Articles in International Hockey

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from The Athletic,

It appears unlikely that Russia (or Belarus) will be reinstated while the war continues. Sweden, Finland and Czechia (among the top European nations) have made it known that they’d withdraw from any competition if Russia or Belarus is allowed back in....

One thing that was clear over the past several weeks as The Athletic spoke with Russian athletes around the NHL: While the war and the politics of being a Russian living outside Russia during it are conversational nonstarters, the reality of losing the opportunity to compete on the world’s biggest stage is emotional.

This was a dream for these athletes — the same as it was for Canada’s Connor McDavid or the United States’ Auston Matthews.

“(Kucherov) is like 30 now and he never was in the Olympics and he’s one of the best hockey players in the world,” Kaprizov says. “It’s hard for him, and I think it’s hard for everybody. We have to watch on TV as other NHL guys play in these international tournaments.

“To think I may never get to again and some of my friends from Russia may never — it just doesn’t seem fair.”

much more

“I don’t like the notion that these guys are representing their country,” Madden said. “You want to represent your country, join the army. This is just a hockey tournament, and (1980 Team USA coach) Herb Brooks agreed with me. In fact, he said all that first, (just) not in so many words.”

Madden also predicts the situation with Russia might remain sticky as well.

“Unless Russia plays, it’s a meaningless tournament. I know everybody has their knickers in a twist over them attacking Ukraine. I don’t like to see sports and politics mix,” Madden said. “I mean, they’re the No. 2 hockey power ever besides Canada, and arguably No. 1. What kind of tournament is it if they’re not involved? The same goes for that phony-baloney 4 Nations cup they’re having next year.”

Tim Benz of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has more.

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

So the league that should have set the template for international competition and having a global presence is back in the best-on-best business and that is news worthy of celebration.

For while the Stanley Cup reigns supreme, the dirty secret is that Bobby Orr flying through the air on that Boston afternoon in May 1970 is a mere footnote attached to a list of hockey’s greatest moments that were forged on the world stage.

There’s never been anything as dramatic as the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the USSR in which Paul Henderson grabbed on to the brass ring of immortality. Unless we are talking about the “They’re Going Home!” game at the Spectrum between the Flyers and the Red Army in January of ’76. Or maybe the 1980 Miracle On Ice Olympics in Lake Placid.

How about the 1996 World Cup best-of-three final round in which Team USA took out Canada in the final minutes of the decisive match in Montreal to win its lone best-on-best title on Brett Hull’s disputed goal that Glen Sather still refuses to recognize? Of course there are the 2010 Games in Vancouver that featured Sidney Crosby’s overtime Golden Goal.

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from Helene Elliott of the LA Times,

NEW YORK/TORONTO (Feb. 2, 2024) – The National Hockey League (NHL) and National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) today announced a new event for the 2024-25 NHL season: the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, which will feature international tournament play between NHL Players from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States. The 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off will take place in February 2025 in two North American cities – one in Canada and one in the United States. NHL All-Star Weekend will not be held in the 2024-25 season.

NEW YORK/TORONTO (Feb. 2, 2024) – The National Hockey League (NHL), National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), and International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) today jointly announced plans for NHL Players to participate in the 2026 and 2030 Olympic Winter Games.

The Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 are scheduled to be held Feb. 6-22, 2026, in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. It will mark the first time NHL Players compete on the Olympic stage since 2014, and sixth time overall (1998 – Nagano, Japan; 2002 – Salt Lake City, United States; 2006 – Turin, Italy; 2010 – Vancouver, Canada; 2014 – Sochi, Russia). The host for the 2030 Olympic Winter Games is expected to be chosen later this year by the International Olympic Committee.

Consider this an open post for the game.

I am feeling worse today than yesterday so back to bed for me.

from Mike G. Morreale of the NHL's website,

The NHL Network will air every game of the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship in Gothenburg, Sweden.

That includes comprehensive coverage of the United States, which will play Sweden in the gold medal game at Scandinavium on Friday (1:30 p.m. ET). The U.S. earned the top spot in the tournament and won 7-2 against Latvia in the quarterfinals Tuesday, and 3-2 against Finland in the semifinals Thursday. Sweden advanced with a 5-2 win against Czechia in the semifinals.

Longtime NCAA hockey analyst Dave Starman, who will handle the broadcasts along with E.J. Hradek, Jon Rosen and Jon Morosi, has provided his three keys to victory for the U.S. before each of its games during the 11-day tournament....

