The WJC Thread. USA! USA! USA!

[SanTropez]

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

I don't know. Do you think they'd ever get drunk enough for some Canadian bull ***** to get it on with some male Russians who just beat a Canadian team?

Vodka = yes

 

[defkit]

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

I'm just stunned at the result of the gold medal game. I skimmed throught he US game on DVR, saw live that Canada was up 3-0 after two, and assumed it was a done deal. For some reason D), the NHL network didn't have the result scrolling on the screen this morning amongst the NHL scores. Then I start readng the thread this morning, and it's like the game is going on right then.....now it's 3-3....4-3....Russia wins! I watched the 12 minute highlight reel on NHL.com this morning. Simply amazing.

Also - there is a difference between getting drunk after such an amazing tournament and doing nothing more than vomiting and perhaps acting a little rambunctious, versus destroying a hotel room or two after losing and getting drunk. I agree, more power to the kids for celebrating in style!

 

[defkit]

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

One more thought. One or more of the many documentaries/stories/movies about the Miracle of 1980 have made reference to how the Soviet players almost cracked smiles when seeing how the USA players reacted to winning that game. As if they were happy to see so much pure joy on the ice, when all they felt was pressure to win or be failures.

I have to wonder if some of the Canadian players felt the same way last night while watching the Russians go absoutely crazy out there.

 

[defkit]

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

OK, I lied. Another. Anybody else out there wondering if we might get a repeat of the infamous brawl of 1987 (?), with the USA winding up being awarded the gold?

I don't think I heard any reference to that game this year, although as I said, I have not watched last night's broadcast. And it's not exactly the kind of thing that fans like to recall.

 

[pinch]

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

That would probably produce some amazing future hockey players....

Well.... some real ugly kids anyway

 

[Runninwiththedogs]

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

I don't know. Do you think they'd ever get drunk enough for some Canadian bull ***** to get it on with some male Russians who just beat a Canadian team?

Yes, because all women who play hockey are lesbians. Nice job being sexist AND homophobic in the same sentence.

 

[Gurtholfin]

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

Yes, because all women who play hockey are lesbians. Nice job being sexist AND homophobic in the same sentence.

In some unmentioned places, they are that AND foreigners.

 

[Gurtholfin]

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

 

[goldy_331]

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

Yes, because all women who play hockey are lesbians. Nice job being sexist AND homophobic in the same sentence.

Thanks. I tried.

 

[SteveP]

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

So.....my cousin in Toronto says her boss has a theory...Canadian teams with a leaf on their sweaters just can't win in Buffalo on a weekday.

To back that up -- the Leafs have coughed up a 3 goal third period lead to the Blues at the ACC.

 

[streaker]

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

I could not agree more with your assessment. Canada had the weight of National Credibility & Pride on its' shoulders for the USA game and looked almost supernatural in their effort against USA. I think history bore out that Canada was not that good and USA was not that bad. A 5-1 medal performance should not but looked on negatively by anyone knowledgeable about hockey. The US club showed some serious character in the response in the final day of the tournament and the program will learn a lot about how much it takes committment wise to deliver at a medal level going forward. Just a matter of time before USA is regularly competing for Gold at WJC.

Congratulations to USA Hockey and the 2011 team members!

In some websites, certain Canadians are still in denial about this- using the same excuse as last year: they don't send their *very best* eligible U-20's to the WJT because they are playing in the NHL, which is why they lost. It's so sour that it is an insult to their own team. Based on what I saw, they were the best team (even for a group of 'B' players, including Schenn and Schwartz) in the tournament and just fell victim to momentum- and quit competing. Congrats to the Russians for coming back, and congrats to the US team for beating a very good Swedish team.

 

[SteveP]

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

In some websites, certain Canadians are still in denial about this- using the same excuse as last year: they don't send their *very best* eligible U-20's to the WJT because they are playing in the NHL, which is why they lost. It's so sour that it is an insult to their own team. Based on what I saw, they were the best team (even for a group of 'B' players, including Schenn and Schwartz) in the tournament and just fell victim to momentum- and quit competing. Congrats to the Russians for coming back, and congrats to the US team for beating a very good Swedish team.

