Yzerfan1999 81 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 The New York Americans also failed. Ottawa, which is Canada's capital, failed. Of the Original 6, 4 of them are from the United States. So the best hockey has a history of being played predominantly in the United States. The fact remains that the US has 24 teams while Canada has 6. If Canada is such a bad ass hockey country, why doesn't it have more of the NHL? The NHL is talking about expanding to Europe more than they are talking about expanding within Canada. So are you trying to argue that the US is a better hockey country because it has more people? I took your question as asking which country pays attention, knows more, and cares more about hockey. I think most people did. Winnipeg, Hamilton, Quebec, and Regina could all produce sell-out crowds, but because they are 'small market', they wouldn't last in the NHL. Miami seems pretty big market to me, and their team is doing terribly. Maybe if you talk about actual numbers of hockey fans in the states you could say that number is higher then in Canada, but if you look at the percentage of people in each country that play or watch hockey, Canada's would be far, far, far higher. Canadian players make up more then half of all NHLers. Also, take a look at this - the Number of registered hockey players by country. Though not conclusive as it doesn't give you the total number of people in each country playing hockey (no doubt that Canada would still be highest), it does provide some evidence. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_hockey#Nu...yers_by_country Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cusimano_brothers 1,655 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 Of the Original 6... The "Original 6" was actually the "Original 4" and they were all Canadian teams. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theman19 47 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 I could respond to this,....or as an American myself I can quote the great Abe Lincoln "it is better to stay silent and have people think you are a fool, then to open your mouth and remove all doubt." Mr. Bettman step away from the computer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jake Ryan 1 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 So are you trying to argue that the US is a better hockey country because it has more people? I took your question as asking which country pays attention, knows more, and cares more about hockey. I think most people did. Winnipeg, Hamilton, Quebec, and Regina could all produce sell-out crowds, but because they are 'small market', they wouldn't last in the NHL. Miami seems pretty big market to me, and their team is doing terribly. Maybe if you talk about actual numbers of hockey fans in the states you could say that number is higher then in Canada, but if you look at the percentage of people in each country that play or watch hockey, Canada's would be far, far, far higher. Canadian players make up more then half of all NHLers. Also, take a look at this - the Number of registered hockey players by country. Though not conclusive as it doesn't give you the total number of people in each country playing hockey (no doubt that Canada would still be highest), it does provide some evidence. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_hockey#Nu...yers_by_country Hey, I wasn't trying to force you to look at this one way or the other. That's why I wanted people to say why they felt the way they did. My opinion is just that - an opinion. I just think that hockey would be forgotten if the US didn't promote it. I can't say the same for Canada. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mjlegend 155 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 (edited) Whichever country has produced the great hockey talent that is Tomas Holmstrom must certainly be behind only Canada in terms of the greatest hockey country. Edited November 30, 2009 by mjlegend Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hokeychik22 17 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 swedan or russia? i actually remember hearing about this recently. might not even be one of the oens i memtioned. i think its a country we'd least expect. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doggy 130 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 (edited) I laughed when I saw USA suggested in the title. Then, when I saw his actual opinion I REALLY laughed. I think it's pretty obvious the answer is Saudi Arabia. Edited November 30, 2009 by Doggy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest CaliWingsNut Report post Posted November 30, 2009 There's no question that there's a higher percentage of fans, and therefore more history and heritage in Canada. But for pure numbers (and Bettman is actually right.. the penny pinching POS) the US beats Canada. It always will. There's just no way. Even if only 1 person in the US out of 10 cares for hockey, there would be more fans of hockey in the US than people in all of Canada (not Canadian fans of hockey). Canadian Population: 33,311,389 - 2008 (google) United States Population: 304,059,724 - 2008 (google) California Population: 36,756,666 - 2008 (google) - 3 hockey teams Bettman doesn't hate Canada... He sees it as saturated. He's a bean counter... The NHL will never see the return for $ spent in Canada that they can achieve in the US or Europe (regardless of how hardcore Canadian hockey fans are). There's just more people and more people make more sales. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brett 1,029 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 USA? no..more ppl watch the superbowl or world series then the stanley cup Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