Here are Starman's 3 keys to victory for the United States against Sweden:

1. Stopping at the start

"Goalie Trey Augustine (Detroit Red Wings) has to be better earlier. In an odd way of looking at it, the semifinal game as a favorite is a harder game to win than the big one at times, and I think Augustine, who settled in after allowing the second goal that gave Finland a 2-0 lead, will be great from the word go. Sweden is a highly gifted offensive team, but Augustine looked like a brick wall for 50 minutes against Finland. He's a difference-maker No. 1 in the game."

more

Mark Masters of TSN on Team Sweden,

from Mike G. Morreale of the NHL's website,

The 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship resumes with the semifinal round on Thursday at Scandinavium in Gothenburg, Sweden. The championship and third-place game are Friday.

On Tap for the semifinals

All games on NHL Network in U.S., TSN in Canada

Sweden vs. Czechia (9 a.m. ET): Czechia defeated Canada 3-2 in the quarterfinal round to advance to the medal round a second straight year following a 3-2 overtime loss to Canada in the 2023 WJC championship game. Five players from that game played Tuesday: defensemen Tomas Hamara (Ottawa Senators) and Ales Cech, and forwards Matyas Sapovaliv (Vegas Golden Knights), Jiri Kulich (Buffalo Sabres) and Eduard Sale (Seattle Kraken)....

United States vs. Finland (1:30 p.m. ET): The United States has outscored the opposition 36-11 in five straight wins, including a 7-2 victory against Latvia in the quarterfinal round Tuesday.

The U.S. has won 11 of its past 15 WJC games against Finland, including 6-2 in last year's preliminary round, and is 15-3-0-18 with one tie in 37 games.

more on the two games today...

from Adam Kimelman of the NHL's website,

Slovakia vs. Finland (6 a.m. ET): Slovakia hasn't won a medal at the World Juniors since a bronze in 2015 and will have to put its 10-2 loss to the United States on Sunday in the rear-view mirror quickly....

Canada vs. Czechia (8:30 a.m. ET): Canada is led by its youngest player at the WJC for the second year in a row....

United States vs. Latvia (11 a.m. ET): The U.S. enters the medal round as the No. 1 overall seed after winning its four preliminary-round games by a combined score of 29-9....

Sweden vs. Switzerland (1:30 p.m. ET): Sweden looked like a determined team in shutout victories in its first three games and dominated Finland during the second and third period in its 5-4 shootout loss Sunday....

more on each of the games

via the NHL PR department,

For the World Junior Championship, NHL Network will serve as the exclusive U.S. TV home for the 16th consecutive year. Live game telecasts plus comprehensive analysis, highlights, interviews and previews of the tournament from Gothenburg, Sweden will air within the flagship studio show NHL Tonight and via @NHLNetwork on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

NHL Network’s complete coverage begins Tuesday, December 26 with four live telecasts of preliminary round matchups between Czechia vs. Slovakia at 6:00 a.m. ET, followed by Canada vs. Finland at 8:30 a.m. ET, Norway vs. USA at 11 a.m. ET, and Latvia vs. host country Sweden at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Other Team USA games include 11 a.m. ET on Thursday, December 28 against Switzerland, on Friday, December 29 at 11 a.m. ET vs. Czechia, and against Slovakia on Sunday, December 31 at 6 a.m. ET.

December 20, 2023 – NHL Network today announced it will provide extensive coverage of the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship and the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic®. For the World Junior Championship, NHL Network will serve as the exclusive U.S. TV home for the 16th consecutive year. Live game telecasts plus comprehensive analysis, highlights, interviews and previews of the tournament from Gothenburg, Sweden will air within the flagship studio show NHL Tonight and via @NHLNetwork on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

from Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic,

The dialogue is ongoing between the NHL, the NHL Players’ Association, the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation on participation for the 2026 Winter Games in Italy. Specifically, the matter at hand, as always, is getting the IOC and IIHF to cover enough costs for NHL player travel and insurance, among a few other issues to iron out.

“We’re still there,” NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said Friday. “I don’t want to be overly optimistic, (but) I’m hoping that we get there. It’s important to our players to play in the Olympics. I think it’s important for fans to have best-on-best Olympics. Quite honestly, I think it’s best for the Olympics to have (best-on-best) hockey. It’s something that we should have.

“It’s a priority of ours, myself and also the NHL. We’ve made it very clear that we’re collectively working on this.”

Hopefully that resolution comes sooner rather than later, Walsh added.

“We’d like to be able to let the world know that we’re going to have NHL players in the Olympics in 2026, and I don’t want it to come back to the last hour,” he said. “This is a win-win-win.”

more ($) plus Joe Thornton and VGK talk...

from Sportsnet,

Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid, two of the best players of their generation, have never played on the same team in games that matter.

McDavid has said for years he wants the best-on-best international tournaments -- Olympics and/or World Cup -- to return, and among the reasons is so that he could play alongside Crosby.

Now with NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly saying this week that a similar tournament might be on the horizon, it's got people talking about the possibility of two generational talents playing on the same team, including Crosby himself.

