SovietWings

I thought this was kind of neat. Someone's built bunch of Google maps which show where NHL players were born, e.g. players born in Michigan.

More like james Bond.

I did some further digging around on the number US players in the league, and looks like the number has increased from 195 to 205 moving from 2007-08 to 2008-09 season. At the same time however, the number of Canadian players has increased even more from 447 to 468. I guess I wouldn't make too much out of this, since it doesn't differentiate between players who may have dressed up for only a single game and those that have played the entire season.

Thanks for your input. Considering that the NTDP has been around already for over 10 years, it would seem that it doesn't fully explain the sudden rise in the number of US born players. Then again its impossible to say what exactly has caused the increase. It could be that there has been a gap in the number of retired US players and that has caused the increase, or maybe NTPD has produced a few remarkably outstanding teams in the past few years. It will be interesting to see if the trend continues, but for now it doesn't look too bad for the US hockey. Just have to hope that the economy doesn't make a too big dent on kids playing hockey.

A fantastic post! Thanks so much for providing the insight. Its disappointing to hear that hockey is losing its appeal with the US youth (or the parents more likely). It is an expensive sport to pay for, especially when there is no chance for outdoor ice during the winter. Considering that the current economic crisis is still underway, the situation is unlikely to improve in the next few years. If you don't mind, I would like to pick your brain with a few more questions. Do you know how many players graduate annually from Ann Arbour? Is it just one team or do they have several? Do you know how long this program has been in place? The reason I'm asking is that another page on the same website charts the US players by their birth state. The chart also shows a line for the total number of US born players since 1970. Looking at the chart, the number of US born players has increased by an estimated 60 players in the last four years. Would you contribute that increase to the Ann Arbour hockey program?

The charts here show how the NHL nationality mix has changed throughout league history. What especially strikes me with those charts is the trend that appears to be just emerging for U.S players. It looks like during the past 3-4 season U.S players have rapidly increased their share in the NHL rosters. Considering the potential that USA has for growth in hockey popularity, and all the marketing NHL is doing in the States, I wouldn’t be surprised if in the next 20 years US will produce more NHL players than Canada. Can you see this happening? Hockey will never become the national sport in the USA as it is in Canada, but it doesn’t have to, the potential for growth is so big. I know one can’t extrapolate 20 years to the future based on few years of data, but I think it could happen.

True, looking at the list of eligible junior players in NHL its mostly Canada although other countries are missing talent as well: NHL Players born in 1989, NHL Players born in 1990

I would love to see Memorial Cup tournament, but unfortunately living in Europe that ain't going to happen. Are the games actually televised in the U.S and Canada or is buying a ticket the only option? The competition, skill level and physicality must be much more intense in WJC though. I can't imagine I would enjoy Memorial Cup as much.

I find the scenario highly unlikely, and it could only happen after a lot of support from NHL had failed. The league would do everything it could to support an Original Six team. So much history would be lost if the Red Wings disappeared. Then again, eventually the team would have to support itself, and if the auto industry never recovers it might happen. Apologies for being ignorant, but does Detroit have other industry that could emerge and replace the car makers?