WJC: Open Letter To Canadian Hockey Fans

[Frederik95]

Specific to the OP. I focus on narrative in spoken word or writing. What you wrote is not just a letter. Something of this nature should probably be written as an Essay. At least inasmuch as your primary thoughts should be expressed early in the writing, and indeed they are. But if reading this as an essay, vs a letter its problematic, because I have trouble getting beyond this early paragraph;

"However, each year. it also brings out the bad side of a few people. It’s especially true for a few Canadians, who feels an entitlement towards the whole tournament. Their view on nations like Denmark, Austria, Germany, and Switzerland is that they are nations that bring nothing to the tournament and only tarnish the reputation of the Juniors since they aren’t on the level of the very best nations."

The above is harshly worded to those Canadians and from the outset of your letter it prevents it from making any impact with those alleged Canadians, rather, it targets them and makes unkind assumptions about them. Even suggesting that they are bad people. Which I suppose wasn't your cognitive intent in writing that. Perhaps you don't write naturally in English. I don't know.

Sorry, but that is an ineffective letter, or appeal, and your choice of how you conveyed that paragraph renders your letter ineffectual. An appeal to just the collective love of the game, without singling out any particular group, or nations fans, would be better received. just my feedback.

I fullly get that and that paragraph is the one thing i wish i could change. I could have made it much clearer what the point i wanted to make was an make sure that, it, first of all, is okay for them to have said views and that this far from represent Canadians as a people. My intent was far different and i wanted more so to just showcase my views on the debate from a less common angle. English isnt my first language and while i do write a fair bit in English, i never done an open letter before which i guess is why it has tendancies to an Essay more so than Letter.

Thanks for the feedback and i will take that to heart for sure

 

[waitin425]

As a Canadian, I want you to know that I want nothing but the best for hockey in your country OP. I love the world juniors and have truly enjoyed watching some of the "smaller" hockey nations battle it out year after year. I would welcome even more teams into the tournament.

Add two more to the list of teams. Teams like Latvia and Kazakhstan or France and Slovenia can be fun to watch as well. Would have loved to see Denmark in it this year. I usually root for Germany after Canada.

 

[Stubu]

Open letter to Canada:

Please ignore the trolls who whine about reffing.

(For us Finns it's usually Zamuz and Erik, every year, every tourney, every GDT, but we still love them dearly. No matter how embarrased and face-palming the rest of us are. We love.)

 

[sandysan]

Im not saying winning isnt important. It is. However for the smaller nations something else is important as well and if you ask me more important. Its growing the game, so that eventually nations that currently has no chance of beating Canada, might have a shot in 30 years. Building for the future is more important than the now imo, and that was the meaning of that headline. Not to say that winning isnt important since it helps grow the game as well. Heck a win over Canada would send the Danish program into overdrive, so winning matters. Its just second to growing the game

I admire your commitment to the long game, but lets just look at the other things that apparently " grow the game". Remember torino ? that was a while ago and everyone said it had everything you need to grow the game. it was a fantastic bust, it didn't grow anything.

The problem is this is NOT an indivudual sport. Every nation has the ability to produce top end talent. what they do not have is the ability to produce top end depth, and when teams like germany produce guys like Stutzle, they still have to play 3 and fourth lines with players that have realistically zero chance of competing in the worlds most talent laden league. That ISN'T true for traditional hockey powers.
how long are we going to wait ? A century for the possibility ( which is dependent on lots of other factors) that country X might be in a position where they could win 1/10 games against a hockey powerhouse ?

and when parity goes away, what we get is the ladies game where there are two countries that are good, and then a huge chasm and everyone else. the entire tournament is nothing but mutual self gratifiucation until the us and canada meet. It Doesn't grow the game to know that the outcome of a tournament is nothing but window dressing.

And the purpose of sporting competition IS to win. period. having teams exist to hope that they catch lightining in a bottle every year does not grow the game, because they don't catch lightning in a bottle every year.