"It's too bad it hasn't worked out for a while here but it's looking like that could change," Crosby told Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek while appearing on the latest episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast. "So, you know, that'd be awesome."

"Seeing all the other countries, you look at their lineups. I mean, it's pretty tight," Crosby said. "I mean, there's no real favoured team. It's easy to say Canada (is a favourite) because we've had success at Olympics and that sort of thing. But, I mean, the hockey is incredible. And from my experience, it doesn't really get any better than that, when you're looking at the lineups and you're looking to players that are assembled."

more

from Matt Larkin of The Daily Faceoff,

And so continues our international team building project, Best on Best 2023. First, Steven Ellis and I constructed our Team Canada lineups, imagining a tournament played within the next calendar year. Next up, we build what should be a major threat to Canada’s supremacy: Team USA.

Seeing that we’re Canadian, it felt fitting to invite an American to create a team alongside ours. Daily Faceoff’s Mike McKenna takes the baton.

First, a rule refresher for the exercise:

– Roster structure follows IIHF format for the Olympics and World Championship: 14 forwards, eight defensemen, three goaltenders, 25 players in total.

– Since we can’t say for certain when the next best-on-best event will happen, be it 2025 for a World Cup, 2026 for the Cortina Olympics or a later date, we are constructing rosters for today. As in, right now. Opening faceoff.

continue to read their picks...

Canada takes on Germany for the gold medal at the World Championship.

Puck drop is at 1:20pm ET and is on the NHL Network and TSN.

Earlier today, Latvia upset the US in overtime to win the bronze.

The game winning goal is below.

from Steven Ellis of The Daily Faceoff,

Canada and Germany will play for gold at the 2023 World Hockey Championship on Sunday after tight victories on semifinal Saturday.

Canada has advanced to the title game for the seventh time over the past eight years. They last won in 2021 against Finland, but lost in 2019 and 2022, also to Finland.

Germany, meanwhile, has never won gold and has never advanced to the tournament’s championship game. They have won silver before, but that was in 1930 when they didn’t have a playoff format. They trailed 2-0 early against USA, who entered the game with a perfect 8-0 record.

Puck drop is set for 1:20 PM ET on Sunday, May 28.

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from Ansar Khan of Mlive,

Casey DeSmith made 15 saves Thursday and the United States defeated Czechia 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the World Championship in Tampere, Finland.

The U.S. advanced to Saturday’s semifinals. Team USA has won all eight of its games by a combined score of 37-8....

Germany stunned Switzerland, the top-seeded team in Group B, despite playing without Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider for the final half of the game in Riga, Latvia.

Seider received a major penalty for boarding and game misconduct at 11:01 of the second period when the game was tied 1-1. He finished with no shots and a minus-1 rating in 12:12.

more

Watch the Seider boarding call below.

from Steven Ellis of The Daily Faceoff,

What a night to close out the round-robin.

After over two weeks of grueling action every single day, the men’s World Championship’s preliminary round finally came to a close on Tuesday, and it was a doozy. The highlight of the night was seeing Latvia — who needed to get the game to overtime at the bare minimum to advance — beat the previously undefeated Swiss squad to win 4-3 in front of a packed home barn. The scenes were wild, the game was crazy, and it was everything Latvia was looking for.

The best game of the day might have been USA’s 4-3 win in overtime against Sweden. USA held a 3-1 lead at one point, but the Swedes fought back and forced extra time. It was there that the Americans closed it out with a win, earning top spot in Group A in the process....

So, now this is where things get interesting. Here’s a look at the four quarterfinal matchups for Thursday in Riga and Tampere:

Switzerland vs. Germany – 9:20 AM ET (Riga)
USA vs. Czechia – 9:20 AM ET (Tampere)
Canada vs. Finland – 1:20 PM ET (Tampere)
Sweden vs. Latvia – 1:20 PM ET (Riga)...

Carter Mazur (DET) is a highlight-reel machine. He put the puck between the legs to create a rebound opportunity on the power play for Conor Garland (VAN), who capitalized. He then set up the game-winner in overtime to give him a multi-point effort. Mazur’s creativity around the net has been on full display in Tampere, and he’s been a big contributor in a middle-six role for USA. You just have to love the effort.

more

from Bryan Murphy of The Sporting News,

The 2023 tournament is set to start on Friday, May 12 and run until Sunday, May 28.

The group stage will take over a week and a half, as it begins on Friday, May 12 and goes until Tuesday, May 23. The playoff portion of the tournament starts on Thursday, May 25.

TSN and the NHL Network are the homes in North America for the 2023 IIHF World Championship

In the United States, all games involving Team USA and other select pool play games will be broadcast on NHL Network. The network will have both semifinal games and medal games.

much more including a daily schedule...