Marko Dano

[CBJWerenski8]

We are never going to agree so I'm not gonna argue. All I'm gonna say is if I'm an owner and a 20 year old wants to play for his country and gain experience im not saying no.

Easier said than done when you're not the one paying the kid millions of dollars and investing a first round pick on the kid.

 

[Faterson]

The World Championships and Olympics are nothing more than exhibitions whether people like that fact or not

These games definitely aren't considered "exhibitions" in any sense of the word over here, (to quote you:) "whether you like it or not". NHL teams are free to hire only US and Canadian players for whom international tourneys may mean nothing (I doubt that, too), but if you hire a European player, consider their desire to play on the national team part of the bargain. European players are expected to "give back" to their country by playing on the national team, and they'd be the target of public ill-will in their native country if they declined. (Which, by itself, refutes the claim of these tourneys being "exhibitions". A truly irrelevant all-star exhibition tourney will be Bettman's World Cup in September 2016, with its absurd setup.)

 

[stevo61]

Sure these clubs invest millions but its also the players that fan come to see or whos jerseys they want to buy so its not a 1 way street. Just because you have them under contract doesn't mean you own them, these are adults who can decide if they want to play or not. Im sure that looks really appealing to someone on the outside of a club like that thinking the ownership feels like they own them.
In Anisimov's case yes, Id make a fuss about that. He went in with a known injury but fact is every team is dealing with this.
Plus youd see more things like this: http://www.thehockeynews.com/articl...ahead-of-himself-with-tough-Olympic-talk.html

 

[Fro]

playing in this means more to them than it does to us...repping your country is a HUGE accomplishment...it doesn't deserve to be **** on b/c you disagree with it...yeah, it sucks, but like every other injury we've had this season, it happens...he'll be just fine in 4 weeks...doesn't hurt our camp for next year

 

[SuperGenius]

What a strange argument.

Hockey players play hockey. It's what they do.

You cannot lock a player in a room and 'protect' them from everything. These are young guys with lives to live for goodness sakes. Whether they're working out, goofing around with a hackey sack or playing for their country, sometimes stuff happens sometimes it doesn't.

I mean, if we're talking base jumping or something, yeah, I get it...but hockey? come on.

 

[NotWendell]

Hockey players would rather stay in shape by playing hockey than lifting weights and all those other non-hockey things we've seen in the pregame videos this year.

 

[ca5150]

I'm OK with our guys playing in the World Championships and Canada Cup or World Cup, as it may be. What I'm not in favor of anymore is the Olympics, I do not want the NHL going to the Olympics anymore. It's in the middle of the season, makes the NHL schedule too difficult, and there is no time to heal from injuries. I hope with the upcoming World Cup, they will get rid of the NHL players in the Olympics.

 

[We Want Ten]

You typically don't get better at something by doing it less.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

You typically don't get better at something by doing it less.

All those international tournaments Ryan Johansen has gone through.

 

[Cyclones Rock]

The NHL season is plenty long enough to develop a player. 82 games, 10 exhibitions and these things called playoffs in which many teams regularly participate provide sufficient repetitions.

 

[Tulipunaruusu*]

The Russian National Teams were real teams. There are other national teams today which play together for entire seasons. The World Championships and Olympics are nothing more than exhibitions whether people like that fact or not-they're not teams in any real sense of the word.

Finland for example prepared for these games (as usual) playing as many exhibition games as Columbus veterans play in their pre-season. With most NHL aids already added into the squad at that point. NHL's regular season preparation is downright pub league in comparison if that isn't impressive.

Add other international games (including mini tournaments) to World Championship games and you have European internationalists then playing between 10 to +20 games where European elite players (and minor NHL names for a few games) are competing for places or medals and honing the overall tactical plan.

European team's don't name tournament head coaches for a reason. Instead you have usually one of the biggest coaching names leading the effort with full-time contract.

Overall, that is quite decent preparation given that these are professional ice hockey players not wearing particularly red jackets when turning out for their own hockey cultures.

