's own shadow these days.

no kidding.
I wonder if the players were allowed to remove their masks to shave while here?

 

[boredem]

no kidding.
I wonder if the players were allowed to remove their masks to shave while here?

I'm kind of surprised they didn't have to wear a mask while playing, think of the elderly people in the stands they put at risk. They almost killed your grandparents.

 

[Czechboy]

Seriously get the tournament out of Canada and it will be fine, this country is scared of it's own shadow these days.

Spengler was in Switzerland.. also cancelled.

Finnish liiga shut down teams and one of them had Aatu Raty and he couldn't even go.

Honestly, I think Edmonton (in a bubble) is by far the best place to do this. I don't think it's a Canada issue.

 

[boredem]

Spengler was in Switzerland.. also cancelled.

Finnish liiga shut down teams and one of them had Aatu Raty and he couldn't even go.

Honestly, I think Edmonton (in a bubble) is by far the best place to do this. I don't think it's a Canada issue.

I was thinking more along the lines of Russia. Or send it down to Florida or Texas maybe? I don't follow the news but I assume it's a free for all down there.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Spengler was in Switzerland.. also cancelled.

Finnish liiga shut down teams and one of them had Aatu Raty and he couldn't even go.

Honestly, I think Edmonton (in a bubble) is by far the best place to do this. I don't think it's a Canada issue.

Play in a bubble without fans is probably a non starter as the cost is so high and there is no revenue. So you need fans. That means the USA then.

But if your testing players and the protocol is the entire team shuts down for 1 day after 1 positive test then you can hold it on Mars and you won't complete the tournament.

Host it in the USA so you can have fans and relax the protocols and shut the hotel down from any other entrants other than players, team officials and the on/off ice officials.

 

[Oilhawks]

Play in a bubble without fans is probably a non starter as the cost is so high and there is no revenue. So you need fans. That means the USA then.

But if your testing players and the protocol is the entire team shuts down for 1 day after 1 positive test then you can hold it on Mars and you won't complete the tournament.

Host it in the USA so you can have fans and relax the protocols and shut the hotel down from any other entrants other than players, team officials and the on/off ice officials.

This makes far too much sense for the IIHF

 

[Czechboy]

I was thinking more along the lines of Russia. Or send it down to Florida or Texas maybe? I don't follow the news but I assume it's a free for all down there.

Gotcha... we're talking about 2 different things. Apologies. I'm talking about how to run a hockey tournament and preventing the spread and not about the spread itself ... Edmonton has proven to be KINGS at that when using the bubble. It's proven and established. That's all.. apologies for jumping in on your convo. I'll get out of it.

 

[Czechboy]

Play in a bubble without fans is probably a non starter as the cost is so high and there is no revenue. So you need fans. That means the USA then.

But if your testing players and the protocol is the entire team shuts down for 1 day after 1 positive test then you can hold it on Mars and you won't complete the tournament.

Host it in the USA so you can have fans and relax the protocols and shut the hotel down from any other entrants other than players, team officials and the on/off ice officials.

There were no NHL games, no Spengler games and just the JRs.. everyrone was watching and they were making a tonne of money from revenue. Those aren't ads for Red Deer's local market on the board. Those aren't not for profit commercials. I don't know how much skipthedishes paid to show me that man in the trashcan full of ice but I bet it was a big amount. So this tourney was always making money. Even with no fans and concessions because of clicks and views (which were very high).

This would be true for the cancelled U18 womens tourney as a bubble is expensive, hotel rooms for single players are expensive and daily testing is expensive and, respectfully, no one is really watching the U18 women's championship. So that tourney would be a massive loss financially.

This one wasn't. If Canada, likely, made a run to gold.. ratings were through the roof and that does equal money. No way they were losing money on this IMO.

I'd say playing on Mars and playing an established Edmonton Bubble is equally safe.lol

A lot of money was lost by cancelling it. I don't think as many people are watching the replay of the 2020 Gold win last night as they would've Canada-Finland tomorrow. Whatever was lost financially by cancelling it is higher than the cost of daily testing, a bubble and no fans. Agree it's a considerably smaller profit margin but it's still a profit for this and we'd still have hockey.

