NHL cautiously optimistic about 2021 World Cup.

[JackSlater]

Well, all I can say to everyone here and the players and powers that be that think hockey absolutely needs it and must have it is best of luck, seems like a lot of hurdles to overcome.

What is "it"? The World Cup? It's incredibly easy to hold a best on best World Cup. No one needs it, but that's true of pretty much all aspects of all sports.

 

[jj cale]

What is "it"? The World Cup? It's incredibly easy to hold a best on best World Cup. No one needs it, but that's true of pretty much all aspects of all sports.

Both.

As for the world cup, having it is no problem, but the event having genuine international cache is a different story.

 

[TOGuy14]

Wonder if they will still keep the young guns team idea. With the way the league is gravitating towards youth players these days that team would likely be the most dominant in the tournament

 

[JackSlater]

Both.

As for the world cup, having it is no problem, but the event having genuine international cache is a different story.

It really isn't. Hold it every four years, August/September, best on best and thus no gimmick teams. Done. You'll get people whining on here about it, but that's largely irrelevant and also changes (in many cases) once their team wins the tournament. The Canada Cup had "genuine international cache" and that tournament wasn't run nearly as well as it should have been.

 

[jj cale]

It really isn't. Hold it every four years, August/September, best on best and thus no gimmick teams. Done. You'll get people whining on here about it, but that's largely irrelevant and also changes (in many cases) once their team wins the tournament. The Canada Cup had "genuine international cache" and that tournament wasn't run nearly as well as it should have been.

Well i certainly cannot disagree with you here when you say once their team wins it will suddenly become a legit tournament for them, that is pretty much a given.

Perhaps we should throw them the next one on the sly and stoke the fires.

 

[Henkka]

Wonder if they will still keep the young guns team idea. With the way the league is gravitating towards youth players these days that team would likely be the most dominant in the tournament

Don't think so.

That 2016 kid team looked great, because it was so fast and old NHL was slow.

There isn't that edge anymore. Also current prime players are fast.

 

[mattihp]

Teams will be made depending on what major foods the players like.

Team Pepsi
Team Coca-Cola
Team Taco Bell (With the legendary chant "Yo quiero, Yo quiero!"
Team McDonalds
Team Burger King
Team Wendy's (who wants a square puck)
Team Arby's



Kidding aside, last world cup showed that the NHL does not understand international competition and we would be better off to never see the World Cup again. Make it go away, please.

 

[RamboZambo]

Most interesting "gimmick teams" would be splitting Canada in Three Teams.

Team Quebec
Team Ontario
Team WHL

Split the players in terms on which CHL league you were drafted as a Canadian. Or if you wasn't drafted, then the area born.

I'm not sure if this would draw any interest for Canadians, but it would give some Memorial Cup All Star feelings on the same tournament, when these guys play against each other as adults.

When I looked some basic data, Team Ontario and team WHL Canada would be two top teams in forward scoring power, just sligthly better than USA. Sweden would be 4th best. Then Quebec would be at level of Finland/Russia.

You can build ~17 different Team Canadas from NHL players, so I think that's the way to go, rather than put some put European small countries together.

And I wouldn't give a team for Switzerlands, Germanies at all. They just won't have enough players and World Cup during a season affects on European Leagues. The permit to have a National team would be that it has to consist NHL players only, and if your Nation hasn't produced them enough in NHL, then you won't participate.

CAN, USA, RUS, SWE, FIN and CZE fill these standards.

Quebec vs. Ontario? How would that feel?

Group A
-------------
Team Ontario
Team Quebec
Sweden
Finland

Group B
-----------
Team WHL Canada
USA
Russia
Czech

To draw attendance, build groups this way. Quebec pulls full home crowd at Quebec/Montreal, Ontario pulls full home crowd at Toronto. Put WHL Canada play games against Russia and Czechs in Vancouver/Edmonton/Calgary.

USA plays in USA major cities, Chicago/New York etc. Sweden-Finland in Toronto. Russia-Czechs in Madison Square Garden.

It's business. Maximize the people's interest. Maximize Canadian interest. It's still their game.

Horrendous

 

[RamboZambo]

My proposal:

Group A: Team World
Team OHL
Canada
USA
Team AHL
Team NHL(Players who aren t nominated for this cup)

Group B: Team KHL(With only former NHLers)
Team Europe
Sweden
Finland
Czech
Team Future(Top U23)

 

[Theokritos]

The NHL is really trying hard to destroy their "World Cup of Hockey" brand.

 

[BOS358]

I don't think they have to try much harder. Having the second edition right before the lockout destroyed any brand value that might have remained from the previous eight years.

 

[Jussi]

Breaking down the format for a potential 2021 World Cup of Hockey - Sportsnet.ca

Pretty much what I expected the NHL to eventually go with.

