ESPN to Broadcast 2016 World Cup of Hockey: Latest Details, Comments, Reaction

The National Hockey League announced ESPN won the broadcast rights for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, which will feature six national teams and a pair of composite squads.   

NHL Public Relations reports the agreement will cover all games in the event. It's scheduled to start on Sept. 17 and conclude on Oct. 1. NHLPA executive director Don Fehr highlighted the importance of landing a high-profile broadcast partner.

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"We are excited to have ESPN as our broadcast partner for what is going to be an incredible tournament featuring over 150 of the top hockey players in the world," Fehr said. "ESPN's reach and storytelling approach will expose our players' skill and personalities, something that we know will resonate with fans as the tournament unfolds."

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The report also included comments from ESPN president John Skipper.

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"We are thrilled to resume our partnership with Gary Bettman and the National Hockey League and to work closely with Gary and Don Fehr of the National Hockey League Players Association to make the World Cup of Hockey on ESPN a reality," he said. "We look forward to presenting this compelling tournament, with national pride at stake, to fans both in the United States and internationally."

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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman spoke about the decision to bring the competition to ESPN, via Chris Johnston of Sportnet:

Bettman also spoke on the league's relationship with NBC, who has a television agreement with the NHL, via Sportsnet's Hockey Central:

Stephen Whyno of The Canadian Press weighed in on the packed programming schedule NBC had during the competition window:

John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal provided some additional perspective on the numbers:

The tournament will feature teams from: Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Sweden and the United States. It will also include a team featuring players from all of Europe and then some of the game's top young players from North America not selected for the national sides.

It's the third this the World Cup of Hockey has been held. The United States won the championship in 1996 in Montreal. Canada won the second edition in 2004 in Toronto, which will once again serve as the host this time around.

The tournament is held during what's normally training camp and the preseason. That works better for the NHL than the Winter Olympics, which forces the league to take an extended break in the middle of the season to accommodate.

Whether the event is eventually going to take precedent and end the involvement of the league's players in the Olympics remains to be seen, though.

The release states more broadcast details will be released closer to the tournament.