Tampa Bay is out of contention. Why is a favorable winter destination not good enough?
#Tampa is eliminated from bidding to host 2018 World Junior championship, finalists are Buffalo, Pittsburgh and St Louis
— Erik Erlendsson (@erlendssonTBO) September 15, 2015
It's a disappointment. The bid to host the international competition was from a very non-traditional market - one that's proving itself as accepting the game, thank you - to begin with. It's not clear and probably won't tangibly be made clear why the location was rejected but attendance guarantees (with thanks to distance from the Canadian border) to go along with non-traditional weather during the of a traditional winter event (no snow, no cold, not hockey weather).