BY TER STAFF

Sorry Canada, but hockey is ours now. While ice hockey will remain as Canada’s premiere sport, probably until the end of time, and football will remain king in the U.S., for the first time in 46 years no Canadian teams will make the NHL playoffs.

What makes things even worse for Canada is 46 years ago, there were only two of two Canadian teams who didn’t make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This time around there are seven total NHL teams in Canada who were eliminated from playoff contention, all with several games left in the NHL season.

Not since 1993 has a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup and not since 2011 has a Canadian team even made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, and this year will mark an 22nd straight year that an American team will take home the Cup.

This alone is not why hockey is ours now, after all even though U.S. teams are dominant in the NHL today, they all have plenty of imports from Canada. However this year will also mark the first time that an American born player will win the NHL’s coveted Art Ross Trophy, awarded to the player with the most points in the regular season.

Unless Jamie Benn can put up 12 points in 2 games, or Sidney Crosby can get 18 in 4 games, both while having the number one spot remain pointless in his next 3 contests, Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane will become the first ever American born player to win the Art Ross. Kaner is also the favorite for the Hart Trophy, given to the league’s Most Valuable Player. If he takes home the Hart as well, he will become the first American born-and-raised player to do such.

New York-born Billy Burch won the trophy in the ’20s, however he moved to Toronto at an early age.

This isn’t all. Sales have also been dominated by American teams. While the Montreal Canadians consistently remain as one of the top selling NHL teams, a Canadian team has not reached the number one spot in attendance since the 2007-2008 season.

Don’t worry Canada, just as you have been dominating our music scene in the past few years, we have dominated hockey. Both Justin Bieber and hockey are ours now.

You will always have a big place in the history of hockey though. However, if you don’t start getting your act together, hockey will only continue to evolve into an American sport.

We will gladly take your exports, after all, the Blackhawks couldn’t prosper without Jonathan Toews and Corey Crawford, but hockey is only getting bigger in the States.