The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

[Puck Swami]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Shore's inability to skate without bending his ankles is a bit of an embarrassment to an otherwise decent looking squad.

Shore had a very good game. He won some faceoffs in all three zones, kept pucks in deep and distributed the puck well. If any USA player struggled, it was D'Amigo who had a -2 and turned over the puck that led to a Finland goal.

 

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Shore had a very good game. He won some faceoffs in all three zones, kept pucks in deep and distributed the puck well. If any USA player struggled, it was D'Amigo who had a -2 and turned over the puck that led to a Finland goal.

I agree. D'Amigo struggled. Didn't notice him at all offensively and when I did notice him, it wasn't for a good thing.

One guy who didnt do much offensively or stats wise that I liked was Etem. I liked the way he skated and positioned himself. He's an active player and always around the puck.

Anyone see any confirmation on Nelson? I'm 90 percent sure his shoulder was atleast separated after that hit after watching him react to the hit and then skate off the ice and immediately go to the locker room.

Campbell looked great in the net.

 

[brianvf]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Anyone see any confirmation on Nelson? I'm 90 percent sure his shoulder was atleast separated after that hit after watching him react to the hit and then skate off the ice and immediately go to the locker room.

Nelson was out on the ice again during the OT, but haven't seen anything on a possible injury.

 

[jnacc]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

A win is a win and the Finns aren't called "pesky" for nothing! Still though, this U.S. team still has its work cut out for it. While the D core did not play terrible, the Finns were able to win many battles down low and cycled the puck effectively in the U.S. zone. For all the size on the back end, the D will have to play better and stronger.

I hope we can finally dispense with the ludicrous notion of Canada being the under dog team of "blue collar plumbers" as they spanked a very good Russian team last night.

 

[AFHockeyFan]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Why is it we can get every game of the Juniors on the NHL Network, but when the IIHF Worlds roll around, the best we can do is a low-quality webcast with insulting Russian announcers?

I know the Worlds are during the NHL playoffs, but would it be that hard to throw a few games on a network somewhere? If Olympic hockey can pull massive ratings, surely a few games with some NHL'ers in the same sweaters could draw a viewer or two.
Meine zwei pfennigs.
Go USA!

 

[realet]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

I hope we can finally dispense with the ludicrous notion of Canada being the under dog team of "blue collar plumbers" as they spanked a very good Russian team last night.

For 20 minutes, yes.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Why is it we can get every game of the Juniors on the NHL Network, but when the IIHF Worlds roll around, the best we can do is a low-quality webcast with insulting Russian announcers?

I know the Worlds are during the NHL playoffs, but would it be that hard to throw a few games on a network sp,ewhere? If Olympic hockey can pull massive ratings, surely a few games with some NHL'ers in the same sweaters could draw a viewer or two.
Meine zwei pfennigs.
Go USA!

Probably because the networks are too busy with the squeakball playoffs, and NHL playoffs must be relegated to NHL Network. Not to mention, it is called the NHL Network, not the IIHF Network. It might be cool if there were a channel with a lot of international games, like KHL, a few European leagues, etc. Don't know what the ratings would be like, though. My guess is that a 24-hour poker channel would do better.

 

[dggoddard]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Shore's inability to skate without bending his ankles is a bit of an embarrassment to an otherwise decent looking squad.

Speaking of embarrassing, how many UAA players are playing in the Tourney.

TSN's Bob McKenzie is reporting via Twitter late Sunday night that USA Hockey fears Chicago Blackhawks star Jemamy Morin may have suffered a potentially serious shoulder injury. If confirmed, it would be a serious blow to Team USA's chances.

Nelson & Morin shoulder injuries confirmed: http://www.tsn.ca/world_jrs/story/?id=346953

 

[Puck Swami]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

In these tournaments, it's imperative to learn from mistakes and improve from game to game. Having a solid Finland team for a first game was a good test for the Yanks. I think the Americans learned a few lessons from last night.
1) In transition, keep it out of the middle against a good counter team like Finland. They'll burn you going the other way. Stay wide.
2) Keep moving the feet. The USA did fine when they were motoring, but when the US feet stopped moving, Finland took over the game as the Yanks puck-watched. This was really apparent in the second period and in parts of the third.
3) Don't get cute in the d-zone. D'Amigo's turnover down low cost the USA a goal, and gave the Finns a huge confidence boost.

That said, the USA has a pretty mobile defense group, and some snipers who can bury it with time and space. I'd like to see the US do more with the skills they have down low, cycling and making others chase.

