The National Hockey League and the NHL Players’ Association have announced the schedule for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, which will run from Sept. 17 to Oct. 1, 2016.
The two-week tournament, featuring eight teams and more than 150 NHL players, will progress from the preliminary round to the semifinals and ultimately the final. All tournament games will be played at Air Canada Centre in Toronto, home of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The eight teams are split into two groups for the preliminary round (Sept. 17-22), when each team will play its three group opponents in a round-robin format. Placed in Group A are Team Canada, Team Czech Republic and Team USA, plus Team Europe, a pan-European roster of players from countries outside of the Czech Republic, Finland, Russia and Sweden. The four teams in Group B are Team Finland, Team Russia, Team Sweden and Team North America, a selection of the top players from Canada and the United States who are 23 or under as of Oct. 1, 2016.
The preliminary round schedule will put the spotlight on two of international hockey’s fiercest rivalries on Tuesday, Sept. 20, when Team Canada and Team USA face off in Group A and Team Finland and Team Sweden meet in Group B.
North American arch-rivals Canada and the United States have faced off for the top prize in several international finals, including the 1991 Canada Cup, 1996 World Cup of Hockey, 2002 and 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the 2004 and 2010 IIHF World Junior Championships. The Nordic powers Finland and Sweden have met in the finals of the 1995 and 2011 IIHF World Championships, the 2006 Olympic Winter Games and the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championships.
The top two finishers in Group A and Group B will advance to the semifinals (Sept. 24-25), where the first-place team from each group will face an elimination game against the second-place team from the other group. The two semifinal winners will meet in the final, a best-of-three series on Sept. 27, Sept. 29 and, if necessary, Oct. 1.
Live coverage of all tournament games will be provided by Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada. A complete broadcast schedule will be announced at a later date, while a select number of tickets for the event will go on sale to the public Wednesday, Oct. 14 at Ticketmaster.ca.
2016 World Cup of Hockey Schedule
All Games Played at Air Canada Centre, Toronto (all times ET)
Group A
Team Canada
Team Czech Republic
Team Europe
Team USA
Group B
Team Finland
Team North America
Team Russia
Team Sweden
Preliminary Round (round robin)
Saturday, Sept. 17
Team Europe vs. Team USA, 3:30 p.m.
Team Canada vs. Team Czech Republic, 8 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 18
Team Russia vs. Team Sweden, 3 p.m.
Team Finland vs. Team North America, 8 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 19
Team Czech Republic vs. Team Europe, 3 p.m.
Team North America vs. Team Russia, 8 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 20
Team Finland vs. Team Sweden, 3 p.m.
Team Canada vs. Team USA, 8 p.m.
Wednesday, Sept. 21
Team North America vs. Team Sweden, 3 p.m.
Team Canada vs. Team Europe, 8 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 22
Team Finland vs. Team Russia, 3 p.m.
Team Czech Republic vs. Team USA, 8 p.m.
Semifinals (single elimination; A1 vs. B2, B1 vs. A2)
Saturday, Sept. 24
Semifinal 1, TBD
Sunday, Sept. 25
Semifinal 2, TBD
Final (best-of-three)
Tuesday, Sept. 27
Final Game 1, 8 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 29
Final Game 2, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 1
Final Game 3, 7 p.m. (if necessary)
