It's the best - and worst - of times for Hockey Canada

On the ice, things have never been better for the organization. But away from the rink, Hockey Canada has never been more in shambles. And gold medals alone aren't going to silence its critics

The moment Hockey Canada president and CEO Scott Smith put the gold medals around the necks of the members of Canada’s national women’s team for winning the World Women’s Championship in Denmark over the weekend, the organization achieved something that has never been accomplished before.

No, we’re not talking about Smith and his cronies setting a new standard for tone-deafness. The members of this particular group have been doing that with alarming regularity of late. Nor are we referring to the fact that with all the winning Canada has been doing lately, the women’s gold-medal triumph likely bumped Smith and all the other well-paid senior staff at Hockey Canada into a tax bracket they’ve never experienced before. You know, because of the bonuses they receive. For winning hockey tournaments. While working for a country that already has every competitive advantage imaginable.

Actually, when Canada’s women took their second straight Women’s World title, it marked the first time in history that one country has owned gold medals in the women’s Olympics, Women’s Worlds, Under-18 Women’s Worlds and the men’s World Junior Championship. It marked only the second time one country has owned all three women’s titles and the first time any country has won all three in the same year.