LOLZ

I come here and use words like sycophant and infallible to make myself feel better about myself
- Ballam

I just come here to spell words wrong to make everyone else feel better

It's not a matter of what's wrong or not. It's a matter of what you or I and even the guy who can't spell Sharp thinks. This is a forum for talking hockey.

Do you ever question the Penguins' management decisions?
- 1979AD

I totally get that. I like back and forth. Just not when one guys opinion is the be all and end all. Player X should have made the team. End of discussion.
IMO, Nash, and Carter should be on the outside looking in.

The other dynamic will be injuries. There are going to be injuries, some significant unfortunately. Not to canada specificly but you can't have 12 teams playing 5 to 7 games depending upon possible routes to the Gold medal game & not expect players to get injured. This will alter line ups.

Canada has to be heavily favored. There are several other teams that can ice comparable forward groups; sort of, but no 1 is even close defensively. The large ice will come into play as it alters how defensemen attack players in the corners & allows a ton more room to skate.

Goaltending in a short tournament like this can steal the entire tournament. 5 to 7 games in 12 days. If a goalie stands on his head anything can happen. I'm not convinced we have the best goaltending. We might not even be in the top 3 but it doesn't necessarily have to be the best. It just needs to be very good.

The bigger concern for me is how the game is called in international hockey. The North American physical style of play doesn't play well in international play. What we consider to be good solid physical hockey often gets called boarding, charging or some other dubious call. You see it in international hockey at all levels.

My favorite hockey is the World Junior Championships. I watch a ton of NHL hockey, have season tickets in 3 NHL cities, Vancouver, Edmonton & Dallas; I work in the oil industry. Frankly It disturbes we to see players in North America hitting to hurt.

I coach Junior B & we try to teach the players to check for 3 reasons. Remove the puck from the player, the player from the puck or the player from the play. Ideally we don't hit to hurt. Unfortunately that's part of how hockey is played in NA currently. I carry two goons, dressing a t least 1 every game. I have no choice unfortunately. If I didn't my stars would get killed. Until this mentality is worked out of the game it's part of the game. But not in international play.

No, you're not clear at all with my posts
- hugefemale dog77

okay, so you do think the right idea is to build a team, but used that approach to justify some stupid decisions? is that what you're saying?

yeah, there are a few head scratchers, I'll agree with that. I actually like Carter, and would have him on my team, maybe not first line, but there. Kunitz I'm in full agreement. Shouldn't be there.

I wasnt telling you what you've watched.

You dropped 'all star' team. Not me.
One can only assume if that's what u think in regards to staal, hall and giroux.


Again, this notion of somehow we're so much more like a 'real' team cause we have jeff carter over claude giroux.
It doesnt make sense
- hugefemale dog77

It doesn't make sense if you were taking the top ranked players.

I totally get that. I like back and forth. Just not when one guys opinion is the be all and end all. Player X should have made the team. End of discussion.
IMO, Nash, and Carter should be on the outside looking in.
- AncasterPens

Exactly.

I have a feeling Nash is going to be awesome in this tournament. Carter, I still haven't been able to figure out, especially on the top line. Based on Babcock's comments "If Carter doesn't shoot the puck, he won't be on this line", they want a pure shooter/scorer on Sid's right side. Stamkos will be missed.

Exactly.

I have a feeling Nash is going to be awesome in this tournament. Carter, I still haven't been able to figure out, especially on the top line. Based on Babcock's comments "If Carter doesn't shoot the puck, he won't be on this line", they want a pure shooter/scorer on Sid's right side. Stamkos will be missed.
- 1979AD

If they wanted someone to "replace" Stamkos, then Neal should have been the guy to go. I think Nash is going to do the same thing he did last games. Be solid but not steal the spotlight. He will play well in the bottom 6.

Hey, i'm a Canucks fan and i'm not wishing for Cory Schneider back. I'm wishing for our offence to come back because that has been a major factor in this losing streak, that and injuries, not the goaltenders. I have full faith in Luongo, especially behind a healthy, dominant team Canada defense.

Hey, i'm a Canucks fan and i'm not wishing for Cory Schneider back. I'm wishing for our offence to come back because that has been a major factor in this losing streak, that and injuries, not the goaltenders. I have full faith in Luongo, especially behind a healthy, dominant team Canada defense.
- Canucks_4_Cup

Hey fair enough. I still think Gillis painted himself into a terrible corner then made a horrible move. But I've been known to be wrong too.

I love how all the Steve Yzerman sycophants on this hockey discussion site think that Team Canada's team management decisions are infallible, sacred, and beyond critique.
- 1979AD

Much like Gretzky and team management for Turino were.....