And I still don't understand your position, if the idea is that the more countries there are in the tournament the greater the potential for growth, then why limit it to where it is now ? Lets see canada put up a century on israel or trinidad and tobego. The IIHF already excludes these massacres ( you might want to ask yourself why) arguing whether the current system is the best way to go, isnt arrogance.

We all can agree that, despite the potential to grow the game, that there are some matchups which should not be contested because the outcome is guaranteed before the game commences. this is NOT an exhibition like the globetrotters and the generals. but what you are seemingly saying is that when we consider where the line should be, it has to include YOUR favored teams and if people come to the conclusion that your team simply lacks the depth to be able to compete, that this is a defacto arrogant position. which is not true.

 

[Stubu]

Denmark and Norway as the nothern nations. More centeal european its Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia, Lativa and Germany.
While not all is watching kids hockey, the first televised game in 25 years in Denmark was the from the Juniors so clearly there is some following and demand for it in those countries

Let's hope it's growing in the Nordics and Baltics! I want to see an Icelandic, Estonian and Lithuanian team out there too in the games someday.

 

[sandysan]

Seems misguided. I don't know anyone that doesn't want Germany, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland in the tournament. In fact, I wish there were even more teams. How much fun would this tournament be if it was just Canada, the US, Russia, Czech Rep, Sweden and Finland? Wouldn't be worth watching. The author of that open letter is completely right except for one thing: no one is looking down their nose at you. It makes Canadians super happy to think other nations love the sport we love. Can't wait for the day we look up to Denmark and wish we were as good as them at hockey.

and if you are saying you can't wait till Canada looks up to Denmark, you might want to pull up a comfy chair chief.

 

[Stubu]

As a Canadian, I want you to know that I want nothing but the best for hockey in your country OP. I love the world juniors and have truly enjoyed watching some of the "smaller" hockey nations battle it out year after year. I would welcome even more teams into the tournament.

Add two more to the list of teams. Teams like Latvia and Kazakhstan or France and Slovenia can be fun to watch as well. Would have loved to see Denmark in it this year. I usually root for Germany after Canada.

I feel you.

 

[BruinDust]

If you could somehow do a top 6 (CAN-SWE-RUS-USA-FIN plus one) in a championship pool and a bottom 4-6 in a qualifying pool that would benefit the tournament. The qualifying winner moves up to the championship pool the following year.

A top 6 championship pool would make this tournament far more watchable. Every team plays each other and almost every game is competitive. The top 4 make the playoff round.

This is obviously a Canada-centric view but it also benefits the other top nations. I've found this year's tournament to be a complete bore with the pool Canada was in. The tournament basically doesn't start until the semi-final.

Problem with that format is you can be guaranteed at some point one of the "Big 5" would finish 6th and be relegated to the qualifying pool. It actually would probably happen relatively often. Canada has finished 6th under the current format 2 of the past 5 tournaments. Would be even more likely with a round robin of only evenly matched teams.

Can you imagine say the tournament was hosted in Canada and Canada was in the qualifying pool having finished 6th the year prior? TSN and the IIHF would loose their minds at the money they would be losing out on.

I think the tournament is fine as it is. You can see the growth of other nations like the Swiss, Germans, Danes, Belerus etc. The interest globally in the tournament grows each year. Most of these kids wouldn't trade the experience for anything in the world, blow-outs or no blow-outs.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Even though at a more micro level .. people want to see two good teams battle it out... I think at a macro level everyone should realize how important it is to be inclusive to grow the game and expose talent.

 

[Notsince67]

I wrote an open letter to all Canadian hockey fans. Just like you, Europeans from smaller hockey nations love the World Juniors. It's an amazing tournament to watch and in its current structure, it helps the entire hockey world. Even if it comes at the price of a blowout from time to time. So to those wanting to stop the blowouts by removing teams from the juniors or recreate Team Europe. Please take a second to read the perspective of someone from a nation that isn't fighting for gold, but something completely different and let me know what you think of it. Dear Canadian Hockey Fans

The only issue of a Dane team is the training.
Hint...the dark side is stronger

 

[Drivesaitl]

I fullly get that and that paragraph is the one thing i wish i could change. I could have made it much clearer what the point i wanted to make was an make sure that, it, first of all, is okay for them to have said views and that this far from represent Canadians as a people. My intent was far different and i wanted more so to just showcase my views on the debate from a less common angle. English isnt my first language and while i do write a fair bit in English, i never done an open letter before which i guess is why it has tendancies to an Essay more so than Letter.

