I'm not saying it wasn't. I just don't find CHL a good gauge of a league, given that for the past two seasons only one club from Slovakia participated at a time when they were in a team rebuilding phase mostly, as the Slovak league winning team usually moves its best players onwards to other leagues during summer.
Yes right! I would put the Liiga above NLA and Extraliga over DEL. Interesting ist, that the most finnish players have a higher PPG in NLA as in their domestic league.
Another reason why they have not been successful in the CHL is that Slovak spectators and the hockey public are simply not interested in the competition. Greater attendance have the regular season games against the weakest opponents from the league than games against some unknown clubs from NLA, for example (although, these clubs may have a huge quality, but Slovak fans do not know them).
Is this the case? I did not take a look into a huge amount of numbers but thinking of the last three notable players who came from Liiga to NLA during the last years (Lasch, Nättinen, and Thorell) their point production did suffer in Switzerland compared to Liiga. Or were you specifically referring to players with a Finnish passport?
Yeah, like I said, Slovak teams are far from competitive in the summer when they are in rebuilding phase. Even Nitra usually moves its best abroad after a good season, which it was back in those years. To sum it up, CHL has no financial incentives for teams from lesser leagues and is scheduled in times where teams from lesser leagues just struggle to ice a competitive team as they are usually rebuilding after a good season.
Slovak hockey fans are hockey fanatics (in a good sense of the word). If their teams were successful in the CHL, they would go to the auditorium. KHL was played in Bratislava, BB and Nitra have nothing to do with KHL, it's just an excuse for the overall results in CHL, as I write, Slovaks are hockey fanatics.
I wrote "the most"! Not all! Of course i watch most the finnish playern in NL.
This is only a partial truth. The Czechs undoubtedly have a wider base, and this will make up for the difference in quality.
Look, I have no issue with saying that Slovak league is not a top level league in Europe, but I can confidently say that currently it's more or less on EBEL level. Call me a fanatic if you will.
But that's wrong.
Except when a league has import rules like the Swiss league has.
You're obviously confusing EBEL with DEL. The rift was between the SVK league and the DEL. Yes, the SVK league is somewhere at the EBEL level, rather better. But no one disputes that, at least I certainly don't
Alright, so then lost in discussion. DEL is definitely above Slovak league, I don't dispute that.You're obviously confusing EBEL with DEL. The rift was between the SVK league and the DEL. Yes, the SVK league is somewhere at the EBEL level, rather better. But no one disputes that, at least I certainly don't
They keep doing really well at U18's... if that translates to some U20 results then I could see the league getting a better profile. I hope it does. I've enjoyed the Belarus teams!
Not in european hockey! NHL is the most dominant league in the world and 90% of best players ae there. With the result that top talents in Finland or Sweden are much better than e.g. expensive NA-Playern in DEL oder NLA. Money could make some better, but is not the key in european hockey except the KHL.
