Quote:
Originally Posted by troutman
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Why aren't the Canadian teams competitive on the ice?
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Canadian team owners, just like the majority of Canadians, love the game of hockey. American team owners love the business of hockey and most Americans don't care about hockey. This explains most of it. It has been stated many times by players that playing in US is much easier on them than playing in Canada by not being in the spotlight all the time. Players choose to go to a US team when given a choice and matching financials. Large US teams in metropolitan centres have additional attraction for the talent because of what those metropolitan centres offer to the players and their families. Better climate is the additional attraction to hockey players and their families offered by the southern teams. Overall, US has a better magnet for better players that any Canadian team can offer.
Notable exceptions are Pittsburgh and Detroit, as both cities are lousy places. But Pittsburgh has been through a horrible slump and was able to recover only by winning the Crosby sweepstakes.
Detroit, however, remains a mystery to me. How the hell have they managed to maintain a competitive team throughout all these years without tanking and without drafting from the very top is beyond my comprehension. I just revere their management and ownership systems. What is mind-boggling to me is why could Canadian teams not learn from them something?