under_par_00 45 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 Which country do you think is the number 1 country and why? I think the USA is the number one country for hockey because it's home to the NHL and hockey wouldn't be nearly as popular if Americans weren't keen on it to some degree. The league is based mostly in the USA for money reasons only. The #1 hockey country is easily Canada, as it feeds the NHL most of its talent, and it is by far the best league in the world. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BuckeyeWingsfan80 209 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 While I agree that Canada loves hockey, started the game, and still has the highest majority of players, I don't think hockey would be anywhere without the USA. Even though hockey is still behind football and baseball, it's still better to be in 3rd or 4th place in the USA instead of 1st place somewhere else. Hockey is likely lower than 3rd or 4th place in the USA. More like 5th or 6th behind the: NFL MLB NBA NCAAF NCAAB NECKCAR Yeah maybe it's more like 7th at this point. You gotta be kidding me if you think the US is anywhere near 1st on that list. Hell just about those 4 countries the US is 4th and if you include Finland and maybe even the Czech Republic likely more like 6th or 7th there too. Therefore, this thread is FAIL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brett 1,029 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 (edited) meh id put hockey before basketball on the list..forgot about college football NFL MLB NCCAF NHL NBA and so on Edited November 30, 2009 by brett Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nc19 0 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 The New York Americans also failed. Ottawa, which is Canada's capital, failed. Of the Original 6, 4 of them are from the United States. So the best hockey has a history of being played predominantly in the United States. The fact remains that the US has 24 teams while Canada has 6. If Canada is such a bad ass hockey country, why doesn't it have more of the NHL? The NHL is talking about expanding to Europe more than they are talking about expanding within Canada. Your entire argument is ridiculous.. there wouldn't even be an NHL if it weren't for Canada. Half of the league is made of Canadians, the USA contributes 21 percent of the players to the NHL (half of which are crap). Everywhere you go in Canada, hockey is the number one sport. The only reason why hockey is even remotely popular in the states is because of CANADIAN players (wayne gretzky in LA, Lemuiex in pitts.. the list goes on and on). Hockey is so popular in Canada that people even watch the world juniors, and the world championships. Even the canadian stereotype is somehow related to hockey. Your entire argument is just based on the fact that theres more money in America because theres 10 times more people... and they only like hockey cuz of Canadian superstars. Hockey is Canadas sport FOR SURE! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doggy 130 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 Your entire argument is ridiculous.. there wouldn't even be an NHL if it weren't for Canada. Half of the league is made of Canadians, the USA contributes 21 percent of the players to the NHL (half of which are crap). Everywhere you go in Canada, hockey is the number one sport. The only reason why hockey is even remotely popular in the states is because of CANADIAN players (wayne gretzky in LA, Lemuiex in pitts.. the list goes on and on). Hockey is so popular in Canada that people even watch the world juniors, and the world championships. Even the canadian stereotype is somehow related to hockey. Your entire argument is just based on the fact that theres more money in America because theres 10 times more people... and they only like hockey cuz of Canadian superstars. Hockey is Canadas sport FOR SURE! Ever been to Regina? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jake Ryan 1 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 meh id put hockey before basketball on the list..forgot about college football NFL MLB NCCAF NHL NBA and so on At least noone is putting golf in front of hockey. I bet more people watch the majors, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RedArmy 4 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 There's no question that there's a higher percentage of fans, and therefore more history and heritage in Canada. But for pure numbers (and Bettman is actually right.. the penny pinching POS) the US beats Canada. It always will. There's just no way. Even if only 1 person in the US out of 10 cares for hockey, there would be more fans of hockey in the US than people in all of Canada (not Canadian fans of hockey). Canadian Population: 33,311,389 - 2008 (google) United States Population: 304,059,724 - 2008 (google) California Population: 36,756,666 - 2008 (google) - 3 hockey teams Bettman doesn't hate Canada... He sees it as saturated. He's a bean counter... The NHL will never see the return for $ spent in Canada that they can achieve in the US or Europe (regardless of how hardcore Canadian hockey fans are). There's just more people and more people make more sales. technically by your argument Russia would be #1 population of 141,800,000 with hockey a close 2nd in popularity to soccer... