Would you switch country allegiance if you could?

[RobertR]

I wonder what do you guys think.

Players like Lalande and Platt got paid for taking Belarus citizenship? Or did they do that so they can show themselves on WC, perhaps Olympic stage?

Yeah. and that Belarusians aren't considered foreign players in KHL, could had been a factor too.

 

[Ivo]

It's not as easy to change national teams as you make it seem. To play for a team, you actually have to spend some years playing hockey in that country, in which case I would have no problem with a player changing colors. If players who can't make one team were just randomly joining other teams without any really connection to that country, that would defeat the purpose of international competition.

 

[slovakiasnextone]

From a purely logical POV: You can't really influence in which country or with what nationality/ethnicity you're born with, thus it might seem a bit strange blaming someone for choosing a different one of their own will.

Of course, there's nothing logical about the whole concept of national/ethnic pride...

 

[Gsus]

Hell no. I'm as proud as a human can be being from country that I'm from. Sometimes I've wondered in my head "What if I lived there or there", but I wouldn't change Finland ever. Finland in hockey, Finland in everything.

 

[krt88]

My grandmother was born in London, Ontario but moved to WNY at any early age. MY mother's side of the same has been in America since the late 1600's. It would be very difficult to change allegiance.

I can cheer for Canada is almost any sport but not hockey because they come across as arrogant, however, Canadians can say that about Americans in every other situation.

So simply put, no, I couldn't.




Go Finland

 

[Pominville Knows]

From a purely logical POV: You can't really influence in which country or with what nationality/ethnicity you're born with, thus it might seem a bit strange blaming someone for choosing a different one of their own will.

Of course, there's nothing logical about the whole concept of national/ethnic pride...

"No logic in it" is a bit naive at best. You got a whole bunch of people that sees some logic in it. Random yes, but a persons childhood and whole life is nothing to say means nothing. If i move to Japan tomorrow suddenly people there will just see nothing exotic in me at all? I would not place a bet on it.

 

[FinPanda]

No, never.

 

[JackSlater]

if you made the choice in your life to move and stay and assimilate then yes you should be able to play if thats where you consider home, not the geographical place your mother dropped you from her womb

When did I say anything about the location a player was born in? Lalande is a Canadian player because he grew up playing hockey in Canada. The country that you were trained in is a huge part of the player you become. That has nothing to do with birthplace, or citizenship for that matter.

 

[Pominville Knows]

When did I say anything about the location a player was born in? Lalande is a Canadian player because he grew up playing hockey in Canada. The country that you were trained in is a huge part of the player you become. That has nothing to do with birthplace, or citizenship for that matter.

No, but perhaps if a person means to spend considerably much of their future life in their new country then yes he can play there. I'm not sure that's the case all the time though.
I must add that the "traitor" part i wrote earlier must be seen more in a loving way lol, this is just sport. Perhaps it was wrongfully put anyways, i have Autism and Tourettes and dont put as much value in single words or terms as others when i say them. Not always helpful.

 

[Siamese Dream]

When did I say anything about the location a player was born in? Lalande is a Canadian player because he grew up playing hockey in Canada. The country that you were trained in is a huge part of the player you become. That has nothing to do with birthplace, or citizenship for that matter.

This.

The IIHF rules are stricter than other sports but they're still not strict enough, there's nothing to stop a country like Qatar building a bunch of rinks and starting a league then paying Canadian players a lot of money to play in their league, give them citizenship and pay them to play for the national team.

My preferred ruling is if you weren't eligible for that country when you were an Under 20, you shouldn't be eligible for them when you're a senior player.

 

[holyprime]

"No logic in it" is a bit naive at best. You got a whole bunch of people that sees some logic in it. Random yes, but a persons childhood and whole life is nothing to say means nothing. If i move to Japan tomorrow suddenly people there will just see nothing exotic in me at all? I would not place a bet on it.

That has nothing to do with nationality tough, you would look exotic to them even if you spent your entire life there as a citizen of Japan.

Nationality is just a very random part of an identity. It has basically no influence on who you are/become. In fact (no offense to anyone, im proud of my country as well sometimes) one could argue that its actually naive to be proud of something that came along with birth.

If it truly meant smth, superstars wouldnt choose their place to live on where the pay the least taxes.

 

[Pominville Knows]

That has nothing to do with nationality tough, you would look exotic to them even if you spent your entire life there as a citizen of Japan.

Nationality is just a very random part of an identity. It has basically no influence on who you are/become. In fact (no offense to anyone, im proud of my country as well sometimes) one could argue that its actually naive to be proud of something that came along with birth.

