There's nothing really fair about the game of hockey.

So most of the time, every argument boils down to who is getting the worst of a raw deal.

If you're a fan of the Anaheim Ducks or an Arizona Coyotes supporter (I know, there aren't that many), you're probably wondering how your first-round picks like Nick Ritchie or Max Domi must return to the Ontario Hockey League for a fourth season while the San Jose Sharks can park their guy Nikolay Goldobin in the Finnish Elite League this week, no problem.

And if you're in Sarnia and keep an eye on the hometown Sting, you're thinking, “Boy, it would've been nice to have the soon-to-be 19-year-old Goldobin back for a third season, especially during those times Ritchie and Domi face us and potentially rip up the scoresheet.”

Basically, it all shakes down to where a player is born and played his minor hockey.

Since Goldobin is from Russia, his home federation must issue a International Ice Hockey Federation transfer, which is renewable each year.

Goldobin, with Igor Larionov as his agent, signed an agreement to play in Sarnia for two years, up until he was drafted by an NHL team, at which time he would be free to explore other opportunities like the one now right in front of him.

That's great for him. Not so good for the Sting, who knew going in they might never get him back this year.

Down the road, the Knights are waiting for word on star Russian defenceman Nikita Zadorov, who remains with Buffalo. He is eligible to return to London – but it's also within his rights to play at home in the KHL for CSKA Moscow, providing the Sabres allow it under the terms of the contract he signed.

That rule is in place now courtesy of Alex Radulov.

But what about the boys from Canada?

Ritchie and Domi are bound to their junior teams because the CHL, Hockey Canada and the big thinkers of the game in this country believe it's in a 19-year-old's best interest, if he doesn't crack the big leagues, to come back to their previous level and play with his peer group.

But then you see Goldobin on a higher rung and Sharks GM Doug Wilson saying, “we feel his development is best suited playing in a league against men”. Then, it's easy to understand why Edmonton's Craig MacTavish, who has to compete for a playoff spot with San Jose in the Western Conference, would like to have the option of keeping 19-year-old defenceman Darnell Nurse or sending him to the American league to play against men rather than having him back in Sault Ste. Marie for the rest of the season.

The Greyhounds, of course, are looking at a Memorial Cup run if they get Nurse back, so the stakes for them are pretty high, too.

And what about Connor McDavid then?

He's a better hockey player than Goldobin and, because of his talent and maturity, deserves the chance to test his skills against men rather than lighting up the OHL again.

Instead, he has to settle for those nights where he gets to go head-to-head against the likes of Ritchie and Domi. Clearly, Doug Wilson didn't think a dozen or so of those matchup games for Goldobin this year outweighed the value of him playing on the big ice in Europe.

For many years, I agreed with the Canadian approach of retaining junior-aged players because there's not only an on-ice component to each kid's situation, but social and emotional considerations, too. It also doesn't hurt CHL marketing to have these big-name kids in their rinks every weekend, either.

But when you're seeing some country's prospects getting advantages your kids don't and you're not winning as many world junior tournaments anymore, it's worth studying if the top end of this development model is still functioning properly.

We already know it's not fair.

Nothing in this game is.

ryan.pyette@sunmedia.ca

Twitter.com/RyanatLFPress

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