So, Lets Discuss this "World Cup" Nonsense for a Second...

[onlyalad]

Stop getting so upset with pre season hockey. That is all this is. The NHL is just trying to charge more to watch preseason games. So they take some players and mix up the teams. Create a bunch of false hype. Sell the games to ESPN and charge more for tickets.
NHL makes more money. NHL teams get away with playing scrubbier scrubs because their stars are away.
That gives them better looks at young guys.

 

[Curufinwe]

I don't know but I think many Canadian hockey fans would be happy if Team North America won. Who doesn't want to cheer for the young guys and it would be a perfect novelty ending for a novelty tournament.

Speaking as a Flyers fan from a country that will never be involved in any important hockey tournament, that would be a great result.

 

[Gary Nylund]

Oh yes, I has talking from my domestic point of view. And the sport would obviously continue existing even here in some form, but marketing -> salaries -> competetive players -> marketing would be quite a death spiral wreaking havoc among the FEL teams.

Regarding NA, I'd like to believe that the exotique brought by the skillful Russians & co it at least a thing in NHL's competition against NBA and suchlike, and the occasions when the national jerseys are dressed on by the same players only helps to tap into the international rivalry to both side's benefit. A merely bi-national hockey league would mayhap be missing an edge or something on the American markets. It needs a bit Kovalchuk.

Good luck for the weekendy experiments on magic potions to understand the language of reindeers. May I suggest you to try some Jagrmeister; there's some kind of elk on the label at least.

Thanks for the tip. I now go for Fernet Branca when I'm in the mood for that sort of thing, it's quite nice.

 

[FiLe]

Or then it's all negotiating tactics from both sides. They seem to have made the problem to be now about the participation costs, instead of the former unspecified hiccups they had. Our own Kummola of IOC seems to be hopeful of a solution that allows the NHL players continued participation in a recent news article, one that sees IOC paying for it. It would seem to allow everyone a graceful retreat from the showdown.

One thing raising an ire in us the international audience is that going to this way NHL would effectively be making out national leagues a layer of their own farm league system without even the payback of allowing us to see our best sons to don on the national jerseys in a non-NHL mandated environment every now and then (that's not played at 2 am).

There's a league-wide NHL clause as is in the FEL that has occasionally burned the teams when an important player under a FEL team contract has ditched for the dollar league. This spring we've seen a FEL team go bankrupt and thrown out of the league and another, very traditional one almost not getting a license due to economic issues. Meanwhile Tappara and Kärpät could make it with their marketing angle of Laine vs. Pulju playoffs on the heels of the WJCs. It's not too far-fetched to say the continued existence of the international hockey of inter-nation kind of is a question of survival for the sport.

When competing with their rival national leagues, NHL would do good to remember the benefit of the international pool of players they have compared to some of the more strictly American sports and play ball to an extent to keep it viable in the future too. That may mean to catering a bit for the possibly emerging hockey nations. Everyone loved seeing Team Switzerland pull above their weight recently and there is something symbiotic to be seen in having Matthews grow in their NLA now.

I just wanted to quote this post to say that it pretty much nails to describe this entire schism there exists between the NHL and most European hockey fans. We simply wish to see a regularly-held tournament where all of our best play against the other countries' best - and think that it would benefit the NHL as well. The NHL cold shouldering the international side of things would of course not make the league collapse, but it's hard to see how it would be a league as good as it is if it doesn't every once in a while scratch the Europeans' hockey itch as well. Quite a slice of the league's talent is from the old continent these days, and it's hard to see how anyone would claim it's not a better league because of them.

And yes, while we can't demand the NHL to do anything like this, release the players for some international event or another, it would still feel mighty unsporting regardless to no longer see them play for their home country in an agreeable environment and an agreeable timeslot.

Also, if it's future NHL participation in the olympics only about the existing participation costs, it's hard to see how the IOC would not pony up the cash in the end. They would potentially lose much more than they save by doing the other thing. I wonder if it's some kind of negotiation tactic - refusal to pay the costs gives the NHL a convenient reason to withdraw which they can then tout in public, but it also draws the limelight away from any other demands they may have. However, if the IOC agrees to pay in the end anyway, the NHL would appear horribly unscrupulous if they THEN started to talk about the other things when the story that far has been all about the existing costs and the IOC's refusal to pay them. It would make league seem as if they've just been looking for excuses all along.