This is the last I'll post on it.. not because I'm disagreeing with you necessarily but I see it spiralling into covid and politics and I'm already having those talks with family and friends about school next week and my own kids, I come here as an escape from that.lol So I'm not trying to be rude. I feel like I misread the room and need to get out before I piss everyone off.lol

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

There were no NHL games, no Spengler games and just the JRs.. everyrone was watching and they were making a tonne of money from revenue. Those aren't ads for Red Deer's local market on the board. Those aren't not for profit commercials. I don't know how much skipthedishes paid to show me that man in the trashcan full of ice but I bet it was a big amount. So this tourney was always making money. Even with no fans and concessions because of clicks and views (which were very high).

This would be true for the cancelled U18 womens tourney as a bubble is expensive, hotel rooms for single players are expensive and daily testing is expensive and, respectfully, no one is really watching the U18 women's championship. So that tourney would be a massive loss financially.

This one wasn't. If Canada, likely, made a run to gold.. ratings were through the roof and that does equal money. No way they were losing money on this IMO.

I'd say playing on Mars and playing an established Edmonton Bubble is equally safe.lol

A lot of money was lost by cancelling it. I don't think as many people are watching the replay of the 2020 Gold win last night as they would've Canada-Finland tomorrow. Whatever was lost financially by cancelling it is higher than the cost of daily testing, a bubble and no fans. Agree it's a considerably smaller profit margin but it's still a profit for this and we'd still have hockey.

This is the last I'll post on it.. not because I'm disagreeing with you necessarily but I see it spiralling into covid and politics and I'm already having those talks with family and friends about school next week and my own kids, I come here as an escape from that.lol So I'm not trying to be rude. I feel like I misread the room and need to get out before I piss everyone off.lol

The gate revenue is in the millions upon millions. That’s too much too walk away from two years in a row imo. Cheers no issues here.

 

[oilers'72]

Sorry, first time I've seen that question.. did you ask me or did someone else?

Pro and Junior teams stay at the hotel for 1 or 2 nights. A World Jr team stays there for at least 7 days (Czech) or 10 (Canada).

I don't like the IIHF but the hotels were run by the Oilers (I posted that somewhere here).

They cancelled the women's U18 and Spengler (which isn't IIHF, NHL or Oilers) for these reasons. The only way Jr's would've worked was in the same bubble as Playoffs a few years ago, last years Juniors or last years womens worlds which all went exceedingly well.

Also, by pro I assume you mean NHL - well that didn't work out, did it? How many AHLer's are in the league right now, taxi squads are back, pro on pro olympics shelved and most nights there are as many games postponed as there are played. No Buchnevic, JP or Nurse last night. So I'm not calling no bubbles for the pros successful.

1 or 2 nights over several hotels/motels. I don't know about any teams going through Edmonton or Red Deer getting Covid. As well, how many teams catch Covid at home or playing other teams? No Buchnevic, JP or Nurse because of protocols, not because of illness. How many of the players out are out because of protocols and how many because they're actually ill? Flu bugs have caused more illness, and over a longer period, than Omicron has. No bubbles, or isolation, for the flu.

For all I know, I may have caught Covid, as I was as I had periods of off and on flu symptoms back in October. Nothing since.

 

[Stoneman89]

Everyone who comes near the building had to be vaccinated, player, coach, fan, or worker. Everyone has been fully vaccinated and are following guidelines as best as they can. Personally, I have had 6 freaking shots this year - 1st and 2nd Covid, then booster, 2 shingles shots, and a flu shot. I feel like a god-damned pin cushion. This virus is proving very transmissable (traits just like the common cold), and a way less deadly than the Delta (ICU numbers continue to come down) What was the f***ing point of doing all of this and sacrificing the last 2 years if we can't start moving forward and live with this?

 

[Drivesaitl]

I feel bad for the fans of other countries that paid for tix, hotel, plane fair to travel to a place that is under extreme cold warning, and in the end don't even get any games to watch.....what a holiday season for them.

Bang. Exactly. hardly anybody else thinks about the normal joes, the fans that support all this.

The World Juniors and IIHF have taken another huge hit with this. its not a given that people will continue to care about something. Wouldn't surprise if they lost 90% of the fans that came out unless they are specifically connected to National club players. if you're just a fan you chalk this up to plain stupid and never do it again.

 

[oilers'72]

Bang. Exactly. hardly anybody else thinks about the normal joes, the fans that support all this.

