First off, I think I've seen enough terrible opinions on twitter to last myself a lifetime in the last 24-48 hours. I too have a few thoughts on the tournament.
So let's cover this quick and easy.
- The Kings =/= Team USA. Anyone thinking the Olympic break has been a "Bad thing" for the King players simply because the USA got embarrassed is not looking at the big picture. Kopitar had a tremendous tournament with Slovenia. Brown was effective for Team USA and Quick was arguably the MVP up until the Finland game today. Doughty and Carter have also been two potential MVPs for Canada all things considered. I know we American fans are disappointed but separate the two.
- Quick is not to blame. Miller would have done no better. You could have put any goaltender in their today and it wouldn't have made a lick of a difference. Sabres fans blaming the over-aggressive style of Quick don't understand that with a goalie a hair over 6'0" you can't just sit in the net and play angles. You have to challenge shooters. I will be the first one to admit that Quick can get himself out of position with over-aggressiveness, but I saw nothing of the sort in this tournament. Quick, Miller, Price, Luongo, Hasek, Lundqvist, God....no one was stopping those pucks today. Finland outplayed an extremely flat and uninspired USA team. If you are blaming the goaltending I can't help you out.
oh, and this.
and this
- The tournament is not over. We still have two incredibly talented players in Doughty and Carter playing in the finals. Cheer them on. Just as the first point stated, the US does not equal the Kings. A gold for Doughty and Carter would be tremendous for them and the Kings team.
- I am COMPLETELY on board with Dean Lombardi being in charge of Team USA next time around.
- Trevor Lewis would have made a difference. Just kidding. But no really.....
- Personally, I feel bad for Patrick Kane. It wasn't for lack of effort. When I watched the games he was playing hard, but like most players who start to grip the stick harder he was trying to force the issue. I think it was a terrible idea for Bylsma to stick him out for the 2nd penalty shot. At that point it was just rubbing salt in the wound for the poor guy. The effort was there, he just couldn't buy a goal it seemed.
- When you look at this team without scoring options like Yandle, Okposo, and Ryan on the roster...I don't know could those have been difference makers? Seemed systematically like the U.S. was playing some grade-A grind it out hockey. Finland and Canada's defense just chewed up the forecheck for the Americans.
- Lastly, while I felt the game overall was an embarrassing effort there is nothing embarrassing about getting defeated by these world class teams. Finland, Sweden, and Canada are world class teams. Russia, when they play to their capability is a world class team. While you can be disappointed the U.S. did not medal, it's not like this was a massive upset. In all honesty the gap in talent between Russia, the U.S., Finland, Sweden, and Canada is razor thin.
Alright, so now I am a Canadian fan I guess! Actually, I am more a Doughty Carter fan but since they are on Canada...let's go Canadians. The tournament overall has been a compelling one regardless of the outcome tomorrow, and the hockey has been strong. I think there is a lot to look forward to in terms of a Hockey World Cup or a future Olympic competition. With how close the game were I would actually be all for a World Cup of Hockey, ala association football's FIFA World Cup. Who knows it that will ever happen or if it will ever be that large and exciting, but a man can dream can't he?
Anyways, after tomorrow it's back to business for the NHL. In case you forgot we have a trade deadline on March 5th and the Monarchs have been drawing quite a few scouts lately from what I hear...
What's the feeling on tomorrow's Sweden-Canada game?
Also, throw your trade scenarios at me. I would love to hear what people have in mind right about now when it comes to moves.
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