From Bob McKenzie:

There'll be all sorts of talk now, as is always the case in Canada after a devastating international hockey defeat, about whether the team had the right players or the right coach and in this case, it's pretty much all nonsensical to even go there. This team played well, consistently well, physically dominated games, scored goals without problem, excelled on special teams, showed incredible discipline while playing an unbelievably aggressive and physical game. They were focused and diligent and played their asses off, many of them banged up pretty badly in terms of injury, illness and fatigue.

I know if I had a son on that team, I would be awfully proud of him.

They were 17 minutes from a tremendous victory where they would have been lauded as heroes. They had a letdown -- a monumental, can you @$%&*!@ believe that letdown admittedly -- that will stay with them all for quite some time, but, hey, it may not be sterling analysis, but that's hockey, man, that's junior hockey.

Of course, as a hockey nation, we Canadians tend to be a touch on the myopic side. I mean, we're deep into this essay and it's only ever been about the Canadian collapse, not the Russian comeback.

What a truly remarkable effort by a group of Russian youngsters who started the tournament losing to Canada and Sweden before fashioning amazing comebacks.

Not sure I'd call Team Canada "a group of B players." As McKenzie says, 15 of the 22 on the roster were first-rounders and Couturier will be this year.

Assessment of the loss from team members and NHLers who've been there and done that. Mike Babcock's comments around 1:45 are very astute.

 

[streaker]

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

From Bob McKenzie:



Not sure I'd call Team Canada "a group of B players." As McKenzie says, 15 of the 22 on the roster were first-rounders and Couturier will be this year.

Assessment of the loss from team members and NHLers who've been there and done that. Mike Babcock's comments around 1:45 are very astute.

Oh, I'm being sarcastic. I just see a segment of Canadian posters who refuse to give credit to their opponents, especially the Americans when they get beat- or as they say- beat themselves. (This year's finger was pointed at both the Russians for what they thought was "flopping around" and the Swedes that were called... of all things... arrogant.) Like I said, it is a dual edged sword when you arguably have the best pool of U-20 talent in the world- and can't tap it because some of them happen to be so good they are in the NHL. You can't turn around and diminish the kids that are left because, like McKenzie said, they're pretty good too. Not a word would have been spoken about it had they sealed the deal- and the same people would be blustering on about how Schenn & co. will be the next coming of Gretzky and Crosby.

And yes- Babcock nails it again. No entitlement thoughts there and pride just the same. We're lucky to have him in Detroit.

 

[Priceless]

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

Bigger Things Than Hockey

On the grand scale, it was just a silly little hockey game.

To Canadian hockey fans, though, it was a crushing defeat.

But rather than dwell on the heart-breaking 5-3 loss to the Russians in Wednesday's gold-medal game at the world junior tournament, Wilcox product and Team Canada forward Jaden Schwartz has more pressing issues to deal with.

For starters, his broken ankle that prematurely ended his world junior tournament will need attention and rehabilitation before he returns to the ice.

But perhaps what is first and foremost on his mind is the health of his older sister Mandi, who in December learned through a biopsy that her leukemia had returned.

"Mandi is my main thought. She's all I think about all the time," Jaden said on Thursday afternoon, moments after his flight landed at Regina International Airport. "She wanted me to focus on the task at hand, so at the time I was trying to stay focused on my team and my teammates. But at the end of the day, it's all about family for me."

Jaden and his father Rick were greeted at the airport by Mandi and mother Carol Schwartz. Jaden and Mandi shared in a lengthy hug before Jaden draped his silver medal around his sister's neck.

More at link.

 

[Bullmoose]

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

Allright, I guess I may be the only Russian on this board, so I'll chime in. First, several words of gratitude. Thanks to all of you who rooted for my team (even if you were rooting only against Canada). We (the Russians) appreciate it. Thanks for the kind words about my team after this amazing comeback and victory. It is great to come here, to the website dedicated to the US collegiate hockey, and read about my team.

