Notebook

Andrew Podnieks
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FEA.027.02
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December 30, 2002
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Can Carlo Colaiacovo make history in Halifax? As of today, he leads the tournament in scoring with seven points. No defenceman has ever led the WJC in points…

average attendance in Halifax to date is 9,912 and in Sydney it’s 2,871…there are some 193 accredited personnel from the NHL’s 30 teams. No team has fewer than four representatives…

Canada has used three different sweaters at this year’s tourney, but it’s not the first time this happened. In 1998, the Canadians had a game in Hameenlinna but brought the wrong sweaters to the game. For one period they were forced to wear the uniforms of a local club team until a bus driver could scramble like mad to get the players their proper apparel sitting in their dressing room in Helsinki…

the multi-national Canadian Hockey League is well represented here. Canada leads the way, of course, with 20 players on the team from that league. There are also seven Czechs, six Slovaks, four Americans, two Swedes, and one Russian from the CHL. Germany, Belarus, and, surprisingly, Finland, haven’t any representation. Swiss forward Tristan Vauclair of Rouyn-Noranda was a late cut by La Suisse…

Imagine a playoffs without Sweden, a top-flight nation that has had an erratic international year. Tre Kronor had the disastrous game against Belarus in Salt Lake City, and at the World Championships in May, Tommy Salo redeemed himself and the team with a terrific bronze-medal performance. And now, they risk having to play in the relegation round… 

The tournament format this year is different from last year for a very good reason. Last year, in the Czech Republic, the IIHF used a format that called for four teams from each group to go on to the playoff round and only one to play in the relegation round. This year, the new and permanent format calls for only three teams advancing and the bottom two forced into the relegation round. Two teams will be demoted to Division I play for next year, which is the impetus for the change. Division I features two divisions and two separate tournaments. The first has already been played, and Austria won the round-robin. Thus, it will be in the 2004 World Juniors. The other branch of Division I is being played right now in Kazakhstan, the winner yet to be decided. Thus, the two demoted teams from this year in Halifax will end up in the two Division I groups for next year.

For more information:

Esther Madziya
Manager, Communications
Hockey Canada

(403) 284-6484 

[email protected] 

Spencer Sharkey
Manager, Communications
Hockey Canada

(403) 777-4567

[email protected]

Jeremy Knight
Manager, Corporate Communications
Hockey Canada

(647) 251-9738

[email protected]

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