How Dumb Are They?

Hockey Canada dropped a bombshell of an announcement yesterday where they informed the world that Team Canada would not play at the 2026 Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland. This has to be one of the most idiotic things that Hockey Canada has done since their scandals, and it may force me to stop supporting Hockey Canada altogether. People will point to the World Junior Championship as the "Christmas tournament", but that tournament doesn't get interesing until New Year's Eve. That's where the Spengler Cup filled the high-level hockey gap because the Spengler Cup is always a sprint for five days at the end of December.

With Canada's contract coming to an end, host HC Davos wanted to negotiate a new deal to keep Canada in the tournament. Davos had a few demands as this contract negotiation began with the most pressing demand being that Canada must bring rosters that have been far more competitive than what has been seen since their last win in 2019. I'm not saying that Canada couldn't make that happen, but last year's roster was hardly what one would classify as a "Canadian all-star team". Last season, Canada was out of the tournament after dropping two-straight games where they scored two goals total.

Davos is always wanting the best teams in Europe there, and Canada should be made to bring its best as well. I get there are players who may not want to play in the Spengler Cup due to load management, but it's not like Canada has a shortage of players or teams it could send. Jason and I made the case on The Hockey Show that the Canadian World Junior team plays against a U SPORTS all-star team prior to jumping into the IIHF tournament, so why can't Canada send that U SPORTS team as its Spengler Cup team as "Team Canada"?

The key, however, was that this tournament was supposed to reward Canadians playing in Europe with a chance to wear the maple leaf in a major tournament. Michael Joly was the top-scoring Canadian in the Swiss league last season - did not suit up for Canada. Jonathan Ang was the top-scoring Canadian in the Swedish league - did not suit up for Canada. David Quenneville was two points back of Ang in the SHL - did not suit up. Taro Hirose, Gregor MacLeod, Nicolas Mattinen, and Alex Breton finished sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-overall in German league scoring - did not play. Are we seeing a pattern here?

Canada first played in the Spengler Cup in 1984, and it holds 16 titles to its name. It owns the second-most championships, one back of HC Davos, and Canada had been the only North American team at the tournament annually since 1990. While the Rochester Americans made two appearances, they were not annual appearances. With Hockey Canada's announcement today, that torch has been passed to the US Collegiate Selects who finished with the silver medal last year.

I'm not saying someone should be fired, but that should be an option considering this outcome. If players were turning down Hockey Canada before, removing the option to represent the country altogether won't put Hockey Canada in a good light for any player who feels that Hockey Canada has forgotten about them. And let's be honest: players in Europe are rarely celebrated by Hockey Canada.

We've seen Hockey Canada drop the ball on a number of things, but not being able to come to an agreement on a new contract to continue their Spengler Cup involvement might be one of the dumbest things they have done. I get that they can negotiate for a 2027 reappearance, but it's not like the exipry of this contract came out of nowhere. Someone knew about it, and someone blew it.

If you read this far into this article only to think, "No one watches that tournament anyway, Teebz," this is where you simply shrug your shoulders and move on. I don't need to hear comments about "no one cares" or "World Juniors are better". The Spengler Cup is an incredible tournament that I enjoy watching, and it bothers me that Hockey Canada seems so cavalier about this decision. This didn't have to happen, yet Hockey Canada let it happen. How dumb are they?

My holiday hockey-viewing schedule just opened up a lot more without the Spengler Cup. I hope TSN still broadcasts the games because it's a great tournament, but it will be weird not cheering for Canada. I guess I'll have to throw my support behind the US Collegiate Selects until Canada gets its act together regarding the Spengler Cup.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!