I doubt if the fact that the CHL pulled out of the World Cup will have any affect on Russian participation in the Subway Series. This tournament is useful to the Russian coaches as a way of gauging whether marginal players could or could not become legitimate candidates for the World U20 team. Especially for the more than 60 Russians who are playing in the CHL, that the Russian coaches never get a chance to see or properly evaluate.
Why do you think the MHL is trying to prove its superiority over the CHL in this tournament? The MHL is still in its infancy, and its highly doubtful that it is superior to the CHL in any way. Its just a summer invitational tournament - the kind that the Canadians hold all year every year.
My guess is that it is more of an issue of losing the competition, and how that affects the status and standing of the CHL internationally. Its certainly not for financial reasons - the CHL is far richer than the MHL.
I seem to recall a Russian official following the first tournament as saying something to the effect of how can we prove the superiority of the MHL, when Canada sends a level down (i.e. the Fort McMurray Oil Barons)? It might be that it was league pride in his comments as opposed to the assumption that the MHL was better than the CHL.
I see it as something other than losing. I am by no means an insider, but sending the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, a perennial losing team and IIRC the previous year's worst CHL team, seems to indicate some apathy toward the tournament. I have no idea whether they only asked within the QMJHL, but I am certain that the NHL team owned Calgary Hitmen and Edmonton Oil Kings, as well as the wealthy Vancouver Giants, would have gone. It seems like the CHL deliberately chose to send an awful team over.
If you were worried about losing, you'd make it a requirement of the team hosting the Memorial Cup that they must go to this tournament or risk losing their hosting of the Memorial Cup. Most teams that are the host gear up for the duties by trading away their future for the top Junior players. What I mean is that they pick up top 19s and 20s, not necessarily NHL prospects.
When the Saskatoon Blades hosted a few years ago, they had one of the most competitive teams I've seen from them in many years. They were poised to make a front door entrance into the Memorial Cup, but were upset in the first round by the Medicine Hat Tigers. But they were a good enough team to beat Halifax (who had Jonathan Drouin, Zach Fucale and a host of other NHL prospects) in one of the best Blades games I had ever attended.
By using the host, the CHL is guaranteed to have a good club go to this tournament. As well, losing doesn't tarnish the reputation of the CHL, as there is the built in excuse of the players not wanting to push themselves in light of a long season and Memorial Cup tournament.
But ultimately, I suppose beyond playing in a tournament, the CHL received nothing out of it. The coverage was limited to local news in the community the team was from. TSN and Sportsnet were not trying to bid on the rights to televise the tournament. So it could not monetize a tournament, when no one cared. I don't recall even seeing the scores shown on Canadian sports networks. I don't even think they made the ticker on any network.
What I do wonder is what USA Hockey thinks they get out of this. Sure by sending USHL teams or NAHL teams, it gives their leagues a bit of exposure. However, since they are not big business like the CHL, I am not sure there is an appeal toward attract Europeans to their league. I am almost certain that if the Canadian press had no interest in covering this, the US press has even less interest. What
I've also wondered is why USA Hockey doesn't send a CHL team? I mean USA Hockey has to sanction the teams, so why not send a Portland Winterhawks or Saginaw Spirit instead of the Chicago Steel? To me it seems like a no brainer, especially in the past when Sudbury and Cape Breton went. This year, I could see the CHL forbidding the team to go if Spokane said yes, we'll play USA Hockey.
I guess I don't understand some of the business side of hockey. This tournament seems similar to the Ivan Hnlinka U18 Tournament, it seems odd that Canada would participate there, but Hockey Canada couldn't muster someone up for this one. If the CHL/Hockey Canada were smart, when their TV deals with Sportsnet (CHL) and TSN (Hockey Canada) came up, I'd make them televise these games as part of the deal. I know TSN likely would since they want the cash cow that is the World Juniors (and to a lesser extent the World Championship), it is why you see the Allan Cup and RBC Cup Finals shown on TSN.
Now that Sportsnet has the NHL, I am not sure the CHL package is as important to them. I know they picked it up when TSN won back the NHL, as a way to keep themselves on air in the winter and continue to carry hockey. I'm sure they'd like to keep the Memorial Cup, but does that make money for them? I am not sure considering they would have the NHL playoffs and the Blue Jays at that time. They might be willing to let the CHL go, if it meant in August they had to either go to Russia or pick up a broadcast from someone from Russia.
Also, for both networks the time difference makes it less attractive to televise. Sure TSN does it for IIHF tournaments, but would Canadians (outside of whatever community the CHL team is from) get up to watch the Saskatoon Blades play Snezhnye Barsy? Since I had to look up an MHL team even playing this summer, I suspect not.
