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US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

wwhyte said:
So Dunne didn't play any games? That seems a shame.
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Assistant captain Caroline Ouellette and forward Marie-Philip Poulin as well as defencemen Meaghan Mikkelson, Lauriane Rougeau and Laura Fortino also remained in Calgary, where the Canadian team is based this winter.

The US seems to prefer young players, many in college or even before, while Canada prefers experience
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

pokechecker said:
Assistant captain Caroline Ouellette and forward Marie-Philip Poulin as well as defencemen Meaghan Mikkelson, Lauriane Rougeau and Laura Fortino also remained in Calgary, where the Canadian team is based this winter.

The US seems to prefer young players, many in college or even before, while Canada prefers experience
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News out of Canada today. Three cuts made to reduce centralized roster from 27 to 24. Let go were Bonhomme (CAN/OSU), Lacquette (UMD) and Kohanchuk (BU). Left in camp are 3 Goalers, 7 D and 14 forwards. Final Roster expected to be 3+6+12;

Details courtesy TSN: http://www.tsn.ca/story/?id=436462
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

L268 said:
Tough news for those players.... http://bit.ly/1e2ysAx
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Tough news indeed for Bonhomme, but she showed the real class you would expect from her. Team Canada has sometimes been criticized for too much reliance on vets, so not too surprising that one who has been having some health issues didn't make it this year.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

hab said:
Tough news indeed for Bonhomme, but she showed the real class you would expect from her.
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100% echo those comments. There are a lot of of positive comments about her on the normally very negative Ontario Hockey Blog.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

I heard an interview with Bonhomme on Sports 590 Toronto yesterday thanks to the wonders of the internet. She was very composed and gracious. The hosts made a very good point in that for the players cut from the Canadian team (I would also include for the American team) it could mean that they were say the 28th best player in the world and still got cut. Bonhomme is still a good/great player and I guess the only plus is for the Toronto Furies if she returns for them.

I also don't know if this is being covered in the USA at all (I'm in Sweden at the moment) but the Swedish Olympic Committee is threatening to not send the Swedish team after their poor showing. Seems bizarre to me.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

maf said:
I also don't know if this is being covered in the USA at all (I'm in Sweden at the moment) but the Swedish Olympic Committee is threatening to not send the Swedish team after their poor showing. Seems bizarre to me.
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I've seen virtually no press in the United States. The only reason even Team USA got any Four Nations coverage (outside of their own press releases) was because of the loss to Finland, and that was only on NBCOlympics.com.

I'm a little surprised by those comments about Team Sweden after they had a two-goal lead on Canada at one point and were still ahead going into the third period of that game. That said, there was also surprise when the Swedes put Sara Grahn in goal in the third-place game on Saturday; she had been lit up by Team USA on the tournament's first night, while Valentina Wallner only yielded the 4 goals to Canada, making 41 saves in the process.
 
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Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

CrazyDave said:
Stecklein played one game, Chesson played at least one game, and I have it on good authority that Dunne was a healthy scratch and actually was expecting to play one game.

Yes, the U.S. played one fewer than the max... I believe that was against Finland.

And yes, they have to make 4 cuts to get down to the finalized Olympic roster.
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2 cuts have been made this week: Kate Buesser and Jincy Dunne
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

FanIceC said:
2 cuts have been made this week: Kate Buesser and Jincy Dunne
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If this is true, I wonder about the selection process. Buesser seems to have made it clear that she was leaving hockey after this year anyway. Candidates like Steadman, Skarupa, and Brandt will be around maybe for next time and might have been a better investment. If you're picking a player who might get cut, surely it's better to pick one who would benefit from the leg up?
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

wwhyte said:
If this is true, I wonder about the selection process. Buesser seems to have made it clear that she was leaving hockey after this year anyway. Candidates like Steadman, Skarupa, and Brandt will be around maybe for next time and might have been a better investment. If you're picking a player who might get cut, surely it's better to pick one who would benefit from the leg up?
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often, an athlete in their last hurrah performs the best of their career, so I'm not sure I agree with what you are saying
a player just out of college is likely at their peak of their career, or just coming in to it. The media makes a big deal out of the young or inexperienced athlete who wins/medals over older competitors, but seat of the pants tells me more often than not the mature athlete schools the inexperienced ones, it is seldom newsworthy

in addition we are a culture that values the new much more than the old


the Canadians policy seems to be that if the player isn't going to make the final cut, they are better off in college, can't say that I disagree with that.
In fact, if you look at how the US team & Canada team were assembled, their method takes advantage of this, their players missed no games in college, yet allowed them to experience the "Olympic" camp prior to the college season. The US players meanwhile, sat around, and those that get cut will not only miss games but be forced to choose whether to sit out the full year or rejoin their team half way thru the year.

IMO, if the player with college elligibility doesn't have a high probability of making the team, they should be with their college team.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

pokechecker said:
IMO, if the player with college elligibility doesn't have a high probability of making the team, they should be with their college team.
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Not sure I agree with that. For the "bubble" players, you can not underestimate the value of being centralized and being able to focus 100% on training to get to the next level, even if you don't make it. Look at the last few TC cuts from four years ago, Wakefield and Jenner, and how they have developed and prospered since then. Wakefield is now a difference maker on TC.

