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***hockeyfan*** · 07-28-2024, 06:41 PM

I have been around the World Junior Championship for quite a few seasons now, and this, have seen it’s ups and downs. It is a fun tournament and serves to give people their first taste of international hockey, whether that is as GM or player, and sometimes both.

Every season, however, a ton of effort goes in to naming GMs, picking teams, and getting the file ready. As an impartial outsider, I see how much HO struggles at times getting this tournament off the ground and I think I can help in making it an easier process moving forward.

Proposed Changes:

There are currently 12 teams in the WJC and with the ever changing player landscape of the junior league, teams are also in a state of flux. Take Norden for example. When the team was created, Sweden, Finland and Norway did not have enough players in their pools to make their own team. That lasted two or three seasons and then they had enough players again and Norden were overpowered.

My main suggestion is to make the WJC more like the junior league of the IIHF tournament. The SMJHL to the SHL, if you will.

Change the amount of teams from 12 to 14 and make every team the junior version of their IIHF counterpart. For example, there is now a France WJC team.

This could mean that the head of France, as an example, would have a junior team that they could have more of a hand in recruiting, and could also have more of a say on who the GM is.

Moving to 14 teams would mean more player slots to fill, but for those seasons with less players than player slots to fill, we could play the tournament how the SHL does, with only three forward lines.

Yes, I understand there may not be too many players on each roster to start (Independent Russia, for example), and of course Canada and the USA would have too many players for only one team, but that can be solved by holding a draft, which is something that happens in every tournament regardless. I admit that it is not popular for a player to play in a different federation, but that only makes Canada and USA WJC teams as more of a 3rd or 4th year player team.

It’s not a perfect suggestion, and could use some more ironing out, but just had to get this thought out of my brain and on the internet and see if it was any good.

***Seany148*** · 07-28-2024, 08:19 PM

Are there enough active players to hold 14 teams? Even with a draft?

***hockeyfan*** · 07-28-2024, 09:15 PM

07-28-2024, 08:19 PMSeany148 Wrote: Are there enough active players to hold 14 teams? Even with a draft?

With only 3 forward lines, 100%. May have to use IA players to fill out teams with 4 forward lines.

Popol · 07-28-2024, 09:21 PM

I had to double check who posted this because I always used to assume suggestions for international tournaments came from Fatedsaber

skyrrhawk · 07-28-2024, 10:01 PM

07-28-2024, 09:21 PMPopol Wrote: I had to double check who posted this because I always used to assume suggestions for international tournaments came from Fatedsaber

lmfao remember when she said ho should ban people from creating for usa or canada

that said: i don't think effectively turning the wjc into international competition smjhl is the right idea, not least of all because people choose their feds and there shouldn't be someone, gm, ho, or otherwise, forcing them into playing for a different fed. it removes agency from players/users.

***Aephino*** · 07-28-2024, 10:03 PM

Back when I was in WJC HO (for an impressive one season) I remember we had plans to change it to 8 teams:
Canada
USA
Team NA (other USA + Canada)
British Isles (Great Britain, Ireland)
Norden (Finland, Sweden, Norway)
Rhine (France, Germany, Switzerland)
UCORCAL (Russia, Latvia, Czechia)
World (All other countries)

I personally think this could still work. Less is more for WJC. There's already a lot of inactives on rosters. And it can be overwhelming for new players to have something else they need to follow. It isn't always obvious why some players of X nation are on Y WJC team, and the file working can be trickier.

***hockeyfan*** · 07-28-2024, 10:07 PM

07-28-2024, 10:03 PMAephino Wrote: Back when I was in WJC HO (for an impressive one season) I remember we had plans to change it to 8 teams:
Canada
USA
Team NA (other USA + Canada)
British Isles (Great Britain, Ireland)
Norden (Finland, Sweden, Norway)
Rhine (France, Germany, Switzerland)
UCORCAL (Russia, Latvia, Czechia)
World (All other countries)

I personally think this could still work. Less is more for WJC. There's already a lot of inactives on rosters. And it can be overwhelming for new players to have something else they need to follow. It isn't always obvious why some players of X nation are on Y WJC team, and the file working can be trickier.

What a dream an 8 team WJC would be!

There are actually zero inactives on rosters in a 12 team league, it’s built into the rules.

***Seany148*** · 07-28-2024, 10:34 PM

07-28-2024, 10:07 PMhockeyfan Wrote: What a dream an 8 team WJC would be!

There are actually zero inactives on rosters in a 12 team league, it’s built into the rules.

Hmmm, actually...