Juniors top my list of holiday traditions
One of my biggest holiday traditions starts on December 26, and has absolutely nothing to do with shopping, and quite a bit about national pride.
Every Boxing Day since 1974 the International Ice Hockey Federation hosts the World Juniors, a tournament that runs for a two week span after Christmas, and brings all of the best under-20 players together for what is one of Canada's most watched sports events. In fact the 2003 Gold medal game played between Canada and Russia still holds TSN's record for the network's biggest audience at just over 3.45 million Canadian viewers. Which, to put it in perspective, puts the Stanley Cup finals to shame as last year's Anaheim and Ottawa series only drew around 2.6 million, and the Flames vs. Tampa Bay series the year before brought in 3.06 million.
So what exactly is the draw? Personally I'd have to give kudos to the fact that in recent years the Canadian team has played dominantly, in fact going into this years' tournament they're three-time defending champions with an 18-0-0 record in those three years. In tournament history, the Nat's have 26 medals to their name, second only to the combined Soviet Union and Russian medals which number 28.
But even disregarding their record there have been other considerations that make the Juniors popular. Firstly, there's no denying that it's a good game. Teams tend to avoid the trap, they play a balanced version of European finesse and the stereo-typical hard hitting Canadian style. There are open ice hits, fancy moves, big saves and enough rivalry to keep even the most jaded hockey fans entertained. Also, the opportunity to watch the ‘future of hockey' play through the likes of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Carey Price, and this year, John Tavares can't be discounted.
But most importantly, to me at least, is that it's real hockey played by kids who are giving it their all so as to make a splash in front of millions, and maybe help their careers if they haven't been already drafted. There's no floating, we're not watching men with million dollar contracts playing half-heartedly so as to avoid injury - this is real hockey.
This years' tournament kicks off on December 26 at 2 p.m. with Canada facing off against the host Czechs, and the games will be shown on TSN.
Every Boxing Day since 1974 the International Ice Hockey Federation hosts the World Juniors, a tournament that runs for a two week span after Christmas, and brings all of the best under-20 players together for what is one of Canada's most watched sports events. In fact the 2003 Gold medal game played between Canada and Russia still holds TSN's record for the network's biggest audience at just over 3.45 million Canadian viewers. Which, to put it in perspective, puts the Stanley Cup finals to shame as last year's Anaheim and Ottawa series only drew around 2.6 million, and the Flames vs. Tampa Bay series the year before brought in 3.06 million.
So what exactly is the draw? Personally I'd have to give kudos to the fact that in recent years the Canadian team has played dominantly, in fact going into this years' tournament they're three-time defending champions with an 18-0-0 record in those three years. In tournament history, the Nat's have 26 medals to their name, second only to the combined Soviet Union and Russian medals which number 28.
But even disregarding their record there have been other considerations that make the Juniors popular. Firstly, there's no denying that it's a good game. Teams tend to avoid the trap, they play a balanced version of European finesse and the stereo-typical hard hitting Canadian style. There are open ice hits, fancy moves, big saves and enough rivalry to keep even the most jaded hockey fans entertained. Also, the opportunity to watch the ‘future of hockey' play through the likes of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Carey Price, and this year, John Tavares can't be discounted.
But most importantly, to me at least, is that it's real hockey played by kids who are giving it their all so as to make a splash in front of millions, and maybe help their careers if they haven't been already drafted. There's no floating, we're not watching men with million dollar contracts playing half-heartedly so as to avoid injury - this is real hockey.
This years' tournament kicks off on December 26 at 2 p.m. with Canada facing off against the host Czechs, and the games will be shown on TSN.
