Like many, I met the announcement that the NHLPA was reviving the World Cup of Hockey with some initial skepticism. The World Cup has always been the odd man out when it comes to international hockey tournaments, taking over from the eminently worthy Canada Cup only to sputter out into irregularity.
Considering all the back-channel talk about whether the NHL would allow its players to participate in any Olympic games post-Sochi, a lot of talking heads–myself included–saw the tournament as a precursor to the NHL withdrawing their players from Olympic competition. I can’t say “nobody wants that” because clearly some people do, so let’s settle for “very few people think this would be good.