By JOSH HELLER
Executive Editor
Let’s be honest: the NHL’s World Cup of Hockey is a total money-grabbing gimmick by the NHL.
But does that mean I won’t be watching it? Heck, no.
The World Cup starts this Saturday, Sept. 17, and there were pre-tournament friendlies earlier this week. Both Team USA and Team Canada start their action on Saturday, with the Americans facing off against the Europeans at 3:30 p.m., while the Canadians play the Czech Republic at 8 p.m. Meanwhile, the North American 23-and-under team starts Sunday the 18 against Team Finland at 8 p.m.
The tournament features Group A and Group B, with the Group stages running from Sept. 17 through Sept. 22. Group A features Teams Canada, Czech Republic, Europe, and USA, while Group B features Teams Finland, North America, Russia, and Sweden. Then, the single elimination semifinals run on Sept. 24 and 25, while the best-of-three final takes place on Sep. 27 and 29, and Oct. 1. Let’s run through each big team, and see who could make some noise at this tournament.
First up in Group A is the powerhouse, Team Canada. The biggest storyline when it comes to Team Canada is the return of Carey Price, arguably the best goalie in the world, to the ice. Even after their controversial offseason decisions, the Montreal Canadiens could contend in an otherwise weak Atlantic division if Price is able to stay in the crease.
Canada lost some of their top players in Duncan Keith and Jamie Benn to injuries, but they are bar-none one of the best teams in the world, and they’ll show it over the next month or so. The only shocker would be if Canada doesn’t make it to the semis.
The next dangerous team from Group A has to be Team USA. The top story surrounding the Americans has got to be the questionable personnel decisions. Some notable names were left off the team, like Phil Kessel, Justin Faulk, Tyler Johnson, and Kevin Shattenkirk. Meanwhile, some grittier players, like Justin Abdelkader and Brandon Dubinsky, made it over the players with world-class talent.
Team USA has a very strong goalie trio in Ben Bishop, Cory Schneider and Jonathan Quick. Quick has been leaned on heavily in the past, but head coach John Tortorella, a storyline to watch himself, is going to have a tough choice to make regarding his goaltender, as Bishop and Schneider had very strong seasons last year. Team USA will definitely contend for the Cup, but if it doesn’t work out for them, prepare for the scrutiny toward the team’s executives and their decisions.
In Group B, the team that could possibly be the most entertaining is the under-23 North American team. Many thought this team was the most gimmicky thing the league could have done in this tournament. And for that reason, many people chose North America, also named “The Young Guns,” as their team to root for. I’m one of these people.
Don’t get me wrong: come the Olympics, Team USA is my team. But in this tournament, when Team USA was assembled poorly, North America is going to make it very fun to watch.
The 23-and-under team consists of young, up-and-coming superstars like Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, as well as this year’s top draft pick, Auston Matthews. The Young Guns are going to be a fast team. The biggest question mark is going to be goaltending, and if Matt Murray plays this tournament like he did the Stanley Cup Playoffs, watch out for Team North America.
While Team Russia could also make some noise in Group B, the team I look at after North America has got to be Team Sweden. Along with one of the top goalies in the world, Henrik Lundqvist, Team Sweden has a very, very deep squad, with some of the world’s best, like Erik Karlsson, Victor Hedman, and Nicklas Backstrom, to name a few.
Sweden is always one of the finalists in any world hockey competition, and I don’t expect this World Cup to be any different.
When it comes to any international tournament as short as this one, there is one key to a team that can win you the tournament: a hot goalie. Since each team is only playing a max of seven games, the entire tournament can be thought of as one round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And in any round of the playoffs, a goalie standing on his head can get a team through to the next round, or in this case, a World Cup.
One thing that I want to see is one that isn’t talked about very much: if Team North America or Team Europe win the tournament, what does the league do about their anthem?
Usually, when a nation wins an international tournament, they receive their medals, and all stand together and listen to their anthem. One small problem: there’s no anthem for the entire continents of Europe and North America.
If the Young Guns win, it won’t be quite as hard to pick an anthem, as you only have representatives from two countries. However, with Team Europe, there are eight nations represented: Denmark, Germany, Slovakia, Switzerland, France, Slovenia, Austria, and Norway. If the Young Guns can’t win the World Cup, please let it be Europe, just so I can see what happens.
Overall, the World Cup of Hockey is the NHL’s excuse to put more money in the owners’ pockets. This is a training camp for many players, and it’s sad that a tournament like this is going to present so much injury risk, and someone is more than likely going to get hurt.
But I’m still going to enjoy this week-and-a-half tournament, as it means we’re that much closer to hockey, and a day closer to hockey is a day closer to happiness.