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cjm502 165 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 I dislike Canada, and dislike playing hockey there because of the rudeness some teams have towards Americans. I really cant stand going up to Brampton, or Toronto, but if you say any place but Canada is the biggest hockey country you are an idiot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pockets 9 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 without all the players canada produces the quality of the product would be lower therefore US hockey would struggle more with less top players Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BuckeyeWingsfan80 209 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 At least noone is putting golf in front of hockey. I bet more people watch the majors, though. s*** I forgot about golf it's probably about even in terms of actual viewership, although a LOT more people play it and whatnot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zetts 236 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 Swing by Canada. Hockey is easily the most significant sport. Just because the US can support it in more cities because of economic factors doesn't make it more of a hockey country. Hockey isn't particularly popular in most of the US from what I've heard. Looking at this from a different angle: how many of the top 50 players of all time are American? Now how many are Canadian? I don't have an exact count obviously, but most of the top players I can think of are Canadian. There aren't a whole pile of US born players on that list. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jake Ryan 1 Report post Posted November 30, 2009 Swing by Canada. Hockey is easily the most significant sport. Just because the US can support it in more cities because of economic factors doesn't make it more of a hockey country. Hockey isn't particularly popular in most of the US from what I've heard. Looking at this from a different angle: how many of the top 50 players of all time are American? Now how many are Canadian? I don't have an exact count obviously, but most of the top players I can think of are Canadian. There aren't a whole pile of US born players on that list. Yah, I'm not arguing that hockey isn't the number one sport in Canada. That is obvious. I'm just arguing that if the US dropped hockey, meaning that it no longer existed in the US, it would have a bigger impact on the sport than if Canada dropped hockey. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yzerfan1999 81 Report post Posted December 1, 2009 Yah, I'm not arguing that hockey isn't the number one sport in Canada. That is obvious. I'm just arguing that if the US dropped hockey, meaning that it no longer existed in the US, it would have a bigger impact on the sport than if Canada dropped hockey. I get it, you think because the US is much larger then Canada, they should be considered the #1 hockey nation (whatever that means). If the USA dropped hockey, only one thing is certain - the NHL would cease to exist as we know it. Canadians would still play and watch Jr hockey religiously because that's what Canadians do. American's? I'm not so sure the same could be said. Seriously, take a drive down the Trans-Canada Hwy. Every other town's welcome sign is a claim to the birthplace of an NHL player. Hockey is to Canada what Baseball is to the United States. Think of it that way, no one - no matter if the major league of that sport were played partly in another country - would claim that Baseball was not America's sport/pastime. Same goes for Hockey in Canada. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VM1138 1,921 Report post Posted December 1, 2009 While I agree that Canada loves hockey, started the game, and still has the highest majority of players, I don't think hockey would be anywhere without the USA. Even though hockey is still behind football and baseball, it's still better to be in 3rd or 4th place in the USA instead of 1st place somewhere else. You didn't ask which country made hockey more popular, you asked which country is the number 1 hockey country. That, no argument anywhere in the world except you apparently, is Canada. Hockey is part of a Canadian's every day life. It's popular in parts of the USA, but you can't say it's a national sport. I'd say Russia and the US are tied for second. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SouthernWingsFan 854 Report post Posted December 1, 2009 (edited) Canada. No contest. This doesn't mean that hockey is non-existant in the other countries obviously. Edited December 1, 2009 by SouthernWingsFan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kwame_Kilpatrick 0 Report post Posted December 1, 2009 canada has good fans but hocky fans in sweden and especially finland are great. teemu selanne once said when he played for jokerit in helsinki, people would ask for his leftover chicken. plus they sing songs which is just great, its like a soccer game the atmosphere is beautiful. canada has more angry fans Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
