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Is 4 Nations a “Best on Best”?

Czechboy said:
That's the funny thing.. I'm about to write an article on a potential Czech NHL team... and it would be a good team but I could easily replace a few NHL guys with Euro's and we are better... Vets like Cervenka, Sedlak, O. Kase and some busts like Zadina, Zboril and Hajek would improve us. A guy like Kempny might make it too as he has a tonne of international experience.

But my issue is that we have close to 20 years of best on bests at the Olympics (1998 to 2014)... no complaints and done right!

Every single time we get certain posters saying Canada will crush every one and US will crush everyone... they could send B teams!

The realty is that it doesn't always happen.

Finns won the most medals in those Olympics
Canada didn't medal TWICE
US never got a gold
Sweden and Czechs did get Golds
Switzerland and Latvia took those dream Canadian teams to the absolute brink!

I guess I just hate this AINEC crap.lol Last world cup Team Europe made the finals with Ralph Krueger as the coach. Czechs beat the USA in 2016 too and our team was not the best on paper.

1998 - Czechs, Russia Finland
2002 - Canada, US, Russia
2006 - Sweden, Finland, Czechs
2010 - Canada, US, Finland
2014 - Canada, Sweden, Finland

5 tourneys
Canada 3G (most golds)
Russia 1S, 1B
Sweden 1G, 1S
Finland 1S, 3B (most medals)
Czechs 1G, 1B

My point? It's a lot closer than random NHL fans coming by and letting us know we all suck.lol
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I’ll add Slovakia, they were an inch away from taking Canada to OT in the 2010 semis after dominating the 3rd period
 
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JianYang said:
It's one of the things I find captivating especially in hockey and soccer.

On a given day, Belarus can score off the goalie's head against Sweden in hockey. We saw in 2014 what a hot goalie in Latvia was doing against Canada.

We recently saw Saudi Arabia beat the best team in the world during the last world cup football.

Taking those elements away makes me think we are missing out on certain fan experiences even if those said teams likely won't medal.

I will miss Russia, I will miss the czechs and the other traditional hockey nations, and I will miss some of those those peripheral hockey nations too.

Fans are quick to dismiss the randomness that can occur in these sports particularly in one game take all circumstances.
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Exactly this!

Swiss and Latvia have taken best on best Canada rosters to hell and back. Hell, latvia just beat Canada at the U20 a month ago. Kazakhistan took out the Czechs at a U18 a year ago. Swiss and Czechs in finals of a pretty stacked Worlds last Spring. US hasn't won a thing since 1996 at the senior level (despite having amazing rosters and an amazing program - this is not a chirp at them).

I looked at the original Canada Cups were 6 teams too!
 
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Won't lie, this just made me less interested.. I wanted to see Heisk going nuts on the Finland blue line. I wanted to see Hughes doing the same and to see how he stood out in this kind of tourney!
 
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Czechboy said:
Yup, using the NHL argument.. Klapka and Ivan are better than Cervenka and Kubalik. Sure.lol
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I remember the 98 Olympics when I saw spacek for the first time and being impressed. He came to the nhl the following season and had a long career.

Just because someone isn't an nhler doesn't mean he can't have an impact on the tournament.

I don't blame our European fans if they cringe when someone from north America dismisses those players.
 
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I would say no, but on top of that, 4 team tournaments feel kind of pointless. The only exception being the memorial cup, which is 4 team tournament after each team wins their league championship;
 
Devilmademedoit said:
Nope--not even close. Rankings as of today according to the IIHF?
Canada
Finland
Chechia
Swiss
USA
Sweden
Germany
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These ranking are dumb.
Canada and USA are clearly the two best. With other clubs under them. Not too sure what the IIHF uses to come up with their rankings.
And this is a “best on best” tournament for the countries playing. Less injured players these are the best players for those four nations.

Coaches Coroner said:
I would say no, but on top of that, 4 team tournaments feel kind of pointless. The only exception being the memorial cup, which is 4 team tournament after each team wins their league championship;
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The Mem Cup is three league champions and the host.
 
JianYang said:
I remember the 98 Olympics when I saw spacek for the first time and being impressed. He came to the nhl the following season and had a long career.

Just because someone isn't an nhler doesn't mean he can't have an impact on the tournament.

I don't blame our European fans if they cringe when someone from north America dismisses those players.
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That team had a young 4th line Hejduk too! He was a healthy scratch for first few games and then is involved in the Gold Medal Goal from Svoboda. By 'involved' I mean he should've been called for interference.lol

The one that stood out to me was Slegr! He was outstanding whole tourney! Hasek wasn't bad either.lol
 
trader997 said:
Gee, i wonder who would choose to play for 300k/usd with a Liiga team if you are good enough to play in the NHL and make the average 2M$/year nhlers make.
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Very few players are making as much as 300k playing in Europe and the league average salary in the NHL is 3.5M USD, but that makes your point even more valid.

If you can be an NHL player and you don't hate money, you play in the NHL. It not close financially.
 
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jigglysquishy said:
People that liked/promoted Team NA/Team Europe nonsense are the lowest of the low of international hockey fans.

A disgusting farce that robbed us of a true best on best.
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How did it rob them of best on best... this makes no sense as a thought. A tournament now, like this or a Tournament in September... will never make sense to the majority of European leagues schedules, unless it IS the Olympics and they will adjust to it.

If you really wanted some September best on best, you SHOULD of supported that tournament so they do it again. Players like Kopitar and Hossa on team Europe praised it and said it was better than pre-season for them. If it became a loved... then it can become significant, then it can be something the European leagues see as regular, relevant, and worth adjusting their seasons to have players to fill out full rosters of their countries.

OR we could push the NHL to change their seasons schedule. Start in September, end in March/April... then players would be free to join the WC every year. Those are actual situations that prevent the best on best.
 
No. And you know what? The Olympics isn't "best on best" either. No international tournament is.

You can't have best on best when teams like Canada have players not on their roster who'd be 1st/2nd liners on other teams, or USA has like 5 goalies that'd be starters on other teams.

The NHL is the closest thing we have to best on best.
 
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JianYang said:
It's one of the things I find captivating especially in hockey and soccer.

On a given day, Belarus can score off the goalie's head against Sweden in hockey. We saw in 2014 what a hot goalie in Latvia was doing against Canada.

We recently saw Saudi Arabia beat the best team in the world during the last world cup football.

Taking those elements away makes me think we are missing out on certain fan experiences even if those said teams likely won't medal.

I will miss Russia, I will miss the czechs and the other traditional hockey nations, and I will miss some of those those peripheral hockey nations too.

Fans are quick to dismiss the randomness that can occur in these sports particularly in one game take all circumstances.
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I agree.

Good news is we have the Olympics next year. Unfortunately Russia won't be there but that's on them and I would be boycotting if they were.

However, i will watch every game of the four nations and enjoy it for what it is. The best teams we have seen in 7 years play in a mini-tournament.

Winning it would not be as important as an (NHL Participation),Olympics or Canada/World Cup but it would still be fun.
 
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OilersFanatics505 said:
When players are deciding not to play for injury reasons it’s no longer best on best.
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You see the importance of playing for your country in a tournament like this one when a guy like Crosby is on a flight to Montreal as we speak and will still play throughout the tournament with his current injury.

He would never play at his age in the world championship so I guess if Sid is playing and all the other players would drop their vacation trip in a heartbeat for this, it might be because this tournament is important.

Same thing with Doughty who came back recently and made loud and clear he wanted to represent his country as well.
 
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