 

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

In these tournaments, it's imperative to learn from mistakes and improve from game to game. Having a solid Finland team for a first game was a good test for the Yanks. I think the Americans learned a few lessons from last night.
1) In transition, keep it out of the middle against a good counter team like Finland. They'll burn you going the other way. Stay wide.
2) Keep moving the feet. The USA did fine when they were motoring, but when the US feet stopped moving, Finland took over the game as the Yanks puck-watched. This was really apparent in the second period and in parts of the third.
3) Don't get cute in the d-zone. D'Amigo's turnover down low cost the USA a goal, and gave the Finns a huge confidence boost.

That said, the USA has a pretty mobile defense group, and some snipers who can bury it with time and space. I'd like to see the US do more with the skills they have down low, cycling and making others chase.

Summed it up perfectly.

 

[sfo19]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Speaking of embarrassing, how many UAA players are playing in the Tourney.

TSN's Bob McKenzie is reporting via Twitter late Sunday night that USA Hockey fears Chicago Blackhawks star Jemamy Morin may have suffered a potentially serious shoulder injury. If confirmed, it would be a serious blow to Team USA's chances.

Nelson & Morin shoulder injuries confirmed: http://www.tsn.ca/world_jrs/story/?id=346953

I don't consider Canadian media on USA hockey matters to be confirmation. That was posted late last night. There's been nothing from USA hockey yet. The Buffalo blog on the tournament reports they are both day to day and not ruled out for the tournament in its entirety.

 

[AspyDad]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

A win is a win and the Finns aren't called "pesky" for nothing!

Pesky = Trap. The Finns would be right at home in the ECAC.

 

[AspyDad]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

1) In transition, keep it out of the middle against a good counter team like Finland.

"good counter team" = trap

 

[Federal League]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Pesky = Trap. The Finns would be right at home in the ECAC.

"good counter team" = trap

And from the sounds of it, we can expect more of that. Last night, the announcers said Slovakia, Germany and Switzerland all "like to slow the game down." This US team was built for speed and open ice, so it'll be interesting to see if they can either A) impose their style or B) adapt. I didn't think they did a very good job of either last night, but hey, they still got the win. I think their ideal style is better suited for skilled, wide-open opponents like Canada and Russia than these bottle-up-the-middle teams.

On a related note, did anyone else think Finland's style dated to the pre-Bobby Orr days? They didn't use their points much in the offensive zone, and they basically ignored the US points in the defensive zone. I know a lot of teams play that zone defense designed to clog the front of the net, but they hardly pressured the points at all, which is something I haven't seen much.

 

[dggoddard]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

On a related note, did anyone else think Finland's style dated to the pre-Bobby Orr days? They didn't use their points much in the offensive zone, and they basically ignored the US points in the defensive zone. I know a lot of teams play that zone defense designed to clog the front of the net, but they hardly pressured the points at all, which is something I haven't seen much.

Probably has to do with the bigger rink size in Finland. I've seen WCHA teams do this on the big ice.

 

[AspyDad]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

On a related note, did anyone else think Finland's style dated to the pre-Bobby Orr days? They didn't use their points much in the offensive zone, and they basically ignored the US points in the defensive zone. I know a lot of teams play that zone defense designed to clog the front of the net, but they hardly pressured the points at all, which is something I haven't seen much.

It looks like a natural extension of their 1-2-2 Neutral Zone trap. If you have just the one guy out by the blue line you can't get to the point shot. You see this with teams like UCONN and other NCAA teams with less speed. You need the secondary part of the zone to block the shots or they themselves create a screen.

 

[uaafanblog]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Speaking of embarrassing, how many UAA players are playing in the Tourney.

What exactly does that have to do with Shore's substandard skating?

Did I say anything about DU which required your partisan retort?

Why don't you save your petty, churlish and irrelevant bovine excrement for threads other than this one?

Then after Shore leaves DU this season you can happily make multiple daily posts on your blog about which toe-nail he just trimmed.

 

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

I'm here at the game and crowd looks like around 13000-14000 and Canada fans outnumber us with many rooting for Finland. Zucker had a sick snipe and walked out from the side boards where I'm sitting.

You're joking, right Preze? The place was 1/3 full if they were lucky. And HSBC holds what like 18,000 capacity for hockey? No way they even had 10,000.

The sides were pretty full, but still a lot of empty seats. The corners were sparse. And behind the nets were essentially empty.

 

[dggoddard]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

Did I say anything about DU which required your partisan retort?

Why don't you save your petty, churlish and irrelevant bovine excrement for threads other than this one?

Having you give a lecture on posting etiquette is like hiring Lindsey Lohan to run a pharmacy.

 

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

I'm not well versed on the Euro Junior Teams, but I assume Finland was our most difficult opponent in group play? I know the Swiss have gotten better in recent years and the Slovaks are a traditional "Big 7" Team, but the Finnish program usually produces superior teams.

Technically, Slovakia is seeded 3rd, Finland 5th. It's based on last year's results.