If it truly meant smth, superstars wouldnt choose their place to live on where the pay the least taxes.

If you mean to critizise all destuctive things some may aquire through nationality or any other identity i agree with you. However that does not have to be the case. Just becouse i see myself as swedish amongst many other things, does not in any way have to mean i have to bare animosity towards another nationality. But you have to agree, or maybe not, that it is exciting to have a national team. Odd if you dont i gotta say, but i know a few that sees it that way, maybe its the same fans that when little choose to root for a team from another city when almost everybody else root for the home town team.

 

[mc3488]

I'd be a 4th line goon on Team Madagascar.

 

[spacemunky]

I'd play for Ireland, 4th string goalie

I guess that'd make me 5th lol.

 

[roboninja]

I am a proud Canadian who roots for Sweden in WJC, WC, Olympics over any team. If I was a player I would not play for Canada because that would mean I would have to play against Sweden. I also wouldn't switch my nationality over tho because thats a spineless thing to do over hockey.

Now this is something I cannot understand.

 

[Exarz]

Well as for now it would be Finland as I have Finnish roots.

If I lived in a country and became a naturalized citizen, I wouldn't have any problem with representing their national team since I would see me as one of them

 

[dwanmaster*]

If I was Canadian I'd probably switch allegiance to the USA

 

[Namejs]

You don't have to switch country allegiance to play for another national team. You can get a double citizenship and a 'hockey citizenship' in another country, while remaining a patriot of the country you were born in.

If I wasn't good enough to ever make the Latvian national team, I wouldn't mind playing for Estonia or some other small country like the Netherlands or Luxembourg or whatever. Why not?

 

[DrunkUncleDenis]

If I wasn't good enough to play for Canada and had the chance to go to the Olympics playing for *snicker* Team Holland, then ya, I would. I got the dual citizenship.

Hup Holland

 

[aphyro]

Nop Sweden all the way! or maybe Norway,Denmark,Iceland... beacuse its my scandinavian brothers share blood and share history with this guys

Blood and Honour

 

[kabidjan18]

I really hate the policy the iihf has on eligibility. On one hand if you go to Japan to play for two years you are considered eligible for the Japanese team. However if you were born in Japan, and have Japanese citizenship with another citizenship but didn't play youth hockey after the age of 10 you are somehow ineligible to play for Japan. A kid who grows up in Japan and moves at the age of 9, regardless of whether or not he has played hockey in Japan, should be allowed to represent Japan because Japan means something to him. He did the tea ceremonies, he went to the schools, sung the national anthem, so forth. A grown man who moves to Japan to make money is hard pressed to have any actual emotion for the country because it's just a workplace to him. The rule should be 5 years for acquiring a nationality like it is in FIFA, and anyone should be allowed to represent the country of their birth regardless of whether they played hockey in that country or not.

 

[aphyro]

I really hate the policy the iihf has on eligibility. On one hand if you go to Japan to play for two years you are considered eligible for the Japanese team. However if you were born in Japan, and have Japanese citizenship with another citizenship but didn't play youth hockey after the age of 10 you are somehow ineligible to play for Japan. A kid who grows up in Japan and moves at the age of 9, regardless of whether or not he has played hockey in Japan, should be allowed to represent Japan because Japan means something to him. He did the tea ceremonies, he went to the schools, sung the national anthem, so forth. A grown man who moves to Japan to make money is hard pressed to have any actual emotion for the country because it's just a workplace to him. The rule should be 5 years for acquiring a nationality like it is in FIFA, and anyone should be allowed to represent the country of their birth regardless of whether they played hockey in that country or not.

Yepp FIFA tbh have the best system, and you can't switch national team if you have play senior football for your countery, only if you have represent in the junior division.

 

[Stats01]

Daniel Sprong wants to play for Canada over his home Netherlands.

Too bad Dutch footballers don't feel the same we need some of those guys if Canada is going to bid on the 2026 WC...right now we'd get absolutely embarrassed in the group stage.

To answer the question no I wouldn't. Canada all the way baby!

 

[Jablkon]

For me personally absolutely no. In that case we all would like to live in Monaco and play hockey for Canada.

But what about players who could or even made it to NT and then switch it. Like Stastny or Nedved? Is there anybody else?

Stastny basically played for Czechoslovakia, Canada and Slovakia during his career. Pretty cool And very acceptable considering circumstances...

 

[Stats01]

OT question but when I look up Russia it says they have 27 WC titles...22 coming from the Soviet Union and they have 5 as Russia. Are the Soviet titles still legitimately counted for? If they are then Czech's and Slovakia should each get credit for the Czechoslovakia titles.