How did that turn out.

Thanks for telling me what I watch and what I don't watch...

It is a collection of all stars that make up a team. Not just a bunch of players thrown together and hope that they play well together.
- AncasterPens

The problem I have with the argument of this being a "team" and taking certain types of players is that they have had no real camp. They are still guessing at who might work together. So to say Carter, Nash, Kunitz etc are going to fit better than Hall, Giroux and Staal is a guess. No one knows until they play together.

In Vancouver they were still juggling lines into the final.

It doesn't make sense if you were taking the top ranked players.
- AncasterPens

How is our TEAM not as good because we took carter, kunitz and sharp over hall, staal and giroux?

Skating? No
Scoring? No
Size? No
Physicality? No
Defensive play? No ( the only guy in the group that made it that can be considered anything 'special' defensively is sharp)
Experience? Hardly. (All 3 mentioned have cups, so maybe the slight edge overall comparing the two trios. But staal has both a cup AND an olympic gold)
Chemistry? I suppose yes. ( but we saw what happened in 2010 with seabrook and keith)

Point is; using the 'all star' argument isnt actually fact. It's a weak argument.
None of the group that didnt make it are one dimensional snipers that couldnt have also made canada a better TEAM

First off, that was a great read.

Pk should be scratched. Im not saying he's awful but every player ahead of him is better. He's good on the power play, not very good in his own end. Pk plays against teams second lines. Most people under value how much markov means to the habs, if you take him away Pk doesnt look near as good. Not trying to hate on him but the other guys deserve it more.

The lines they are going with seem a little off to me too. I cant believe duchene is an extra. Tavares is IMO in the top five hockey players in Canada and top ten in the world. I think he was robbed of the Hart last year, and he deserves more minutes then most of the guys on the roster.

The problem I have with the argument of this being a "team" and taking certain types of players is that they have had no real camp. They are still guessing at who might work together. So to say Carter, Nash, Kunitz etc are going to fit better than Hall, Giroux and Staal is a guess. No one knows until they play together.

In Vancouver they were still juggling lines into the final.
- Iggysbff

It is proven that Crosby and Kunitz work together. They have for a number of years. Would you, or anyone else take a chance in a short tournament that one of the leagues top pairs for the last few years would be better than one thrown together for a week?

It is proven that Crosby and Kunitz work together. They have for a number of years. Would you, or anyone else take a chance in a short tournament that one of the leagues top pairs for the last few years would be better than one thrown together for a week?
- AncasterPens

I would for sure

First off, that was a great read.

Pk should be scratched. Im not saying he's awful but every player ahead of him is better. He's good on the power play, not very good in his own end. Pk plays against teams second lines. Most people under value how much markov means to the habs, if you take him away Pk doesnt look near as good. Not trying to hate on him but the other guys deserve it more.

The lines they are going with seem a little off to me too. I cant believe duchene is an extra. Tavares is IMO in the top five hockey players in Canada and top ten in the world. I think he was robbed of the Hart last year, and he deserves more minutes then most of the guys on the roster.
- sensfanpei

yeah, I actually think pulling him out for the power play is the perfect way to use him.

It is proven that Crosby and Kunitz work together. They have for a number of years. Would you, or anyone else take a chance in a short tournament that one of the leagues top pairs for the last few years would be better than one thrown together for a week?
- AncasterPens

yes. absolutely I'd leave Kunitz off, because the players that were available are far, far, far better than Kunitz. Crosby is a generational player. With an elite player, I'd say even without chemistry they'd be better than with just Kunitz.

It is proven that Crosby and Kunitz work together. They have for a number of years. Would you, or anyone else take a chance in a short tournament that one of the leagues top pairs for the last few years would be better than one thrown together for a week?
- AncasterPens

I would. Marleau/Heatley/Thornton were taken as a line but were broken up because they weren't performong well in Vancouver.

Keith/Seabrooke were broken up as well in Vancouver.

Iggy went to the Pens because people thought he and Crosby had "chemistry". Didn't work out very well.

Its over rated. I would have 10 other guys play on Crosby's left and would bet 8 of them fit better than Kunitz.

First off, that was a great read.

Pk should be scratched. Im not saying he's awful but every player ahead of him is better. He's good on the power play, not very good in his own end. Pk plays against teams second lines. Most people under value how much markov means to the habs, if you take him away Pk doesnt look near as good. Not trying to hate on him but the other guys deserve it more.