 

[Lempo]

An extra hiccup for the EU folks may be the EU legislation in form of the Television without Frontiers directive:

Under current EU Law, Member States have the right to designate international sporting events of ‘major importance for society’ and to nominate them for broadcast on free-to-air television channels in that particular country. Each Member State must submit its free-to-air list to the European Commission for review and verification that its identified events are compatible with EU law.

In case of Finland the ice-hockey matches of the Finnish national team along with the semifinals and finals of the IIHF-organized international men's tournament and the Olympic Games are deemed to be such majorly important sporting events. We have recently felt the burn in what that actually means as the tax-funded public service broadcaster Yle lost the rights of WHCs to commercial broadcaster MTV who put all the other games behind the paywall.

This fall's World Cup isn't on the list and we are yet to find out from the holder of the broadcast rights Viasat what part of it, if any, will be free-to-view. Discovery's recent taking of the European-wide Olympic rights also from Yle and decision to keep specifically the ice-hockey exclusively on their own channels will likely be another bummer.

If NHL manages to impose itself as the organisator of a comparable tourney, it will the very least be an extra hassle to have NHL-organized events to be added to that list, especially so if the rights are already been held by a commercial broadcaster who'll get haughty over it.

It's well I guess to say the prospective viewers to just pay for the channels, but the fact stands that the games are a national institution that literally half of the population tunes into watch. And that's the proper literally, not the teen girl one.

 

[xxxx]

Any hockey tournament with the best players playing at their best level and with their best effort possible is meaningful and has value. Any tournament that is viewed as valuable to players is valuable to me.

Players clearly take World Cup much much more seriousy than the World Championships, which is btw the real joke if you're looking for one to point at. Even though I enjoy it and it's interesting hockey, it's still about who wants to play and who's available, and besides maybe Russia, there is not a single country where EVERYONE would want play no matter the circumstances. Many players, and clearly even from european countries, simply avoid this tournament because of "injury", NHL contract, they want to rest, etc. That is clearly not the case with the World Cup. Everyone wants to be there and it's a privilege to play there. You all who are thinking that it will be like AS game with no heart/effort/intensity/passion, etc.,; please watch at least a period from one pre-tournament game, because I can guarantee you you will be proven wrong immediately.

 

[BruinLVGA]

Any hockey tournament with the best players playing1. at their best level and with their best effort possible is meaningful and has value. Any tournament that is viewed as valuable to players is valuable to me.

Players clearly take World Cup much much more seriousy than the World Championships, which is btw the real joke if you're looking for one to point at. Even though I enjoy it and it's interesting hockey, it's still about who wants to play and who's available, and besides maybe Russia, 2. there is not a single country where EVERYONE would want play no matter the circumstances. Many players, and clearly even from european countries, simply avoid this tournament because of "injury", NHL contract, they want to rest, etc. 3. That is clearly not the case with the World Cup. Everyone wants to be there and it's a privilege to play there. You all who are thinking that it will be like AS game with no heart/effort/intensity/passion, etc.,; 4. please watch at least a period from one pre-tournament game, because I can guarantee you you will be proven wrong immediately.

1. If that will turn out to be the case (by the way, your phrase is a perfect description of the Olympic Games).
2. How do you know that? You cite injury + the employer's order + an a 82 games season (="want to rest") as excuses. They simply aren't.
3. A) When your employer says "do it", everyone "wants" to be there... B) it's still better to play a World Cup than simply train/exercise and play preseason games....C) injury + tiredness from a whole NHL season, on the contrary to the World Championship, isn't a factor, seeing it's held BEFORE the season. That helps with wanting to be there.
4. I severely doubt it will even be shown here. So far, zero hype + interest shown by media.

