Canadiens1958
Registered User
No
No. The Gold Standard is so old economics.
Basically you are recognizing the changes in global politics and the economics of sport. Not the growth or decline of elite hockey players either regionally or worldwide. Nor are you showing that it is harder to win an NHL honour or award. All you are showing is that NHL honours and awards are now part of the hockey showcase. No one has ever disputed this.
Last two generations, it is possible for hockey players to play hockey in leagues all over the world without home country or any other political interference. By default they are eligible for awards and honours. Winning such awards and honours is to be expected.
Also the sport of ice hockey pays much better at the NHL level than it did in earlier eras, O6 etc. So certain non-Canadians and even Canadians forego other economic opportunities to play in the NHL because it pays better than anything else they can do.
A complete review of results past and present supports this view.
The following link to a thread about Imports in Canadian youth hockey supports this position as well.
http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=2034841
Outside NA, youth hockey with few exceptions is running near empty. People with the ability to do so are sending their children to Canada and the USA for a better chance at hockey success.
Isn't the NHL still the gold standard for elite players?
Canada wins best on best tournaments but so do other nations at times. This shows that Canada still produces great hockey players but so do other nations. How does that argue my point? Seems to back up what I'm saying more than anything.
No. The Gold Standard is so old economics.
Basically you are recognizing the changes in global politics and the economics of sport. Not the growth or decline of elite hockey players either regionally or worldwide. Nor are you showing that it is harder to win an NHL honour or award. All you are showing is that NHL honours and awards are now part of the hockey showcase. No one has ever disputed this.
Last two generations, it is possible for hockey players to play hockey in leagues all over the world without home country or any other political interference. By default they are eligible for awards and honours. Winning such awards and honours is to be expected.
Also the sport of ice hockey pays much better at the NHL level than it did in earlier eras, O6 etc. So certain non-Canadians and even Canadians forego other economic opportunities to play in the NHL because it pays better than anything else they can do.
A complete review of results past and present supports this view.
The following link to a thread about Imports in Canadian youth hockey supports this position as well.
http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showthread.php?t=2034841
Outside NA, youth hockey with few exceptions is running near empty. People with the ability to do so are sending their children to Canada and the USA for a better chance at hockey success.