The lines they are going with seem a little off to me too. I cant believe duchene is an extra. Tavares is IMO in the top five hockey players in Canada and top ten in the world. I think he was robbed of the Hart last year, and he deserves more minutes then most of the guys on the roster.
- sensfanpei

Pk is so much more than just a pp qb.
He's one of the true game changers on the backend.
He's dominant at starting, leading and controlling the rush.
He also adds a physical game that can keep opponents honest even if he does make the occasional blunder.

I think it'll be a big mistake leaving someone of his talent sitting.

It's like people forget that every team has comparable top ends to canada. People dont think we have such a great defence just cause we have shea weber do they?
It's our superstars we can roll out on the bottom pairing or 4th line.

We got doughty and keith. But how much inferior is karlsson and oel really?
We got crosby, getzlaf and perry, but how much worse is malkin, ovechkin and datsyuk?

It's our depth that is the huge difference. Use that talent we have after those groups have essentially cancelled themselves out and come back with subban against anton effin belov or carl hagelin.

I think we're getting lulled into giving up that huge advantage by over thinking it abit

So, to be clear, you think they should rank em from 1 to 15 for forwards, and that's the team?

I think that's horribly misguided.

The US didn't have anywhere close to the best talent of the tournament on the ice in 2010, and very nearly took gold.

I'll agree that Kunitz and Vlasic are bad choices, but not necessarily the approach.
- prock

It's always nice to see you.

Pk is so much more than just a pp qb.
He's one of the true game changers on the backend.
He's dominant at starting, leading and controlling the rush.
He also adds a physical game that can keep opponents honest even if he does make the occasional blunder.

I think it'll be a big mistake leaving someone of his talent sitting.

It's like people forget that every team has comparable top ends to canada. People dont think we have such a great defence just cause we have shea weber do they?
It's our superstars we can roll out on the bottom pairing or 4th line.

We got doughty and keith. But how much inferior is karlsson and oel really?
We got crosby, getzlaf and perry, but how much worse is malkin, ovechkin and datsyuk?

It's our depth that is the huge difference. Use that talent we have after those groups have essentially cancelled themselves out and come back with subban against anton effin belov or carl hagelin.

I think we're getting lulled into giving up that huge advantage by over thinking it abit
- hugefemale dog77

Understand that fans of other teams despise PK because of the way he plays and how cocky he is. Heck, if I was a fan of another team, I would feel the same way. But there is no denying his talent. Those who are overly critical of his defensive game, simply haven't watched him enough to see how much he has improved. There is still a lot of room for him to grow in many facets of the game and he has shown a willingness to learn. Do I think he is "better" than Webber, Daughty, etc? I think he plays a very different game than they do, and I think the need for both types of DMen exists, especially in a tournament like this.

I would. Marleau/Heatley/Thornton were taken as a line but were broken up because they weren't performong well in Vancouver.

Keith/Seabrooke were broken up as well in Vancouver.

Iggy went to the Pens because people thought he and Crosby had "chemistry". Didn't work out very well.

Its over rated. I would have 10 other guys play on Crosby's left and would bet 8 of them fit better than Kunitz.
- Iggysbff

These things just seem to just be forgotten.

If you try and make an argument thar said inferior player shouldnt have made it, suddenly all you want is just an 'all star' team.

Iggy went to the Pens because people thought he and Crosby had "chemistry". Didn't work out very well..
- Iggysbff

Crosby and Iginla never played together in Pittsburgh. Iginla was put on line 2 and forced to play his off wing with Malkin and Neal. Line 1 remained untouched (Kunitz, Sid, Dupuis).

He was misused by Dan Bylsma and forced to play a new position. Chemistry with Crosby wasn't an issue. It was never even given a chance to develop. Can't blame them for not wanting to break up a very successful first line though.

The Penguins didn't go "chasing chemistry" with Iginla. They went chasing a guy they thought could upgrade line 2.

Understand that fans of other teams despise PK because of the way he plays and how cocky he is. Heck, if I was a fan of another team, I would feel the same way. But there is no denying his talent. Those who are overly critical of his defensive game, simply haven't watched him enough to see how much he has improved. There is still a lot of room for him to grow in many facets of the game and he has shown a willingness to learn. Do I think he is "better" than Webber, Daughty, etc? I think he plays a very different game than they do, and I think the need for both types of DMen exists, especially in a tournament like this.
- hscesq

It's funny what the 'blinders' can do to people.

I have absolutely no love for the habs, nor even pk's attitude.
But i absolutely cannot deny how fantastic of a hockey player he is.

He's still not in my top 5. But he's knockin on the door