Quote:
Originally Posted by butterfly
I don't think injuries are part of it since they would always be a concern and wouldn't prevent it from being "feasible at this time".
I really hope the Russia thing isn't the problem again. Why not let them play? The NHL is okay but not the World Cup? They wouldn't even need any KHL players to form a team that could win.
Wasn't the original intent of the Canada Cup precisely to invite the Soviet Union to play hockey while their government was being mean and nasty?
I hope we're not waiting for worldwide political niceness before we can schedule a hockey tournament.
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I'm fairly certain that the Russian war is the reason for canceling the tournament. Russia is obviously on everybody's #### list and pretty much banned on most, if not all, major sporting events. There is a big difference between NHL players born in Russia playing on North American teams under contracts, versus a tournament that would very clearly have the Russian flag represented and would rub most people the wrong way.
Rather than go through the entire ordeal of having a tournament without Russia, the league basically decided to say F it and avoid the conversation that goes with that decision. From a PR standpoint, it is easily the best decision.
FWIW I am not against banning Russian-born NHL players at all. But I would be extremely disappointed if Russia as a flag-bearing team was allowed to participate in this tournament. Sucks because I do enjoy watching their national hockey team, but it's the right choice to exclude them.