OTTAWA—The World Cup of Hockey, last staged in 2004, brings back the tradition of the old Canada Cup, in which the strongest hockey nations competed with their best players. Since 2004, the most compelling international hockey has taken place at the Winter Olympics. But not anymore.
While some purists may take umbrage with the term “World Cup” given continental teams like Europe and North America, what’s more important is that every attempt has been made to make this World Cup of Hockey a best-on-best international tournament.
Playing in the World Cup is a big deal. Just ask Team Canada forward Brad Marchand. When he got the call to join the team, he said it was the best call he could have received.
“I teared up right away and everything kind of balled up into one emotion,” Marchand said after Monday’s practice. “The years of training and dedication all came down to this and I was so proud to be part of this team.”
On international hockey’s biggest stage, the situation in soccer—where a legendary talent like Ryan Giggs never played in a major international tournament because his nation (Wales) never had the depth to qualify—has been remedied.
Now deserving players like L.A. Kings captain Anze Kopitar of Slovenia and Mats Zuccarello of Norway can face hockey’s superpowers with a quality supporting cast as their respective nations are blended into a continental team of sorts.
