TORONTO -- Never mind 1996 or 1987, or any of the Canada Cups or even the first incarnations of the World of Cup of Hockey. The past, as glorious as it might have been, is the past. Finis. Over and done with.But the future?Thats really the story of the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, the sports first best-on-best tournament since the easily forgotten 2004 World Cup, which came on the eve of a lockout.Historically, this dog-eared tournament has been pulled from the hockey closet only when the league and the players needed to beef up their personal coffers. Now the tournament must prove it deserves a place at hockeys international table.If its done right, many believe there is a place for such a tournament.Longtime NHL and international coach Andy Murray, an assistant for Team Canada back in 1996, said he believes the early fall is the perfect time for this kind of tournament. Players are fresh, they love playing for their countries, and there is more preparation time than for the Olympics, driving up the potential for quality hockey.As a stand-alone event, the World Cup of Hockey doesnt lack for competitive juices and interest. In part, thats because of the allure of the Team North America squad made up of players under the age of 24 from Canada and the United States.Not sure anyone could have anticipated the buzz surrounding this fleet-of-foot, wildly skilled team led by the NHLs next great savior, Connor McDavid, and assisted by 2016 first overall draft pick Auston Matthews, who played in front of his new hometown fans in Toronto before he dons a Maple Leafs jersey in the regular season.What began as a gimmick has morphed into a happening, and it will be interesting to see how fans react if they are forced to choose between Team North America and Canada or the United States after the preliminary round.Despite a rash of injury withdrawals, the tournament boasts a whos who of hockeys elite, from Sidney Crosby to?Alex Ovechkin?to Henrik Lundqvist.Team USA is a decided underdog, especially given the selection of a team that left a number of high-skill players such as Phil Kessel and Tyler Johnson at home. But the Americans bear watching as they promise to play a highly physical style that they hope will see them erase the disappointment of the 2014 Sochi Olympics.So the product should not be an issue.But will that ensure a future of World Cups?More to the point, can this tournament provide the kinds of moments that will become a touchstone for a generation of hockey fans in the way the 1987 World Cup of Hockey earned mythic status in Canada or the 1996 version became a shining moment in U.S. hockey history?One element that will have a large impact on the World Cups role in the future of international hockey is whether this becomes the only best-on-best tournament available to the worlds top players.With the International Olympic Committee threatening to change the way it funds hockeys participation in the Olympics starting in 2018, theres a good chance the NHLs time at the Winter Games is over. The NHL and the players will not pay out of their own pockets to take part in a tournament that most, if not all, league owners hate for the disruption it brings to the regular-season schedule.It will be a sad day if the Olympic experiment, which began with the first NHL participation in 1998, is over. Nothing replaces the Olympics. Not even the World Cup of Hockey.But if the NHL is no longer going to the Olympics, the hunger for this type of international tournament must be satisfied somehow. And we know from the history of the Canada Cup/World Cup of Hockey that this tournament can create indelible memories that span the ages.However, if the NHL stays in the Olympics, then it adds another element of uncertainty to the World Cup of Hockey. Does it get tossed back into the hockey closet with the glowing pucks and mullets?And if not, how much is too much?The commissioner and his office have done such a sensational job of promoting our sport now with the players association, and being partners, and trying to put our game on a different level and expanding it more and more worldwide, so obviously from that point of view, its sensational, Wayne Gretzky said recently.But the Great One did express one concern.I just worry about fatigue, Gretzky said. They play so much hockey. And the level of competition now is so high, and the players are so big and strong and fast, I just sometimes go, Wow, are we playing a little bit too much hockey? But thats not for me to say; Im just talking as a fan.Through the tournaments final, fans will share in the creation of a new chapter of international play. How the chapter ends -- well, thats going to be a fascinating part of this journey. Cheap Ian Thomas Jersey . 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The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm.Sorely needing right-handed power in their batting order, the New York Yankees turned back the clock to add a player who was a core part of their 2001 through 2003 playoff teams. Numbers Game looks at the Yankees acquiring Alfonso Soriano from the Chicago Cubs. The Yankees Get: LF Alfonso Soriano. Soriano, 37, has his flaws -- chief among them, poor plate discipline that leads to a low on-base percentage -- but he remains a productive power hitter and the Yankees, desperate for anything resembling pop from the right side of the plate, acquired him in the hopes that his power would bring life to their struggling lineup. This season had largely been a struggle for Soriano until late June. Through his first 72 games, Soriano hit seven home runs, with 30 RBI, hitting .245 with a .666 OPS. In the 21 games since, Soriano has slugged 10 homers and driven in 21 runs, batting .286 with a 1.014 OPS in 21 games. Despite that recent power surge, Soriano is still an on-base liability, as his .287 on-base percentage represents the lowest mark of his career (for a season in which he played at least 25 games). With so many players on the injured list for most of the season, including Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Kevin Youkilis, the Yankees have, not surprisingly, struggled offensively. The Yankees currently rank 12th in the American League in runs scored (395), 14th in home runs (88) and 14th in OPS (.678), the latter two categories ranking only ahead of the Houston Astros, a team with an Opening Day payroll of about $26-million, or less than the $28-million that the Yankees owed A-Rod to not play for them this season. As bad as the overall struggles have been for the Yankees offence, its dramatically worse from the right side of the plate. The top right-handed power threat in the Yankees lineup has been LF Vernon Wells, who has 10 home runs, hitting .240 with a .654 OPS. As if those numbers arent bad enough, Wells last home run was May 15, so hes currently gone 182 at-bats since his last home run; remember, this is the most productive right-handed hitter in the Yankees lineup this season. Wells can platoon with Travis Hafner at designated hitter and fill in as an extra outfielder for the rest of this season. While advancedd metrics, like Ultimate Zone Rating, have reflected favourably on Sorianos defence in recent years, there are questions about sample size particularly as it pertains to outfielders, so its probably reasonable not to expect too much from Soriano in the field at this stage of his career.dddddddddddd According to ESPN, the Cubs will pay about $17.7 million of the $24.5 million due to Soriano through the end of next season. If that means Soriano fills a depth role next season as well, as a designated hitter and extra outfielder, the cost isnt necessarily prohibitive. Desperate times call for desperate measures, though, and the Yankees punchless attack leaves them 6.5-games behind Boston for the American League East lead. Something had to be done and, even if Soriano isnt the most complete player at this point of his career, hes an upgrade on what the Yankees have been trotting out on an everyday basis; it would be difficult to be worse. The Cubs Get: RHP Corey Black. Black is a 21-year-old who was drafted in the fourth round last summer out of Faulkner University. In 19 starts for Single-A Tampa this season, Black is 3-8 with a 4.25 ERA and 1.50 WHIP, but he has struck out 88 in 82 2/3 IP. His trouble appears to be command, as hes walked 45. Hes only 5-foot-11, 175 pounds, but Black has an overpowering fastball that gets up into the mid-90s. With further development, which has to include improved control, he could turn into a power bullpen arm for the Cubs. As the Cubs play out the string this year, there will be chances for players to audition in left field. Soriano has played 86 of 100 games in left field, so no one else has really seen significant time there. Junior Lake, a 23-year-old who was recently called up (hitting .484 with a 1.284 OPS in his first seven MLB games) has been playing mostly centre field, but he played infield in the minors and played left field in Sorianos absence Thursday, so Lake would seem the best bet to get regular playing time ahead of the Cubs cast of journeymen outfielders that includes Julio Borbon, Cole Gillespie and Dave Sappelt. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale NFL Camo Jerseys Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL T-shirts Wholesale NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Womens Jerseys NFL Jerseys Wholesale ' ' '