Is this a boost for European Hockey?

[zarathustra1900]

For those European Countries where hockey is a big thing - Sweden, Russia, Finland, etc. this is obviously a good outcome that the North American teams are out.

But for other European countries, where hockey may not be as popular, is the advancement of other European teams a good thing for the sport overall and increasing it's popularity across Europe?

YES. IT ABSOLUTELY IS...

Read the post above, "Hockey needs Canada to lose....."

I could not have said it better myself.

best regards.

 

[dio_rocks]

Actually also in Finland football/soccer has more players than hockey. Football has twice as much players than hockey. Also floorball is nowdays more popular than hockey. Floorball may even be the sport which will have more players than football in near future, it's popularity has grown and will grow rapidly.

True, but average attendance in elite leagues and media coverage are way much bigger for hockey, that's what I meant.

 

[Bixby Snyder]

***!?! Floorball?

 

[Riddarn]

***!?! Floorball?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floorball

 

[J17 Vs Proclamation]

North America was eliminated from Olympic hockey. The NHL is trying to get people to watch hockey and people in non-hockey markets in the US would probably watch the olympics which would generate more exposure for the game. With the US and Canada out, interest will decline significantly, if not altogether, in non traditional markets.

I dont think it will affect interest in canada that much. Your right that many people in the USA wont bother to watch it now. They should feel lucky in some respects, at least they have a damn hockey team.
Isnt hockey in USA growing anyway? They have alot of good prospects right now.

Football isnt the major sport in all european countries. It usually is one of the more popular sports but for instant Austria's main sport is skiing. I fail to see how football is the number 1 sport in Finland and Norway and such other countries. No disrespect, but niether team is exactly anywhere near a powerhouse. I just find it hard to believe that football is their top sport, when they produce very few players of a good standard.

 

[shakes]

Isn't floorball just like ballhockey except the goalie gets hardly any equipment?

 

[Bixby Snyder]

I think people are confusing participation levels with spectator interest. In Canada there are more people who play soccer than hockey, but as a spectator sport there is no interest at all.

 

[Gozer]

I dont think it will affect interest in canada that much. Your right that many people in the USA wont bother to watch it now. They should feel lucky in some respects, at least they have a damn hockey team.
Isnt hockey in USA growing anyway? They have alot of good prospects right now.

Football isnt the major sport in all european countries. It usually is one of the more popular sports but for instant Austria's main sport is skiing. I fail to see how football is the number 1 sport in Finland and Norway and such other countries. No disrespect, but niether team is exactly anywhere near a powerhouse. I just find it hard to believe that football is their top sport, when they produce very few players of a good standard.

They are small countries. Not all countries can have a powerhouse team. Sweden have football as number one, but if you eliminate the top 3 players, we have a mediocre national team.

 

[Chimpradamus]

They are small countries. Not all countries can have a powerhouse team. Sweden have football as number one, but if you eliminate the top 3 players, we have a mediocre national team.

I also think it has to do with the climate. Most of Sweden's top football players are produced in Skåne, the most southern region in Sweden with short winters and longer summers.

Both Norway and Finland has no such zone, their entire countries are swallowed by the snowy winter, making successful football competition harder. Sweden doesn't produce almost any football stars from the northern regions of the country for example, but produce alot of stars in winter sports instead.

This is perhaps also the reason why Sweden is good in both summer and winter sports, because we have an ideal country hosting good conditions for both summer and winter athletes, combined with the typical Scandinavian culture that has always encouraged physical fitness.

Denmark on the other hand is good in football, but really bad in winter sports. They are just like Sweden's Skåne, but has no winter regions.

This was just a comparision of the nordic countries.

 

[Canuck21t]

I don't buy this "We are from North America so we should cheer for North American teams!" or "We are from Europe, so we should cheer for European teams" crap.

Pick your teams based on the players on the teams.

Anyways, with respect to the question of it in anyway promoting the game in non-Elite European countries - I have no idea. Perhaps some members from these countries can answer...but again, like I said in the above paragraph, I should not make any difference...

I do hope more countries pick up the game and advance it (ie funding) so more countries could get better and we can one day talk about 12+ elite nations heading into a tournament!

Normally, you pick the team from your country. Anyway, as a Canadian I only root for Team Canada and when my team is out, I don't know, it depends for each tournament but I don't go by continent. Europeans tend to favor teams from their continent but Canadians don't automatically wil root for the US.

 

[Den]

It's a great boost for the European Hockey Tour. This weekend will stage the most important EHT ever.

 

[JanJanJan]

Swiss hockey has been improving for the last decade and I can see it getting better in years to come, Germans will stagnate on, Countries like Belarus, Kazachstan and Latvia could improve as well, as far as popularity, I can see the european football becoming the major sport in USA before hockey gets any coverage in Africa or Asia, Spain, Portugal, England even...