TORONTO -- The question that stumped the audience came from a Canadian wondering out loud about a team that a year from now will feature European players from as many as 10 nations for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
"Whose anthem do they play if they win the tournament?" Steven Stamkos said when discussing Team Europe, one of eight teams in the tournament but one of two that won't be representing a single nation. "They've gotta think about that one."
Even NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA Executive Director Donald Fehr admitted it was an interesting question posed by the Canadian forward and captain of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Team Europe will be comprised of 23 players who can come from every European country except Russia, Finland, Sweden and Czech Republic, the four nations that already have a team scheduled to compete in the World Cup next year.