Second, congratulations on the well-deserved Bronze for Team USA. While neither one of the college teams that I root for (Dartmouth and Massachusetts) sent their players to that squad, it is still great to see a team composed almost entirely of collegiate athletes to perform so well at the world stage.

Third, I will chime on the discussion about my team. The performance by this Russian Team at this tournament was truly monumental. Shirtless Guy in Post #743 earlier in this thread mentioned that Team Russia had to stage a late come back in every game of the play-off round. To that I will add two notes:

1) Losses to Canada and Sweden in the group round meant that my team started the play-off early. To get the third place in the group, we had to beat both Norway and Czech Republic. While those games may look easy in the hindsight, they weren't so. There was incredible pressure, as an error would've led to infamy of the relegation round (where Russia has never been). The game against Norway was tied at 2-2 after the first period, and Russia held a tenuous 3-2 lead after two periods (in the third my team scored 5 goals to put that game away);

2) After beating Finland in the quarterfinals on Sunday night, Team Russia had 17 hrs 20 minutes to rest and prepare for the game against Sweden that was scheduled at 3:30 PM the next day. I saw almost all of the game against Sweden on TV -- my team played using very short shifts and, while that plan worked well, they were still clearly gassed in the third period. Tiredness led to the missed assignments that lead to two Swedish goals. When Swedes went ahead with 3 minutes 19 seconds remaining in regulation, the guys mustered energy seemingly out of nowhere to equalize the score, and take this game to the OT (and, eventually, Shikin won it in the shootout with help from Golubev.)

There are posters on the Russian boards that compare this team to the Defenders of Stalingrad. While I think that a direct comparison is going way over the top, as the fate of the world did not rest on whether 22 teenagers win a hockey game (though maybe it did for some ), like those who defended Stalingrad, I think this group of young men demonstrated the best qualities of the Russian spirit: resiliency to adversity and never, EVER, quitting. They truly made me feel good for my Motherland. I am proud to be wearing my red Russian National Team jersey in their honor for a few days, as I celebrate this victory.

And no, I have not gone on nor am I planning on getting on any Delta flights during or immediately after the portions of my celebration involving the Russian National Beverage.

 

[Gurtholfin]

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

Allright, I guess I may be the only Russian on this board, so I'll chime in. First, several words of gratitude. Thanks to all of you who rooted for my team (even if you were rooting only against Canada). We (the Russians) appreciate it. Thanks for the kind words about my team after this amazing comeback and victory. It is great to come here, to the website dedicated to the US collegiate hockey, and read about my team.

Second, congratulations on the well-deserved Bronze for Team USA. While neither one of the college teams that I root for (Dartmouth and Massachusetts) sent their players to that squad, it is still great to see a team composed almost entirely of collegiate athletes to perform so well at the world stage.

Third, I will chime on the discussion about my team. The performance by this Russian Team at this tournament was truly monumental. Shirtless Guy in Post #743 earlier in this thread mentioned that Team Russia had to stage a late come back in every game of the play-off round. To that I will add two notes:

1) Losses to Canada and Sweden in the group round meant that my team started the play-off early. To get the third place in the group, we had to beat both Norway and Czech Republic. While those games may look easy in the hindsight, they weren't so. There was incredible pressure, as an error would've led to infamy of the relegation round (where Russia has never been). The game against Norway was tied at 2-2 after the first period, and Russia held a tenuous 3-2 lead after two periods (in the third my team scored 5 goals to put that game away);

2) After beating Finland in the quarterfinals on Sunday night, Team Russia had 17 hrs 20 minutes to rest and prepare for the game against Sweden that was scheduled at 3:30 PM the next day. I saw almost all of the game against Sweden on TV -- my team played using very short shifts and, while that plan worked well, they were still clearly gassed in the third period. Tiredness led to the missed assignments that lead to two Swedish goals. When Swedes went ahead with 3 minutes 19 seconds remaining in regulation, the guys mustered energy seemingly out of nowhere to equalize the score, and take this game to the OT (and, eventually, Shikin won it in the shootout with help from Golubev.)

