Bjorn Le
Hobocop
Hockey doesn't really either. Its not like Canada is churning out hockey players who are in an unrivaled level of athleticism. So why would the U.S. need its super athletes to choose hockey to compete with the Canadian program? I just don't see hockey as a sport that really relies on super athleticism nearly as much as some others.
I'm not saying the U.S. will ever overtake Canada, but I certainly don't think hockey would have to surpass any others as far as popularity goes for it to happen.
Super-Athlete does not mean just athleticism. It's talent, and a drive for the sport from an early age. Unless hockey becomes much more popular, that drive as a child won't be as strong, and you won't get a player like Crosby or Ovechkin. Basketball and Football are the only sports in the US that really make those on a consistent basis. Baseball has tonnes of stars but no one player who dominates the sport like they used to.
For the US to have one of these super talents, they'll need a player who from an early age all they wanted was hockey, an also had the talent and athleticism to go along with it. A raw combination in Canada, even rarer in the US. It's the culture, and the US doesn't have that. They'll produce a super talent eventually, but they'll never produce more than a few.
Tons. Baseball is America's sport just like Hockey is Canada's. Baseball is becoming very popular all over the world, more so than Hockey, it's pretty much the #1 sport in several spanish speaking countries as well, Japan is huge on baseball, and it's slowly gaining ground in Korea and the Netherlands. Hell, the Toronto Blue Jays will be more popular than the Leafs soon, I guarantee it.
Name them.
And I'm not sure what your other points are. Baseball has been very popular in many Latin countries for a long time, and it has been in Japan for a very long time as well. That's not changing. In the US however it's losing popularity very fast, and Korea and the Netherlands I would consider on the same level as Australia for hockey. Sports growing in those countries, shows no signs of stopping, but it'll take a very long time for it to get even close to level of the top countries.
And the Blue Jays will never be more popular than the Leafs. In the late 80s and 90s when Toronto lived and breathed baseball, the Leafs were still more popular (With the Jays selling out all 81 games with 50,000+ people). The Jays will never reach that level again (They'll come lose if they become a contender again), and the Leafs will never lose popularity.