Victoria Cup (ice hockey): Difference between revisions
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==2008 Victoria Cup== |
==2008 Victoria Cup== |
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{{Infobox NHL Winter Classic |
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| visitor = [[New York Rangers|NY Rangers]] |
| visitor = [[New York Rangers|NY Rangers]] |
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| home = [[SC Bern]] |
| home = [[SC Bern]] |
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Revision as of 02:58, 30 January 2008
- This article is about the ice-hockey tournament. For the Australian harness race, see Victoria Cup (harness race).
The Victoria Cup will be an annual game or series of games played between professional ice hockey teams from Europe and the North American National Hockey League (NHL). In 2008, the inaugural Cup will be a single game playoff between the 2008 European Champions Cup winner and an NHL club. In subsequent years teams of the European Champions Hockey League will play one or more NHL challengers in an undetermined format.
The Victoria Cup was announced in 2007 as one of the highlight events to celebrate 2008, the 100th Year Anniversary of the IIHF. The cup is named after the Victoria Skating Rink in Montreal, Canada, where the first recorded organised indoor ice hockey game was played on March 3, 1875.
2008 Victoria Cup
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| Date | September 30, 2008 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arena | Bern Arena | |||||||||
| City | Bern, Switzerland | |||||||||
On October 1, 2008, the first Victoria Cup will be awarded to the winner of a single game between the winner of the 2008 European Champions Cup, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, and the New York Rangers of the NHL,[1] to be played at the PostFinance Arena in Bern, Switzerland. The game will be played under IIHF rules.[2]
The match will be preceded by an exhibition game on September 30, 2008 between host SC Bern and the New York Rangers. This will be the first time a Swiss club will play an NHL team.[2] The Rangers will follow the Victoria Cup game with two NHL regular-season games against the Tampa Bay Lightning team in Prague, Czech Republic on October 4 and October 5 at the Sazka Arena.[3]
This is a milestone for international hockey and for the relationship between the IIHF and the National Hockey League," said IIHF President René Fasel. "Ever since the historic game between the Montreal Canadiens and CSKA Moscow on New Year's Eve 1975, hockey fans around the world have been longing for games between NHL clubs and European teams. There have been several games since then, but this is the first time we will have a summit meeting, a one-off final, for a trophy which we hope will be part of the annual international calendar for years to come.[2]
— René Fasel, IIHF President
We agreed that the Rangers would be the optimal club to represent the NHL in the first Victoria Cup, The Rangers were the first ever NHL club to play against a European team when they met CSKA Moscow in New York on December 28, 1975, they have been one of the NHL teams that have most often shown enthusiasm to go overseas and there is no doubt that many Europeans fans will have no problems identifying with the heavy international presence that the club has. But first and foremost, the New York Rangers are one of the most identifiable clubs in all of hockey and professional sports.[2]
— René Fasel
Out of several choices we worked with, in the end nobody had the credentials of SC Bern and its arena, SC Bern is one of the best-organised hockey clubs in Europe, they are in a successful phase and their fans are maybe the best in the world. Of the many options we had to consider for the Victoria Cup, we felt Berne had earned the right to host this inaugural event because of its devoted fan support.[2]
— René Fasel
References
- ^ McKenzie, Bob (January 24, 2008). "McKenzie: NHL's European plans finalized". TSN.ca. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b c d e "Rangers challenge Metallurg". IIHF. January 26, 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Four NHL teams to open the 2008-09 regular season in Europe Oct. 4-5". NHL.com. January 26, 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-28.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)