 

[xxxx]

1. If that will turn out to be the case (by the way, your phrase is a perfect description of the Olympic Games).
2. How do you know that? You cite injury + the employer's order + an a 82 games season (="want to rest") as excuses. They simply aren't.
3. A) When your employer says "do it", everyone "wants" to be there... B) it's still better to play a World Cup than simply train/exercise and play preseason games....C) injury + tiredness from a whole season, on the contrary to the World Championship, isn't a factor, seeing it's held BEFORE the season. That helps with wanting to be there.
4. I severely doubt it will even be shown here. So far, zero hype + interest shown by media.

2. If you are tired to represent your country then it proves my point that players won't participate at this tournament because it's simply not that important. Some players go, despite the circumstances, and some don't, because they decided not to. I respect that, of course. Maybe the term "avoid" that I used in my previous post, is too strong, but simply the tournament isn't that important, for many of them, to show up. Karlsson, Zetterberg, Ekman-Larsson, Soderberg, Kronwall, Ericsson, D.Sedin, H.Sedin, Landeskog, L.Eriksson, Zibanejad, Backlund, Rask, Lindholm, Larsson, Brodin. Neither of them represented Sweden at the Worlds, even though they were available. Were they all injured? Obviously not. If the olympics were in the exact same time, in May, players like Karlsson or Zetterberg or the Sedins would automatically go.


3. World/Canada Cup has always been a big deal for players.

 

[FiLe]

3. World/Canada Cup has always been a big deal for players.

And you think it's the name of this tournament which will make players care about it this time as well? The label won't help squat if it's not the same event on the inside, which it obviously isn't since it ain't even international.

We shall see in September how big of an honor the players consider it to be that they'll have to beat made-up teams in their quest to gold rather than real rival NTs. Maybe they try regardless, but it takes very special train of thought to claim that does not take away from the prestige.

 

[BruinLVGA]

2. If you are tired to represent your country then it proves my point that players won't participate at this tournament because it's simply not that important. Some players go, despite the circumstances, and some don't, because they decided not to. I respect that, of course. Maybe the term "avoid" that I used in my previous post, is too strong, but simply the tournament isn't that important, for many of them, to show up. Karlsson, Zetterberg, Ekman-Larsson, Soderberg, Kronwall, Ericsson, D.Sedin, H.Sedin, Landeskog, L.Eriksson, Zibanejad, Backlund, Rask, Lindholm, Larsson, Brodin. Neither of them represented Sweden at the Worlds, even though they were available. Were they all injured? Obviously not. If the olympics were in the exact same time, in May, players like Karlsson or Zetterberg or the Sedins would automatically go.


3. World/Canada Cup has always been a big deal for players.

2) Well, like most things in life, it's not a black or white situation. Some folks might go at one point, and decline for the next. Some might go all the time, some might not want to go most of times, some might not want to go at all.
As I said, injuries, NHL restrictions, tiredness after an 82 games season... These are all real things and good motives not to be able to participate at a World Championship.
Your examples are valid. But there can be others that point otherwise: Duchene participated in 3 out of the last 4 World Championships. The only one he missed was because the Avalanche made the playoffs and he wasn't therefore available, otherwise he probably would have made it 4 out of 4... Crosby, Seguin, Spezza, Giroux, Hall (multiple times), Stamkos, PK Subban, etc etc all went to the World Championship.... The Sedins in 2013 made the travel from Vancouver to Sweden just in time for only the last game of the World Championship (it was the gold medal game). Why travel half a world for 1 game, if the interest is that little?
Also, another thing that goes against the World Championship is that it's held every year. Hard to muster the same mystique of the Olympics, irregardless of who is there to play. But I think that the players value them enough to be willing to participate at least once, if not more (<- Europeans probably a bit more than North Americans).

3) well, we will just have to wait and see. The three things that make me doubt the most that this is going to be such a great deal, is that... A) there isn't any restrictions on pro players at the Olympics anymore, which was a thing that made most of those tournaments unique... Now, this World Cup is just trying to be a copycat of the Olympics... B) this is the first time there's gimmick teams; the presence of these lower the seriousness of a tournament... C) I would like to hear the vibe about the World Cup from those in Europe whose nations are represented. So far, I heard nothing here. I doubt that zero interest (or minimal) in those nations would make the European players care THAT much.

 

[Lempo]

C) I would like to hear the vibe about the World Cup from those in Europe whose nations are represented. So far, I heard nothing here. I doubt that zero interest (or minimal) in those nations would make the European players care THAT much.

