Re: 2017 Women's World Championships
I think this whole thing is just fantastic. The players are completely controlling the narrative, had their facts ready, and came out with a unified front (player pool & U18s included). They're just killing it. They look like superheros and USA Hockey has some serious egg on their face.
Well, that's one way to look at it especially after Hockey USA's disingenuous and highly political and predictable response.
Did anyone check out the Lam's and Duggan's response below the article...used "dishonest" and "misleading" to describe USA Hockey's response. These are strong words. None of these three have reputations as being wallflowers, which is not a bad thing but they need to understand that these types of institutions are very political and care only about themselves...they have no moral code that they live by except that which is immediately convenient in achieving their goals...if you can help them achieve their goals, their way, then everything is just groovy, but if not...well,....
Could it be that these players, as well intentioned as they may be, are setting themselves up for an ambush...as in "we'll show you young punks who's in charge" and it's a scabbin' we will go?...with presently rostered players' names never to see the light of day again on said roster...sort of like what Reagan did/or tried to do to the air traffic controllers in the early '80's...make them irrelevant....thereby eliminating any bargaining power or leverage that they may have had and in doing so, automatically, quickly and inexpensively solving your problem?
Of course, the political cover would go something like this "USA Hockey, after intense deliberations over the past several years has decided to take the Women's National program in a different direction owing to the disappointing lack of Gold Medal success at the Olympics in recent years and would like to thank the players who have contributed to USA Hockey's involvement in the women's game and wish them all the best in their future endeavours".
Short, sweet and to the point...the political point. After the guillotine has been employed, the basket is covered and quickly removed. Move along folks, nothing to see here.
USA Hockey's attitude might be that if they cave here that they will just be setting themselves up for a repeat performance sometime in the future. If so, preempting the mutiny now, as painful as it might be, will be seen as a pretty logical solution to the present and future problems.
In other words, might the presently rostered players be actually creating their own playing demise?
Better to stop playing for a whore, if that's what you believe that you are playing for, than to actually be one yourself. There is still the question of integrity, principles, self esteem and the rest of your life to deal with and in which to deal with those concepts. Better to deal with them at peace with yourself, meaning at one with those concepts than not.
