Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

Where The World Cup Of Hockey Players Started

08/08/2016 at 12:53pm EDT

from Tal Pinchevsky of ESPN,

When the 2016 World Cup of Hockey kicks off on Sept. 17, the best players from around the globe will vie for international hockey supremacy.

A deep dive into the eight rosters assembled for this tournament offers a glimpse into where the world's best hockey players come from -- not simply which country develops top hockey talent, but which individual programs form the most prolific NHL pipeline.

ESPN.com examined each World Cup roster, including players who will miss the tournament because of injury, to find which programs are the top NHL incubators. Here is the list of the world's top hockey factories.

London Knights

It makes sense that this list would start with the Memorial Cup champions. In total, 33 Ontario Hockey League alumni were selected to compete in the World Cup, outpacing any other developmental league. Every World Cup team will ice at least one former OHL player. Among Canadian junior teams, the Knights, Kitchener Rangers and Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League lead the competition with five players each. London sticks out by virtue of the names it has developed, including Patrick Kane, John Tavares and John Carlson, although Tavares only played 38 total games for the Knights.

continued

Create an Account

In order to leave a comment, please create an account.

About Kukla's Korner Hockey

Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.

Email Paul anytime at [email protected]

Most Recent Posts

Most Recent Comments

Comment by EthrDemon in Abel to Yzerman from the entry Still In It For Bubble Teams In The East - 3 hours ago
Comment by Steeb in Abel to Yzerman from the entry Still In It For Bubble Teams In The East - 4 hours ago