User:SStephens13/sandbox

The Big Six in men's international ice hockey are the six national teams that have been dominant in competitive play throughout history and especially since the 1950s. The group is composed of the North American countries of Canada and the United States, the Scandinavian countries of Sweden and Finland, and the Eastern European teams of Russia and the Czech Republic. Before the end of the Cold War, the Soviet Union/CIS and Czechoslovakia held the places of Russia and the Czech Republic; consequently, Slovakia is sometimes mentioned as also being a member of a group referred to as the Big Seven.

Out of the 201 IIHF World Championships medals awarded, only 24 have been won by teams outside the Big Six and only four of those have been won since 1953 (all by Slovakia). Of the 69 Olympic ice hockey medals awarded, only 4 have not been won by a Big Six team. No team outside the Big Six has medaled in the World Cup of Hockey.

IIHF Men's World Championships
[[File:Map of winners of the Ice Hockey World Championships.svg|thumb|upright=2|Winners of the Ice Hockey World Championships with number of wins.

{{legend|#008000|1}}

{{legend|#84b4f4|2-4}}

{{legend|#ffc400|5-9}}

{{legend|#cc0000|10-19}}

{{legend|#800080|20+}}]]

Canada and United States seldom have their best players available for the IIHF World Championships, due to the conflicting time-frame of the NHL. Typically the only players available are College hockey players, NHL players whose teams have failed to make the Stanley Cup playoffs, or players who play in other leagues such as the AHL. The World Championships have a very weak following in North America, and are not widely shown on television there. Despite this, the Canada and United States teams that compete in the World Championships are still normally easily able to defeat European teams outside of the Big Six, with a few possible exceptions, such as Slovakia.

World Cup
The World Cup of Hockey replaced the Canada Cup in 1996. The Canada Cup served as an ice hockey world championship that was governed by NHL, rather than IIHF, rules, and was held five times between 1976 and 1991. Only one team outside of the Big Six, West Germany, was ever allowed to compete in the Canada Cup; this occurred in 1984. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Canada Cup was reorganized as the hockey World Cup. It has been held twice so far, with current plans for the cup to start up again in 2016 and be held every four years.

Draft Table
Table removed per WP:NFCC.

Civilizations and leaders represented
* Entries with a teal background indicate civilizations added with the first expansion pack (III: Play the World; IV: Warlords; V: Gods & Kings). * Entries with a green background indicate civilizations added with the second expansion pack (III: Conquests; IV: Beyond the Sword; V: Brave New World). * Entries with a yellow background indicate civilizations added through DLC (V; VI) or game updates (Rev 2).


 * Notes

* Entries with a teal background indicate leaders added with the first expansion pack (III: Play the World; IV: Warlords; V: Gods & Kings). * Entries with a green background indicate leaders added with the second expansion pack (III: Conquests; IV: Beyond the Sword; V: Brave New World). * Entries with a yellow background indicate leaders added through DLC (V; VI) or game updates (Rev 2).


 * Notes