It is always harder to get to a certain level the first time around, compared to doing it again a second or third time. If your end goal is to make the National team, you should be part of the camps when provided the opportunity, otherwise your end goal means nothing. Even if you don't make it, as a bubble player you will gain the experience to give you a better chance to make it the next time.

Take Dunne for example. I suspect she had an outside chance to make the team, but the experience she gained this time around may be helpful in her becoming a dominant player down the road. No guarantee that will happen, as each person develops at different rates and some reach their ceiling early, but her chances to become a star down the road will have increased as a result of this years experience.

JMO.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

pokechecker said:
often, an athlete in their last hurrah performs the best of their career, so I'm not sure I agree with what you are saying
a player just out of college is likely at their peak of their career, or just coming in to it. The media makes a big deal out of the young or inexperienced athlete who wins/medals over older competitors, but seat of the pants tells me more often than not the mature athlete schools the inexperienced ones, it is seldom newsworthy

in addition we are a culture that values the new much more than the old


the Canadians policy seems to be that if the player isn't going to make the final cut, they are better off in college, can't say that I disagree with that.
In fact, if you look at how the US team & Canada team were assembled, their method takes advantage of this, their players missed no games in college, yet allowed them to experience the "Olympic" camp prior to the college season. The US players meanwhile, sat around, and those that get cut will not only miss games but be forced to choose whether to sit out the full year or rejoin their team half way thru the year.

IMO, if the player with college elligibility doesn't have a high probability of making the team, they should be with their college team.
Click to expand...

Ah, both teams held initial camps in the summer, and then both teams made cuts in the fall, and will have final cuts by the new year. Included on both teams are collegians who are missing games/the season.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

Hux said:
Ah, both teams held initial camps in the summer, and then both teams made cuts in the fall, and will have final cuts by the new year. Included on both teams are collegians who are missing games/the season.
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you must have been busy watching the WNBA or something
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

OnMAA said:
Not sure I agree with that. For the "bubble" players, you can not underestimate the value of being centralized and being able to focus 100% on training to get to the next level, even if you don't make it. Look at the last few TC cuts from four years ago, Wakefield and Jenner, and how they have developed and prospered since then. Wakefield is now a difference maker on TC.

It is always harder to get to a certain level the first time around, compared to doing it again a second or third time. If your end goal is to make the National team, you should be part of the camps when provided the opportunity, otherwise your end goal means nothing. Even if you don't make it, as a bubble player you will gain the experience to give you a better chance to make it the next time.

Take Dunne for example. I suspect she had an outside chance to make the team, but the experience she gained this time around may be helpful in her becoming a dominant player down the road. No guarantee that will happen, as each person develops at different rates and some reach their ceiling early, but her chances to become a star down the road will have increased as a result of this years experience.

JMO.
Click to expand...

...or it could be that 4 years from now she'll simply be 4 years older? (like the Canadians you mentioned)

which is better, to play full time on a line, perhaps the PP & PK or sit on the Olympic team and rarely play?
there is also something to be said for playing at a level appropiate for the skill level to hone and advance their skills
sometimes it is important to play at a level where you are the dominant player
simply being on a national team doesn't magically transform a player

bubble players ....sheesh!
in any tryout at least 1/3 of the players have already made the team, if they are a contender, it could be 75-80% or more
there are very few spots open in a tryout, in many respects a tryout is a farce
rarely are there surprises (to the coach)
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

pokechecker said:
you must have been busy watching the WNBA or something
Click to expand...

Are you as stupid as your posts? Actually, I was paying close attention. Canada (August) and the US (June) both held camps during the summer. Both trimmed rosters at the end of camp. Both made cuts within the last month. Both will make final cuts before the year is out.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

pokechecker said:
which is better, to play full time on a line, perhaps the PP & PK or sit on the Olympic team and rarely play?
Click to expand...

Even if you don't play on the competitive games, you have the opportunity to train and scrimmage with Olympic-caliber players on a daily basis, which is not to be sneezed at and can help raise your level of play even if you sit out the games themselves. (Skarupa made this point in Arlan's interview with her, http://www.uscho.com/2013/10/17/skarupa-and-eagles-fly-in-hunt-for-a-title/).

I agree with a lot of your other points (the process of maturing will on its own lead to improvement, it's good to play at the appropriate skill level, not all players are bubble players), but I don't think they contradict the idea that if you're picking bubble players you should consider investment in the future as a factor.

Having said that... if you look at the F roster, the bubble players were clearly Pankwoski, Fry and Buesser, and two of them are in fact early in their career, so maybe two "investments" and one "last hurrah" is the right balance.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

BTW, can anyone confirm the cuts? I haven't seen anything on Twitter or on USA Hockey's website.
 
Re: US National Teams: U30s & Mrs. Potter, U22s, U18s Part II

Hux said:
Are you as stupid as your posts? Actually, I was paying close attention. Canada (August) and the US (June) both held camps during the summer. Both trimmed rosters at the end of camp. Both made cuts within the last month. Both will make final cuts before the year is out.
Click to expand...
I'm actually dumber than my posts

but if you think the Canadian & US teams did it the same way you are even dumber than me, by quite a bit
 
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