 

[stevo61]

All those international tournaments Ryan Johansen has gone through.

Yeah it was pretty fun watching him at the WJC

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Yeah it was pretty fun watching him at the WJC

Which was before he was an NHL player.

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Which was before he was an NHL player.

I got no dog is this fight but that wasn't your point when you made it originally.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

I got no dog is this fight but that wasn't your point when you made it originally.

I could care less if Dano or Johansen or Joe Blow play in international tournaments before they are signed to their ELC (or if they're returned back to juniors after signing their ELC). But once they do, they shouldn't play in international tournaments. Is that better?

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

I could care less if Dano or Johansen or Joe Blow play in international tournaments before they are signed to their ELC (or if they're returned back to juniors after signing their ELC). But once they do, they shouldn't play in international tournaments. Is that better?

You're asking the wrong person. Your snarky and ultimately inconsistent comments were made to stinger and steve.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

You're asking the wrong person. Your snarky and ultimately inconsistent comments were made to stinger and steve.

Wasn't meant to be snarky and it's not inconsistent. But I'm sorry you feel that way, I guess.

 

[KlichkoBro*]

Easier said than done when you're not the one paying the kid millions of dollars and investing a first round pick on the kid.

You care about money and picks of your NHL team, but forget that every European country spends tons of money to raise those players. Especially countries like Russia and Belarus, where a lot of people can't afford even to buy a hockey gear for their kids. And those countries want to see their home grown players on their national teams.
Players are not slaves. I'm really pissed off that I can't see Hrabarenka and Grabovsky playing for Belarus. NHL teams are paying them to play during the NHL season and when it's over they should become a free people again. The NHL teams shouldn't have any impact on players decisions to play or not for their country. But since they do have an impact I'd have rather see Bob and Arty healing their injuries.

 

[CBJx614]

You care about money and picks of your NHL team, but forget that every European country spends tons of money to raise those players. Especially countries like Russia and Belarus, where a lot of people can't afford even to buy a hockey gear for their kids. And those countries want to see their home grown players on their national teams.
Players are not slaves. I'm really pissed off that I can't see Hrabarenka and Grabovsky playing for Belarus. NHL teams are paying them to play during the NHL season and when it's over they should become a free people again. The NHL teams shouldn't have any impact on players decisions to play or not for their country. But since they do have an impact I'd have rather see Bob and Arty healing their injuries.

Just because its the offseason doesnt mean their contracts magically go out the window. They're still getting paid and still rely on their team to make a living.

I gotta agree with Wennberg, once you've signed your ELC and know you're heading to the pro's you have to put all the other stuff to the side and focus on making and staying in the NHL. Playing international hockey, on Olympic sized rinks isnt helping your game in the NHL. Theres a reason why more and more big name players are skipping out on the WC. Its not worth the risk for them to get injured overseas when they have a commitment to not only the CBJ management, but to 20 other guys on the team that are depending on them.

Lets say Bobrovsky tears his ACL and misses most of the season next year..i bet a lot of you would change your minds real quick.

 

[Cowumbus]

So Marko Dano.. Feel bad he got hurt hopefully it dosent hinder him. Really feel he will do even better next year. I don't think he gets the sophomore slump

 

[cslebn]

Just because its the offseason doesnt mean their contracts magically go out the window. They're still getting paid and still rely on their team to make a living.

I gotta agree with Wennberg, once you've signed your ELC and know you're heading to the pro's you have to put all the other stuff to the side and focus on making and staying in the NHL. Playing international hockey, on Olympic sized rinks isnt helping your game in the NHL. Theres a reason why more and more big name players are skipping out on the WC. Its not worth the risk for them to get injured overseas when they have a commitment to not only the CBJ management, but to 20 other guys on the team that are depending on them.

Lets say Bobrovsky tears his ACL and misses most of the season next year..i bet a lot of you would change your minds real quick.

