When it comes to meaningful international hockey, the world junior tournament really has the playing field pretty much to itself these days.
Sure, there are other noteworthy men’s and women’s events on the hockey calendar: The Spengler Cup. The ongoing Rivalry Series between Canadian and American women. The IIHF world championship in the spring.
In terms of international hockey that really moves the needle for a large number of Canadians on a regular basis, however, it’s the world juniors.
This year’s event in the Czech Republic, which begins Thursday, is as interesting as it gets. Canada has won just one gold and one silver medal in the last four years. Gone are the days of utter dominance, which has added intrigue to the tournament.
The two top candidates to go first overall in the June NHL draft, meanwhile, are left winger Alexis Lafrenière of Rimouski and towering Sudbury centre Quinton Byfield, and they’ll both suit up for Canada. As well, all the Canadian NHL clubs will have drafted players involved. For Leafs fans, it will be a chance to watch Rasmus Sandin (Sweden) and Nick Robertson (U.S.).
All the elements are there for a really interesting competition, at a time of year when a lot of Canadians have the time to park themselves on the couch and watch. It’s become a dependable TV event.
In the bigger picture, the annual impact of the world juniors also serves to illustrate vividly just how completely the NHL has abandoned the international scene. In fact, you could argue that international hockey is at its lowest ebb since Canada backed out of the Olympic movement a half-century ago.
From a North American perspective, there is simply little to get excited about internationally these days, particularly when it comes to men’s hockey. The NHL is out of the Olympics again and has shown its commitment to the World Cup is as flimsy as we suspected it was all along.
By the time another such tournament is held, possibly in 2024, it will have been eight years since the best players in the world represented their countries in a meaningful event. The last such best-on-best collision was the 2016 World Cup, and that was anything but a stirring success, partly because this tournament has little tradition and no reliability. To find a truly memorable competition involving elite players from the top hockey countries in the world, you’d really have to go back to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Compare the current situation to the quarter-century between 1972 and 1996. That was a golden era for international hockey fuelled by the white-hot rivalry between Canada and the Soviet Union. There was the famous Summit Series, five very good to superb Canada Cups, a Rendez-vous series and the inaugural World Cup. There were also some unforgettable games between NHL and Soviet clubs, notably the 1975 New Year’s Eve clash between the Montreal Canadiens and Red Army and the ’76 “They’re Going Home” contest between the same Soviet squad and the Philadelphia Flyers.
There were also seven Winter Olympics competitions without NHL players during that era, including the unforgettable Miracle on Ice in 1980, the Calgary Games in ’88 and the fierce competitions in Albertville and Lillehammer. During that period, meanwhile, the world juniors also emerged as a major event, at least in North America.
If you loved international hockey, it was an incredible time to be a fan.
When Gary Bettman came to office, the NHL wanted to increase its participation in international hockey. Specifically, it desperately wanted to be part of the Olympics. Well, the energy and initiative of those days is now but a memory.
Today, the NHL only has interest in international hockey when it’s convenient. The league’s labour problems and collective bargaining disputes take priority. Moreover, the NHL no longer hides the fact that its only interest is to make money, not to spread the gospel or “grow the game.”
There is still a chance the NHL could return for the 2022 Olympics in China, but it seems unlikely unless the International Olympic Committee drastically changes its approach and offers the NHL a bunch of incentives to participate.
Whether all this is good or bad depends on how you feel about international hockey. It’s important to remember the golden era happened before large numbers of Russians, Czechs, Swedes, Finns and Slovaks began to populate NHL rosters. Before that, these players and their national teams were novelties. They played a different style from North Americans.
Today, there are more non-Canadians than Canadians in the NHL, and all countries play a similar game. There are more than 100 Swedish players for the first time ever, and countries such as Switzerland, Denmark and Germany are contributing significant players. Last year’s top goalie and Hart Trophy winner were Russians.
NHL fans see the best talent from around the world every week of the season. They don’t have to wait for global tournaments.
Get more opinion in your inbox
Get the latest from your favourite Star columnists with our Opinion email newsletter.
When it comes to the Olympics, only a small portion of NHL players actually participate, which is why, despite all its caterwauling, the NHL Players’ Association didn’t make the Olympics a priority in the last round of collective bargaining. NHL owners, meanwhile, no longer see the Olympics as an opportunity, but rather as an unnecessary distraction.
So what are we left with? The world junior tournament and the often stirring clashes between the Canadian and American women at the world championships and Olympics.
That about sums up international hockey today from a Canadian perspective. Unless the NHL somehow gets interested again, that’s how it’s going to stay.
