Canada’s World Cup is miserable in terms of audience for many different reasons.
Picture from the stands of the Finland-Czech Republic game, where you can’t see too many fans. ZUMAPRESS / MVPHOTOS
Russian media Champions filled the empty stands of the Canadian Junior Hockey World Championships. So far, Edmonton’s Rogers Place has seen a total of fewer spectators than average for a single KHL game.
According to the statistics collected by the media, the first six games in the World Cup attracted a total of 5,340 pairs of eyes.
– This is less than in one KHL match under normal conditions. It would seem that these games are doomed to failure, writes Championat
The Russians note that the time is not the best possible for ice hockey, especially after last season.
– The Edmonton Oilers went to the NHL conference finals, which was the number one topic in the entire city, but at the same time it emptied the wallets of the locals. In addition, the junior league WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings won the championship. Fans now have a “hockey hangover,” Championat points out.
The WC tournament is also overshadowed by other factors. The abuse scandals of the Canadian Hockey Association have become so bad that sponsors have cut off their cooperation with the association.
Russia’s absence from the Games is also one of the reasons given by Championat for the lack of audience. Russia’s super promise Matvei Mitskov would have been one of the most interesting names in the tournament.
– The local fans are divided. Some would like to see Canada as an arch-enemy, but some think that Russia should not participate in the Games for a decade.
Finally, Championat carves a receipt for the Finns and Canadians, who have taken the World Cup from the Russians.
– IIHF President by Luc Tardif the first races were a laughing stock. The Adult World Championships in Finland were the worst in terms of attendance in 20 years. At the same time, they get a new World Cup.
– This year’s youth competitions will be held without an audience. There are few star promises involved. Still, Canada gets next year’s games in Novosibirsk and Omsk to its account for the third year in a row, as if it were a reward for organizing mediocre games.