The World Cup of Hockey

The World Cup of Hockey tournament (and its predecessor the Canada Cup) has provided hockey fans with some of the most thrilling moments in the history of the sport. Here for the first time is the complete story of these unforgettable contests for ice supremacy. Before the 1998 Olympics, the World Cup was the only hockey championship that was truly open to the world's best players. As the authors show, the series charted the expansion of international hockey, inlcuding the emergence of the U.S. as a hockey force to be reckoned with, the growing strength of Sweden and the former Czechoslovakia as hockey nations, and the influence of European-style hockey on North America. As with any international sports event, the World Cup has had its share of political conflicts, especially in the years before the end of the communist regimes of Eastern Europe. The authors explore the political intrigues on and off the ice, as well as the commercial challenges of staging these world class events.