The World Cup of Hockey, an infrequent global showdown of elite ice hockey talent last staged in 2004, will return next year with eight teams competing over two weeks in Toronto.
The National Hockey League (NHL) announced on Saturday that Canada, Russia, United States, Sweden, Finland and Czech Republic would be joined by Team Europe, an all-star collection from other European nations, and a 23-and-under team from the host region dubbed the North American Youngstars.
The NHL also announced 2016 outdoor game plans, with the Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche set to host games next year.
The tournament will feature two groups in a round-robin format on a NHL-sized rink starting on September 17, moving on to semi-finals and those winners meeting in the title match on October 1.
"We are thrilled to partner with the (union) in planning and producing what we expect will be the world's best international hockey tournament," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.
The NHL and its players' union announced the deal to revive the event, which was born in 1996 out of the former Canada Cup.
The United States won the inaugural crown while Canada triumphed in 2004 ahead of a NHL shutdown over money issues between club owners and players.
The move comes as the NHL contemplates whether to shut down at mid-season and have its players compete in the Winter Olympics as it has done every four years since 1998.
The next two Winter Olympics will be staged in Asia - 2018 in South Korea and 2022 in Beijing or Almaty, Kazakhstan.
"We expect that this is the initial step in a series of events that will elevate our game over the next few years, including a World Cup in 2020," NHL Players' Association executive director Don Fehr said.
More than 150 NHL players are expected to take part, with the Europe all-stars to include talent from such nations as Slovakia, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, France, Denmark, Norway, Latvia, Belarus, Estonia, Slovenia, Kazakhstan and Lithuania.
The 23-and-under team means rising stars like Canadian junior Connor McDavid, a likely top pick in next year's NHL Draft, would not be eligible to play for his homeland - only the 23-and-under squad.
The NHL and players' union will jointly select the Europe and Young North American all-star squads while national federations will decide other line-ups.
Share