I could get legitimately excited of the tourney IF I knew that the NHL participation in the Olympics was secured, rather than living with the risk that the success of this tourney could ruin the international hockey as it exists currently. I want no part in that.

I'd love it as a special Canadian take on what it is to organize a high-class international tourney with the best teams everyone can gather for one. Well not the Yanks, obviously.

I don't yet have any solid info on the televizing of the event, which curbs the enthusiasm quite effectively. If Viasat (the broadcast rights holder) is looking to fleece me for watching on a could-be-only-three-games tourney, yeah that's isn't gonna happen.

 

[RobBrown4PM]

So which country has bragging rights if Team North America wins

Seriously this entire tournament is stupid and I pray it falls flat on Bettman's bulgy cheeks

 

[BruinLVGA]

I could get legitimately excited of the tourney IF I knew that the NHL participation in the Olympics was secured, rather than living with the risk that the success of this tourney could ruin the international hockey as it exists currently. I want no part in that.

I'd love it as a special Canadian take on what it is to organize a high-class international tourney with the best teams everyone can gather for one. Well not the Yanks, obviously.

I don't yet have any solid info on the televizing of the event, which curbs the enthusiasm quite effectively. If Viasat (the broadcast rights holder) is looking to fleece me for watching on a could-be-only-three-games tourney, yeah that's isn't gonna happen.

Thanks for the insight. Yeah, making this as a pay per view event, would mean instant failure in Europe, I think.
As I said, in Switzerland no mention of this anywhere. That's not much of a surprise seeing that Switzerland isn't there.

So which country has bragging rights if Team North America wins

Seriously this entire tournament is stupid and I pray it falls flat on Bettman's bulgy cheeks

 

[MessierII]

If they have jersey ads I boycott.

 

[WinterEmpire]

If they have jersey ads I boycott.

Already confirmed that they will. Hence why I am boycotting

What a ****IMG disaster of a tournament. NHL needs to hear the negativity loudly

 

[Lempo]

https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-commis...s-on-world-cup-jerseys-a-possibility/c-751077

"The World Cup jerseys don't have the same legacy as far as I'm concerned that our regular jerseys have," added Bettman, who was in Vancouver to watch the Canucks host the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night.

O-kay then.


I hope they advertise beer.

 

[Lempo]

So you went in for to challenge the Olympics. But Karjala Tournament and the Euro Hockey Tour are kind of okay peers too.

Sunny Trading. Fair Pay.

 

[BruinLVGA]

https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-commis...s-on-world-cup-jerseys-a-possibility/c-751077



O-kay then.


I hope they advertise beer.

LOL @ Bettman playing down the legacy of this World Cup. Even he doesn't seem to attribute this legendary status to this World Cup that some fans in here have so often talked about. It sounds like a "ads on jerseys? Why not, after all this thing isn't that sacred".
Not a money grab either, right? Ahahah

 

[Lempo]

LOL @ Bettman playing down the legacy of this World Cup. Even he doesn't seem to attribute this legendary status to this World Cup that some fans in here have so often talked about. It sounds like a "ads on jerseys? Why not, after all this thing isn't that sacred".
Not a money grab either, right? Ahahah

I was rather getting worked on the fact that Adidas' designs for the World Cup lean heavily on pre-existing established looks of the national teams, sporting the actual national emblems on them. His vocally and explicitly considering them to be some second-tier things in comparison to NHL's team jerseys is to me single most convincing argument against NHL being the ones responsible of organizing international hockey.

Of course, you can slap on the national jerseys with ads, as witnessed on the pic I posted, without too much ado, but NHL explicitly using the national jerseys here for a test drive before bringing ads onto their actually important cherished team jerseys in the wake of NBA... I feel like these guys are playing some sort of horrible joke on me, because they certainly can't be for realz, can they?

Of course, the whole "so we're looking for eigth Mils from the jersey sponsor, could maybe go for six", while the prospective sponsors are like "yeah we don't really know if anyone's really interested of the thing" raises questions of who the joke here is really on.

edit: The Bettman quote seems to be from Nov or Dec (it's terrible hassle to find out on mobile when Sabres were @Canucks on Friday), so from before Adidas announced their designs for WC. Or, the classic NT jerseys with some stripes added, if you want to be mean. It may be he was looking forward to some abominious hijaloofins with ready ad spaces at the time.

