Amid the excitement surrounding this year’s thrilling World Baseball Classic, Connor McDavid wants hockey to bring back a similar tournament spotlighting the game’s top stars.
Following Shohei Ohtani’s strikeout of Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout to secure Japan’s victory over the U.S. in Tuesday’s championship game, McDavid spoke to reporters Wednesday about hockey’s need for those same kinds of moments.
“It’s what we’ve been asking for hockey for a long time, right? Is best-on-best,” McDavid said, via TSN’s Carlo Colaiacovo. “Look, everyone’s talking about baseball. You see Ohtani versus Trout. That’s what hockey’s been missing for almost a decade now.”
The last time a significant number of top NHL players competed in an international tournament was at the Sochi Winter Games in 2014. Despite working a break into the league’s schedule for the Olympic games from 1998 to 2014, NHL players don’t receive the same luxury now.
With NHL players prohibited from playing in the 2018 and 2022 Olympic games, the 2024 World Cup of Hockey was the next best shot at a top-tier international tourney. However, the NHL announced last November that the “current environment” made it impossible to hold the World Cup in 2024. Instead, the league is aiming for a 2025 return for the tournament. The last World Cup of Hockey took place in 2016. In 2020, looming collective bargaining talks between the NHL and NHLPA forced the cancelation of the tournament.
To say this year’s WBC was a massive success would be an understatement. Fan engagement was palpable, and the ratings back that up. According to Paulsen of Sports Media Watch, Tuesday’s WBC final was the most watched matchup in the tournament’s history, drawing 4.97 million viewers. Furthermore, Tuesday’s championship game drew more eyes than all but one MLB game broadcasted on Fox Sports 1 in 2022.
Seemingly at death’s door multiple times over the years, the WBC showed that baseball still has a highly passionate following. Hockey has always been fourth among the big four of professional sports, and it’s never been more evident than it is now. Following baseball’s lead might be a good start if hockey wants to change that perception.