It's all about what's in your contract really. If it's not prohibited then let them go. High risk players should have clauses to protect the team.

Good examples include the recent Winston context that prohibits baseball. or nick O'leary and motorcycles. Then add in watching the number of injuries from summer basketball in d leagues where players get hurt a lot vs international play which is safer.

 

[CBJx614]

It's all about what's in your contract really. If it's not prohibited then let them go. High risk players should have clauses to protect the team.

Good examples include the recent Winston context that prohibits baseball. or nick O'leary and motorcycles. Then add in watching the number of injuries from summer basketball in d leagues where players get hurt a lot vs international play which is safer.

Im just glad they made Wennberg stay with his recent string of injuries and just about everyone else declined

 

[Crede777]

I don't understand why European fans and players care so much about the WC. North America doesn't and I think that will be the deciding factor in the NHL's stance.

While they are free people, the IIHF has determined that a valid NHL contract means a player is subjected to that team's and league's rules regarding everything pro hockey. If the NHL and clubs don't allow players to play at the WC, players can do whatever they want except play hockey at the WC. Likewise, players can't have a contract with both a KHL team and NHL team, it is usually one or the other.

 

[Faterson]

Theres a reason why more and more big name players are skipping out on the WC.

Wishful thinking? Look at the current Canadian squad in Prague. It's basically a legitimate NHL All-Star selection. Canadian teams at the Worlds are always star-studded, but particularly this year.

Practically the only country not taking the Worlds entirely seriously are the US... it's typical, somehow (see football World Cup or Formula 1 racing as other examples; in some regards, Americans seem to be living in a sort of isolation from the rest of the planet). Conversely, sports that are huge in the US are considered boring, niche or second-tier by the rest of the world (baseball, American football, NASCAR, basketball...).

I don't understand why European fans and players care so much about the WC.

Well, I don't understand how that can be difficult to understand. Imagine that all of America's finest basketball players would play in the Russian basketball league, in a competition involving Russian cities, because that league would pay the players best and would feature all the world's best basketball players. Would you care about that Russian league, would you be a hardcore Moscow or Novosibirsk fan? Sure, if you were a diehard basketball fan. Otherwise, not really.

Yet you automatically expect European hockey fans to be interested in a domestic hockey league on a different continent, involving competition between North American cities. I assure you that casual European hockey fans don't really care about the NHL or the Stanley Cup. They want to see their best players compete for their national team, because only national team games matter to them. An Olympic title or World Championships title means a thousand times more to Slovak hockey fans than any Stanley Cup title, even if a Slovak player like Chára captains the Cup-winning team. There's a sense of the NHL having "pilfered" all our best players. Seeing our best players compete for the national team is practically the only "retribution" European hockey fans can get.

 

[KlichkoBro*]

Just because its the offseason doesnt mean their contracts magically go out the window. They're still getting paid and still rely on their team to make a living.

I gotta agree with Wennberg, once you've signed your ELC and know you're heading to the pro's you have to put all the other stuff to the side and focus on making and staying in the NHL. Playing international hockey, on Olympic sized rinks isnt helping your game in the NHL. Theres a reason why more and more big name players are skipping out on the WC. Its not worth the risk for them to get injured overseas when they have a commitment to not only the CBJ management, but to 20 other guys on the team that are depending on them.

Lets say Bobrovsky tears his ACL and misses most of the season next year..i bet a lot of you would change your minds real quick.

I hate when people mix money and moral in the same sentence. You speak of financial obligation? That's OK. Every player that plays at the WC is insured. You won't pay him if he gets injured.
You speak of commitment to the 20 other guys on the team? That's laughable. They have a commitment to millions of people in the country where they were raised and learned how to play the game..

Theres a reason why more and more big name players are skipping out on the WC.

Crosby and Malkin are playing there right about now. Look at that Canada team roster. That's a Stanley Cup winning offense. The Jackets top-paired Savard is a bottom-paired D on that team.