Thanks for the feedback and i will take that to heart for sure

Thank you for the reply. Your written English is fine, its just that I note that narrative composition can be impacted depending on what language is natural to an individual. The paragraph I quoted was proper English, just that you conveyed things in it that I believed not to be your intent.

But still your love of the game and what the Tournament can be is conveyed.

I'll add that this tournament is of course very uncharacteristic. Normally the World Juniors has a more international feel of celebration and its the fans that give it that, travelling to it from around the hockey world. That is part of the fun of this tournament and tragically missing in this one. So that some of the comments this time out would be uncharacteristic to what the tournament typically means to people, and to people that have experienced it in person.

I live in Edmonton, and it is surreal being detached from the bubble. First we had the NHL playoffs, most of it, hosted here, but could not indulge, attend, just watch on TV as if it were somewhere else. Now the World Juniors, and its right here, but it could be on another planet as you can't get near it. I look forward to the next tournament hopefully being more of a celebration again.

Its sad that we built the new arena, the entertainment district, with visions of large celebrations, gatherings and these biggest events are occurring in Rogers Place and at a time and place where we are not allowed to gather even outside. This is the opposite of the field of dreams I guess. Build it and they cannot come!

 

[sandysan]

Even though at a more micro level .. people want to see two good teams battle it out... I think at a macro level everyone should realize how important it is to be inclusive to grow the game and expose talent.

expose talent or expose depth ?
because its the latter that leads to medals.

and if you REALLY wanted to expose talent, what is the problem with solving the depth problem with aggregate teams from non traditional nations ? At least initially ? this position is reviled by the same people who want inclusion.

if you are going to let in depth poor teams in, you are going to have blowouts and I am still wholly unconvinced that hoping for the 5% fluke chance a depth-poor team beats a team with depth grows anything other than resignation but the players and the fans.

this ISN'T gatekeeping, its the recognition that there are systemic differences currently ( and likely in the future) between nations. could those differences change ? sure, they could. Which way they could change is still very much up for debate at least in my mind.

 

[Slats432]

Don't use THN as your reference...that is your first bit of advice. I love the underdog. Don't change the tournament.

 

[RandomTask26]

1) I am addressing the original author and anyone else that believes the entire nation of Canada needed an open letter because of something Cox said
...
This will be my last post in this thread because I can see that no meaningful discussion will come out of it. Had I not commented on this post, people would naturally assume that a majority of Canadians are dissatisfied with the tournament and want the weaker countries out. That is the potential damage of having click bait articles like this, so of course I am going to get “pissy” when I see someone trying to take advantage of casual hockey fans that don’t know better.
...
But again, this is my last post in this thread because my only intention was to determine whether this article had any merit. That question has been answered with the Cox tweet, so I will respectfully back out of this discussion now.

You mention "Cox tweet" twice; he posted more than just that tweet. And just reading this tournament board, there are many people talking about blowouts. Seems like you're cherrypicking Damien Cox when the OP posted more than just that.

And why take offense to an open letter? There are some valid points in the letter, and also a lot of interesting info (I never would have expected the World Juniors to be nationally televised in Denmark).

And thanks for commenting so people don't "naturally assume that a majority of Canadians are dissatisfied"

Overall I thought the letter was interesting; most posts come from people living in the major hockey powers so always nice to read something from the more up and coming countries!

 

[kyne]

I remember a time when the Swiss would get completely trashed by Canada. Not so much today. Where there was only two or three top teams a few decades ago, now there are five or six that can win the tournament and the overall quality of play has improved considerably even among the so-called lower tier teams. I see it as inevitable that Germany joins the pool of elite teams. It took a lot of blowouts to get there. Let Austria, Belarus, Denmark, France learn each time they get pummeled and get better.

