Major announcement from Gary Bettman and the National Hockey League
In the last few minutes, Gary Bettman and the National Hockey League have just made an announcement that was expected by many fans.
It is now 100% official and confirmed, the famous World Cup of Hockey will be back!
Today, we finally learn that after long negotiations, and after several years without any real competition with all the best players of the NHL, we will have a World Cup.
The tournament will be held in February 2024. (and will last 15 days) Please also note that the regular season of the NHL will be put on pause, for the occasion.
This will be a first in over eight years.
Recall that the last World Cup took place in 2016 and gave us a very solid show, thanks in particular to Team North America (composed of the best North American players aged 23 and under) and thanks to Team Europe, two cinderella teams that wowed the gallery.
For now, all indications (unfortunately) are that these two teams will not be back in 2024. A decision that is difficult to understand.
We also know that there will be eight teams competing in 2024, with the possibility of adding two more teams. (according to Bill Daly, Gary Bettman's right-hand man)
The NHL's goal is to have this competition (the World Cup) every four years, starting in 2024.
As Marco Normandin reports, logically, the eight teams that should participate would be Canada, the United States, Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic, Switzerland as well as Slovakia (not forgetting the Russians, but that's to be determined)
Nothing is confirmed for the moment. More details will follow!
| POLL | ||
Are you excited that the World Cup is back? | ||
| Yes!! | 99 | 57.2 % |
| No | 74 | 42.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