 

[Gold Standard]

mini-tournament is a gimmicky format. I'll just ignore that just like I did with the 2016 gimmicky team tournament. What a bunch of turkeys.

 

[BOS358]

Hmmm...a gimmicky tournament held by the NHL during the All-Star Break...why does this sound familiar?

 

[24 others]

There is a famous taxonomy, coming from one of Borges' books - Borges writes about a "certain Chinese encyclopaedia" where animals are divided into following subgroups:

(a) belonging to the Emperor,
(b) embalmed,
(c) tame,
(d) suckling pigs,
(e) sirens,
(f) fabulous,
(g) stray dogs,
(h) included in the present classification,
(i) frenzied,
(j) innumerable,
(k) drawn with a very fine camelhair brush,
(l) et cetera,
(m) having just broken the water pitcher,
(n) that from a long way off look like flies

I very much hope that NHL will use this logic when announcing teams for the next World Cup!!

 

[TheGoldenJet]

You know what would have been even more amazing to watch? Connor McDavid playing with and learning from Crosby/Towes...Matthews/Eichel playing with and learning from players like Kane/Suter.

Maybe that would have been an amazing final. a final worth the title of World Cup.

no regrets not tuning in. and if they come up the same or other gimmicks, I'll tune out again.

Same. They turned international hockey into a joke last time around.

 

[Jahara]

Same. They turned international hockey into a joke last time around.

The format used in World Cup 2004 was more of a joke. A dull tournament with a crappy Germany and a dull Slovakia not contributing anything and still made it to the knockout round. Was that better? No.

That NHL didn't release their players for the Olympics last time was an even bigger joke.

 

[Canadienna]

So depressing.

I just want to go back to the good ol' days. Olympic hockey. A true best on best event bringing nationalistic pride, coverage of hockey across the world, and the most intense games I've ever watched as a hockey fan.

Trying to cram it all into an all-star break and creating gimmicky teams would be fun and I'd be fine with it if it wasn't going to be used as a placeholder for the Olympics.

 

[TheGoldenJet]

The format used in World Cup 2004 was more of a joke. A dull tournament with a crappy Germany and a dull Slovakia not contributing anything and still made it to the knockout round. Was that better?

Definitely.

It was international hockey with best-on-best international rosters.

 

[goonybird]

They HAVE to go back to a proper format to have any legitimacy.

Maybe have proper qualifiers. and make it only every 4 years. hosted at some sort of major international event where the world spotlight is upon it, even non-hockey fans!

 

[JackSlater]

I don't think that the tournament needs or realistically should have qualifier matches. Use actual national teams, no roster restrictions on those teams, use IIHF rankings as a proxy. Six or eight teams. Hold it every four years.

 

[JETZZZ]

At this point, Id prefer a small World Cup every winter (except Olympic years) over one large one in September. If the NHL wants to make it NHL players only, limit the field to 6 nations and no gimmick teams. That is already a huge improvement over what we have now. They probably wont want to axe the All Star Game (because $) so move it to pre-season.

 

[jj cale]

At this point, Id prefer a small World Cup every winter (except Olympic years) over one large one in September. If the NHL wants to make it NHL players only, limit the field to 6 nations and no gimmick teams. That is already a huge improvement over what we have now. They probably wont want to axe the All Star Game (because $) so move it to pre-season.

I don't understand the six team thing. Canada,U.S,Russia,Finland,Sweden, Czech Republic but no Switzerland who have about as strong a 23man roster as the Czechs do now.They deserve a chance to fight it out with the best of them.

I think not including them is a sizeable oversight.Germany,Slovakia, Latvia can can round out the eight team field by IIHF ranking.

 

[JETZZZ]

I don't understand the six team thing. Canada,U.S,Russia,Finland,Sweden, Czech Republic but no Switzerland who have about as strong a 23man roster as the Czechs do now.They deserve a chance to fight it out with the best of them.

I think not including them is a sizeable oversight.Germany,Slovakia, Latvia can can round out the eight team field by IIHF ranking.

Now in a real World Cup, Id absolutely prefer 8 teams over 6 (hell, 10, 12, 16, whatever), but since its an NHL tournament, they would want all rosters to be made up of 100% NHL players. Otherwise, they would have to arrange to have KHLers and other euro leagues brought in, which is probably going to cost the NHL money to get them there.
At least having 6 countries is better than gimmick teams. Also, fewer teams means less moving parts for the NHL to choke themselves with.

 

[Elvs]

Breaking down the format for a potential 2021 World Cup of Hockey - Sportsnet.ca

Pretty much what I expected the NHL to eventually go with.

World Cup 2016:
Czech Republic = 3 games 1 W, 1 OTL, 6 goals, 3 points.
USA = 3 games, 0 W, 3 L, 5 goals = 0 points.

Sportsnet:
"Czech Republic isn't competitive enough and don't score enough goals . They shouldn't be in the tournament".