 

[JackSlater]

I forgot about the ads on jerseys. It's already confirmed as a joke tournament due to the gimmicky frankenstein teams, the ads just make it worse. This tournament could well be the harbinger of both NHL withdrawal from the Olympics and ads on NHL jerseys. It would be great if it fails.

 

[SidDidNothingWrong]

I like watching hockey so I'll be watching.

 

[Tom Collins]

If you wanna boycott this for ads on jerseys you better not be defending the World Championships.

What Canadian doesn't know the name Zepter? Any of those same fellow Canucks able to tell me where the closest location for that company is?

How. On. Earth. Would ads on jerseys affect the game at ALL?

 

[Yackiberg8]

Already confirmed that they will. Hence why I am boycotting

What a ****IMG disaster of a tournament. NHL needs to hear the negativity loudly

The NHL is going to have advertisements on their jerseys as well. Does that mean you are going to start watching the European leagues? Oh wait, they all have advertisements on their jerseys as well. I guess you are stuck with boycotting all hockey, sucks for you but you will have the last laugh by sticking it to the NHL right?

The 2 "gimmick" teams will not last long term. This is a trial run for the tournament which was implemented quickly so people need to quit the constant complaining and take it for what it is for this one time. I can't wait to see Team NA play. If they win then it will be very cool to see. This is not the type of tournament to put all of your national pride into but you would be foolish to not cheer for your country's team or in the case of European countries not represented, Team Europe. Have fun with it, this is obviously not going to be the format if this becomes the only best-on-best international tournament. If that's the case then all fans will no doubt call for changes to be made. But for this one time, a tournament with 8 competitive teams is going to be fantastic. It's too bad that there weren't 8 countries who were consistently competitive which is why we should enjoy the uniqueness this tournament will bring.

The soccer references are ridiculous too, soccer is a much more global sport than hockey and the parity is much higher. This is why they have so many teams enter the tournaments and the games are, for the most part, all competitive.

If you are a hockey fan then watch the tournament and enjoy it. If you are a bitter crybaby who thinks you are proving something by not watching then don't watch and you will be missing out on a great tournament.

 

[Lempo]

If you wanna boycott this for ads on jerseys you better not be defending the World Championships.

What Canadian doesn't know the name Zepter? Any of those same fellow Canucks able to tell me where the closest location for that company is?

How. On. Earth. Would ads on jerseys affect the game at ALL?

The ones on WHCs are very subdued, with colors that don't argue with the looks otherwise. Doesn't bother at all. But I think it's good policy to be a bit on the wary side before giving the pinky to the devil, just in case he'll take the whole hand. Let this spring's FEL champion and the projected nr 2 of the NHL Draft of 2016 demonstrate:

And anyways, don't the Western hemisphere audiences just love knowing the IIHF Men's World Ice-Hockey Championships as Skoda Cup, after the very visible main sponsor... I advice caution when picking yours.

"Cup of Pepsi"

 

[Tom Collins]

The ones on WHCs are very subdued, with colors that don't argue with the looks otherwise. Doesn't bother at all. But I think it's good policy to be a bit on the wary side before giving the pinky to the devil, just in case he'll take the whole hand. Let this spring's FEL champion and the projected nr 2 of the NHL Draft of 2016 demonstrate:

And anyways, don't the Western hemisphere audiences just love knowing the IIHF Men's World Ice-Hockey Championships as Skoda Cup after the visible main sponsor... I advice caution when pickimg yours.

No kidding, that's quite the jersey Laine's got there. It's impossible to say it wouldn't be irritating if they went that way, but I don't imagine the NHL going that crazy. They've got to know jersey sales will have a correlation to how cluttered they make them.

But it could help pump sales of ad-free auxillary merch like scarves, hats, flags, shirts, etc a-la soccer. So maybe they do go nuts with it?

Edit: Lol, Mastercard Memorial Cup is already cringeworthy. I'm just dreading the days of, "The Stanley Cup, presented by Ryobi"