 

[Mickey Marner]

The WJC will always have lopsided scores because you're limited to 2-4 births years. Mens competition is closer when you have access to a greater pool of players. The only reason this tournament is even a big deal is because TSN banked their existence on it. When they first purchased the rights to the WJC they were a shitty sports channel that mostly broadcasted drinking games like darts and billiards.

10 teams is a fine number. You need at least 8 to continue using this bracket system and it gives the relegation teams something to play for.

 

[tantrum]

I wrote an open letter to all Canadian hockey fans. Just like you, Europeans from smaller hockey nations love the World Juniors. It's an amazing tournament to watch and in its current structure, it helps the entire hockey world. Even if it comes at the price of a blowout from time to time. So to those wanting to stop the blowouts by removing teams from the juniors or recreate Team Europe. Please take a second to read the perspective of someone from a nation that isn't fighting for gold, but something completely different and let me know what you think of it. Dear Canadian Hockey Fans

Well said Frederik! It's all about perspective and I happy that you shared yours!

 

[Dirtyf1ghter]

International hockey has never been more interesting. USA and Russia are getting closer year after year to the level of Canada to form a top 3. Then there is Sweden and Finland, which are at their peak. Soon (again) joined by Czechia and Slovakia who seem to have regained new vigor. Finally, Germany and Switzerland produce players who are intended to play in NHL. At the senior level, there are already 6 major nations (teams composed entirely of NHL players) including 2 dream teams (squad exclusively composed of star NHL players) and 3 middle nations (half of the players play in NHL). 9 strong and credible teams. International hockey would benefit from expanding but has never been so balanced and it will be even more so in 10 years.

 

[FlyerFire]

As a preface, I am an American hockey fan. I have so much respect for Canada and it's fans despite being an extremely patriotic American ( despite its flaws ). Their knowledge and dedication to the sport is unrivaled world wide. As a hockey nation, we are still so far behind not only Canada but many other nations as well. Basketball ranks higher in the USA. Baseball and Football rank way higher as well. I think if Canada is the best at hockey then they should be shown more respect than is presented here. Just my .02

 

[Toene]

Just call it a win after a 7 goals difference. What's the point after that? It's just uncomfortable for everyone : the winning team, the losing team, and the spectators.

 

[sandysan]

Just call it a win after a 7 goals difference. What's the point after that? It's just uncomfortable for everyone : the winning team, the losing team, and the spectators.

the iihf is driving these blowouts by valuing goal differential. and you will have a hard time convincing the people who want increased inclusion to accept a mercy rule because they are convinced that losing 16-1 one year and 13-2 the next will without question " grow the game" in the country of the team that got embarassed, twice.

 

[Smif]

I've never heard a Canadian say in person that they wanted fewer teams in order to avoid blowouts. You see it online sometimes but people love to complain online. If the number of teams was reduced we'd be hearing about how unfair it is that the weaker teams never have a chance to even play.

I have. My brother is one of them.

 

[Smif]

I wrote an open letter to all Canadian hockey fans. Just like you, Europeans from smaller hockey nations love the World Juniors. It's an amazing tournament to watch and in its current structure, it helps the entire hockey world. Even if it comes at the price of a blowout from time to time. So to those wanting to stop the blowouts by removing teams from the juniors or recreate Team Europe. Please take a second to read the perspective of someone from a nation that isn't fighting for gold, but something completely different and let me know what you think of it. Dear Canadian Hockey Fans

I'm a big advocate for the lower caliber teams and I couldn't agree more with everything you said. I hope teams keep improving and rather than decreasing the amount of teams in the top division we can increase them. More teams equals more games, right? Win.

 

[iCanada]

Nothing to do with how many teams make the cut, but having the WJC in Europe more often would likely mean European countries doing better overall.

I don't know the politics or rationale of why it is in Canada so often, but at the very least countries like Slovakia, Sweden and Germany deserve to be the home team a few times every century.

It's in Canada all the time so that the tournament breaks even / makes money.