By mostaccounts the NHL's experimental foray into theWorld Cup of Hockey went well. The tournament, stirred to life from its 12-year-old ashes, offered compelling story lines anda full complement ofthe world's best players. Though it failed to capture the imagination of casual sports fans, with ESPN viewership plummeting after Team USA's premature exit, NHL executives will point to competition level, at a time of year when the alternative remainsmeaningle s exhibitions, as a big coup. Among other things to watch for this season, how itwill affectteams and players when the regular season begins Wednesday? 1. World Cup boost or hangover? It's true that the competitive level inthe games turned out to be a pleasant surprise. The gimmick wild cards that were Team Europe, an eight-nation underdog that finished runner-up, and the high-flying 23-and-under Team North America, quickly proved their worth and became fan favorites. It made for spirited play, even while Canada dominated as expected. MORE: Because the tournament forced players to begin training earlier, critics are wary of the impact of two weeks of high-octanegames leading into the rigors of an 82-game season.And for that there are two theories: WithLos Angeles'Marian Gaborik andPittsburgh'sMatt Murray among several playerswho willmi s time to begin the season because of injuries suffered in the tournament, bumps and bruises will mount at a higher-than-usual rate as fatigue sets in before the playoffs Or, as Dallas Stars general manager JimNillput it,''I think they're going to come out flying," asentiment that'sshared by other executives. ''They've been playing at a high level," Nillsaid, via The A sociated Pre s. "Everybody else is just getting into that level. They've been there for a month already. They're playing against the best. The pace and the tempo they've been playing at, I think those players I think are going to be leading the league early on.'' That's a scary proposition, considering Canada's top line featured Bruins teammates Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, who combined for nine goals in six games. Then there was some guy named Sidney Crosby, their linemate, who again a serted himself as the world's best player fora tournament-high 10 points, earning MVP honors. It begs the question: 2. What will Crosby and thePenguins do for an encore? Crosbyadded the World Cup accolades to analready impre sive 2016 haul that included his firstConn Smythe Trophy and, of course, the Stanley Cup, which the Penguins will attempt todefend this season. Pittsburgh recovered from a dreadful start last season to winitssecond titlein seven years. The featmirroredCrosby's rebound, and since Jan. 1 the captainhas 36 goals and 87 points in 74 games, including the playoffs and international play. GENTILLE: But the Penguins learnedsome unfortunate news days before opening their season, revealing Monday that Crosby, who has dealt with a history of head injuries in his career, againis suffering from a concu sion. With the captain's return to the lineup impo sible to pinpoint, the Penguins already are behind the eight ball. Andrecenthistory reducedstheir prospects for a repeat: No team has won back-to-back Stanley Cups in the salary- Rayjon Tucker Jersey cap era, with the Red Wings the last to do so in 1997 and '98. Still, that's nothing compared to . . . 3. Canada's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad luck Everyone knows the stat that's held over the heads of allCanadian NHL fans each season: It's been 23 yearsand counting since a franchise based north of the border last hoisted a Stanley Cup. How can it be that a nation that breeds such on-ice excellence fails to capture its sport's most cherished prizefor nearly a quarter century? The world may never know. MORE: There was little in the way of progre s last season, as all seven of Canada's teams mi sed the playoffs for the first time since1969-70. This year's outlook doesn't suggest redemption will come quickly, but most of those woebegone franchises are on the upswingwith young talent. At least one of them should be expected to confine the embarra sment to 2016. It doesn't help, of course, that two of those franchises weredealing with high-profile contract disputes heading into the season. 4. What happens in Vegas . . . One of them was Calgary, which . ButWinnipeg'sJacob Troubaremains unsigned,his situationcompounded indirectly by thelooming NHL expansion to Las Vegas next summer. In Trouba's case inparticular, a trade seems to be the only solution, butit might not be so easy brokering a deal with other NHL teams extra cautious aboutstrict guidelines for the expansion draft, in which the new franchise is topoach one player from all 30 teams' rosters. You'll see a much busier trade deadline as a result, as teams better position themselves for the purge. MORE: Another case study involves Nikita Kucherov and the Lightning. Like the aforementioned teams, Tampa Bay is loaded with young talent andfaceslong-term cap decisions affected in part by expansion, leaving little room to give Kucherov the deal he deserves. His absence, at least to start the season,will nece sitatebottom six players takingon greater roles to bridge the gap. Players like J.T. Brown,whose role as a voice for black athletes in the NHL expanded in the offseason. 5. Will NHL players join in anthem protests? Brown in September he does not plan to use Lightning games as a platformtoprotest racial injustice, as other profe sional athletes, especially in the NFL, have done in the wake of Colin Kaepernick's decision to kneel for "The Star-Spangled Banner." Brown was responding to John Tortorella'sthreat to bench any Team USA playerwho sitsduring the national anthem in the World Cup,a sentiment the coach presumably extended to his Columbus Blue Jackets for this season. I could have been quiet and just kept my opinion to myself, but I dont want young minorities who love the game of hockey to think that whats going on in America today is going unnoticed by the hockey community," said Brown, a 26-year old African-American from Minnesota,after . The NHL, with itspredominantly white and generally conservative locker rooms, wouldn't figure to become an authority on the matter based ondemographics. Approximately 25percent of the league isAmerican, andthe list of black players among them is shorter still. One is Seth Jones, the 2013 fourth overall draft pick, who plays under Tortorella and has said he had "no problem" with his coach's comments. There are others, though, and, as Kaepernick made evident, it only takes one to set things in motion. How the NHL, which traditionally has been open to , would respond is the mostinteresting question. Donovan Mitchell Jersey