The World Juniors and IIHF have taken another huge hit with this. its not a given that people will continue to care about something. Wouldn't surprise if they lost 90% of the fans that came out unless they are specifically connected to National club players. if you're just a fan you chalk this up to plain stupid and never do it again.

All international tournaments should be suspended until Covid's disappeared altogether. Even getting one positive will cause the IIHF to cancel everything. Their doctors are obviously Covid Zero and are probably being led by Stephen Duckett.

 

[Whyme]

It seems most western countries have made pretty much the same mistakes with this whole thing. Some countries seem more scared and it seems Canada is definitely one of them.

Now a bit of positive news about the virus:

I've been suprised to see that there's now actually been several articles here in Finland that state that Omicron seems clearly milder.

One article said it seems 40-60% milder than Delta and another mentioned children in hospital having covid (so many would draw wrong conclusions), but in the actual article the doctors said even the unvaccinated didn't have symptoms and they found covid by accident (=children came to the hospital for other reasons and then they were tested).

There's also articles (like I guess there in Canada too) in which South African doctors state omicron has indeed seemed mild.

Now there was an article about an area in Estonia that had a very high occurance of covid earlier, the article says that area seems to have herd immunity now.

 

[BlackDogg]

This makes far too much sense for the IIHF

And its not like they shouldn't have expected some positives like Staples said (basically that it blind sided them)...the "authorities and experts" have been predicting another wave for the past two months. These journalists are just useless and pander to whoever they have to.

Plus, is it impossible to reserve some extra rooms so they wouldn't have to bunk together or is it cheaper to just cancel and fly everyone back home on short notice?

What a colossal failure on so many levels.

 

[BoldNewLettuce]

Everyone who comes near the building had to be vaccinated, player, coach, fan, or worker. Everyone has been fully vaccinated and are following guidelines as best as they can. Personally, I have had 6 freaking shots this year - 1st and 2nd Covid, then booster, 2 shingles shots, and a flu shot. I feel like a god-damned pin cushion. This virus is proving very transmissable (traits just like the common cold), and a way less deadly than the Delta (ICU numbers continue to come down) What was the f***ing point of doing all of this and sacrificing the last 2 years if we can't start moving forward and live with this?

Politics Schmalllatics.

The health system is there. The laws are there.

Covid is exposing this sham of a society as a nice addition to the deaths and epidemic hysteria.

 

[tardigrade81]

They’re projecting by 2035 after the 65th booster, juniors should be back in action!!

 

[BlackDogg]

They’re projecting by 2035 after the 65th booster, juniors should be back in action!!

Man I'm still choked at this....who wants to watch in July when the days are long and everyone's busy or working. These are dead of -35C winter days when there are 4 games in a row. I could care less about them having one in July tbh.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Man I'm still choked at this....who wants to watch in July when the days are long and everyone's busy or working. These are dead of -35C winter days when there are 4 games in a row. I could care less about them having one in July tbh.

My son flew back to Belgium this afternoon on KLM from Edmonton International to Amsterdam direct. He said there are a ton of the Junior players on the flight. The 18 year olds were in the bar and the under 18s were pissed off they couldn’t be in the bar lol.

 

[tardigrade81]

Man I'm still choked at this....who wants to watch in July when the days are long and everyone's busy or working. These are dead of -35C winter days when there are 4 games in a row. I could care less about them having one in July tbh.

100 percent. I actually said the same thing today.

We have the oilers to make us happy….. that’s no kind of life. Lol but seriously it sucks man I’m done with Covid.

 

[Stoneman89]

Man I'm still choked at this....who wants to watch in July when the days are long and everyone's busy or working. These are dead of -35C winter days when there are 4 games in a row. I could care less about them having one in July tbh.

I won't be watching. Too many things to do outside during our short summers.

 

[AM]

pfft.. like the Czechs have 5 extra players that can play at that level... we don't even have 20 to begin with.haha

Jokes aside, I feel the exisiting bubble system would've worked great. Edmonton is great at that. No roomates in hotel rooms. No wedding receptions in the players hotels or old people refusing to mask up in the same elevator with the players.

Normally I'd even put some blame on the players for 'catching it'. I don't think they were out partying. I think they followed the protocols. Same with the 5 refs that were announced today as having caught it as well.

Maybe omicron has a high r0?