Quote:
Originally Posted by N-E-B
The quality of this tournament (and others like it) would greatly improve if it were only 6 teams.
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Keeping it bigger gives those teams a reason to compete in the group B. Plus you'd end up with Finland or someone good demoted. Worse in a junior tournament since outside of Canada (and probably the US now), talent can by cyclical. Finland has won two golds, but in a smaller tournament they'd have been demoted and playing group B both years they won because they were no good the year before.
Even Demark who's getting pumped tonight had three players drafted in 2016. And if they get stuck playing Norway and Latvia every year - do they produce guys like Ehlers and Bjorkstrand who's debuted in the NHL in the past few years.