There are posters on the Russian boards that compare this team to the Defenders of Stalingrad. While I think that a direct comparison is going way over the top, as the fate of the world did not rest on whether 22 teenagers win a hockey game (though maybe it did for some ), like those who defended Stalingrad, I think this group of young men demonstrated the best qualities of the Russian spirit: resiliency to adversity and never, EVER, quitting. They truly made me feel good for my Motherland. I am proud to be wearing my red Russian National Team jersey in their honor for a few days, as I celebrate this victory.

And no, I have not gone on nor am I planning on getting on any Delta flights during or immediately after the portions of my celebration involving the Russian National Beverage.

Very well said. I like the Stalingrad comparison and while not quite the same, there's nothing wrong with a little hyperbole every once in a while.

Gone are the days of the hatred (fear) for all things CCCP. I grew up, as did many, in a time where we lived with the possibility of nuclear war. It's easy to forget what that was like seeing that we haven't really had that in over 25 years. As a kid, it could sometimes be quite terrifying and led to fear and mistrust of that country and everything that came from it.

I remember when the Red Army and Moscow Dynamo teams would tour North America and play against NHL teams. I saw the Dynamo in Chicago against the Hawks and they looked like hockey animatrons and fueled by my own government and media's rhetoric, I couldn't see how these people were even anything like me or other North Americans.

Fast forward many years and I play with several guys from what was once the USSR and they're ALL just like everyone else.

What am I getting at? Watching the WJC, I just want a good story and your boys provided that. Don't get me wrong, I would probably root for the Taliban over Hockey Canada, but watching your team do what they did was great and nationalism never even crosses my mind anymore when choosing who to root for. Other than when it comes to Canada, of course.

The celebration showed that these are very young men with youthful joy and exuberance who had just done what almost everyone said they could not. I had certainly written them off after the two losses. It almost was worth us getting the bronze, okay, not really, but congrats and be proud. We certainly were last year.

And don't worry about the celebration. Nobody cares and it makes a great footnote to the story.

Oh yeah, and SUCK IT, arrogant Canadians!

 

[UMDBulldogHockeyIsKing]

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

Yes, because all women who play hockey are lesbians. Nice job being sexist AND homophobic in the same sentence.

Have you seen the Bulldog women's team? There are quite a few who've come through the program.

 

[Dirty]

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

Have you seen the Bulldog women's team? There are quite a few who've come through the program.

Mulleted Russian Lesbian!

 

[hockeynut]

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

have you seen the bulldog women's team? There is a fugly one that leads the program.

fyp

 

[SteveP]

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

Oh, I'm being sarcastic. I just see a segment of Canadian posters who refuse to give credit to their opponents, especially the Americans when they get beat- or as they say- beat themselves.

No argument from this Canadian, but there are as many, if not more Americans (here and elsewhere) who refuse to give credit to their opponents. Anyone who says they'd root for the Taliban before Canada is beneath contempt, considering that young men and women (many as young as these junior hockey players) from my country have been pulling their weight and dying while battling those neanderthals for the past several years.

And yes- Babcock nails it again. No entitlement thoughts there and pride just the same. We're lucky to have him in Detroit.

Just as we were lucky to have him in Vancouver.

Allright, I guess I may be the only Russian on this board, so I'll chime in. First, several words of gratitude. Thanks to all of you who rooted for my team (even if you were rooting only against Canada). We (the Russians) appreciate it. Thanks for the kind words about my team after this amazing comeback and victory. It is great to come here, to the website dedicated to the US collegiate hockey, and read about my team.

Obviously, I wasn't rooting for your team, but I will say that I enjoyed seeing the unbridled, joyous celebration by the Russian boys. Sure it hurt, but as Priceless put it, there's more important things in life.

And no, I have not gone on nor am I planning on getting on any Delta flights during or immediately after the portions of my celebration involving the Russian National Beverage.

Hmmm...seems like the Russian coaches preferred an adult beverage from the Great White North!

An hour and a half after the upset win, several Russian coaches and trainers came on the ice - one holding a bottle of Crown Royal Canadian whisky and others sipping from paper cups - to pose for pictures in front of the scoreboard that had been lowered to ice level after the game.