NHL general managers are convening in Palm Beach, Florida for a week of GM meetings beginning on Monday. A top agenda item will be preparing the announcement for the 2028 World Cup of Hockey, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The tournament has been held three times between 1996 and 2016. It was most recently held from September 17 to September 29, 2016, in Toronto. The 2028 event will be organized without IIHF involvement. It was originally announced in February 2025.
The last iteration of the tournament brought together six countries – America, Canada, Russia, Finland, Sweden, and Czechia – as well as two specialized teams, one featuring talent from other European countries and another featuring the top U24 players in America and Canada. The resulting Team North America brought together many NHL superstars well ahead of their prime, including Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Aaron Ekblad, Nathan MacKinnon, and more.
Team North America posted a 2-1-0 record and scored an 11-to-eight goal-differential – but ultimately lost out to Russia’s fewer goals-against (five) in the standings. Russia lost to Team Canada in the first round of the knockout stage, while Team Europe beat Sweden on the other side. Canada would go on to win the tournament, proudly led by leading scorer Sidney Crosby. Alongside Patrice Bergeron, Jonathan Toews, Brad Marchand, and Carey Price – Crosby was able to lead Canada to a win over Europe’s Mats Zuccarello, Anze Kopitar, Marian Gaborik, and Leon Draisaitl.
The next iteration of the World Cup of Hockey should similarly bring together world class talent in a best-on-best competition in the years leading up to the 2030 Winter Olympics. One questoin the NHL will need to be prepared to answer is if, and where, Russian talent will fit into the conversation. The country has been, and continues to be, excluded from all IIHF competition dating back to 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine. The NHL will not have to abide by the IIHF’s decision but has previously said that Russia is not expected to be invited to the event. This will leave some of the NHL’s biggest stars – including Nikita Kucherov, Alex Ovechkin, and Andrei Vasilevskiy – at home for another best-on-best competition.
If the NHL chooses to bolster the number of contending teams with another Team Europe or Team North America will also be closely followed. The league has no shortage of young talent breaking through – with stars like Macklin Celebrini and Matthew Schaefer even making their case for league-best titles.
Just go with national teams – none of that “North America” nonsense. I’d invite Russia, too. If Israel can play in the WBC … I digress.
I will never understand this. The international competition has been such amazing hockey for this sport. The Four Nations was a huge success and just look at how the Olympics went. It’s shooting yourself in the foot to have so many Russian players not available to play. And it sucks as a hockey fan that there are players who essentially will go their whole career having never had the chance to play on that stage. Wanting to see Ovechkin, Kucherov, Vasilevskiy, Malkin, Michkov, Shesterkin, Sorokin, Demidov, etc play doesn’t mean you are endorsing or condoning anything.
Yay!!!! Another MEANINGLESS EXHIBITION!!!!
Ovie will be 43 when this is played… doubt he’s going to suit up.
I see no need for this tournament the regular & playoffs season is long enough. I can live with the Olympics but no more meaningless tournaments. The players involved play enough hockey only to have them subjected to serious injuries – hello Sidney Crosby.