Preseason games between the Kings and Canucks were played in Shanghai and Beijing last SeptemberGETTY IMAGES
The Bruins and Flames will play a pair of exhibition games in China next season, part of the NHL's effort to "make further inroads in establishing hockey as a sport in the world's most populous nation," according to Stephen Whyno of the AP. As part of the '18 ORG NHL China Games, the teams will face off Sept. 15 at Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre in southeast China and then again Sept. 19 at Cadillac Arena in Beijing. The Kings and Canucks "played preseason games in Shanghai and Beijing last September, the NHL's first foray" in the country. China represents an "as-yet untapped resource for the NHL, especially ahead" of the '22 Beijing Games. The league is "working with local authorities to develop hockey programs as the government of the country with a population of 1.3 billion aims to have 300 million participants in winter sports" by '22 (AP, 5/2). WEEI.com's Scott McLaughlin noted while these will be the "first games the Bruins have played in China, they have made trips there each of the last two years." In July '16, Bruins players "hosted youth hockey clinics for over 200 Chinese children on the organization's first official visit." The next summer, several Bruins players returned for "another visit" (WEEI.com, 5/2). Former Flames players, most notably Hockey HOFer Lanny McDonald, traveled to Hong Kong in '13 to "promote hockey" (CP, 5/3).
