Palmeri is decent and younger...Abdelkader is what he is and can be effective in the right role...Dubinsky is past his prime

Kessel is younger than Dubinsky and career wise, has scored about 200 more points in 120 or so more games

Kessel is a goal scorer and team USA, as we saw, didn't have enough of them.

Team USA is butt hurt. Responding to Kessel's tweet like they did shows it.

Torts and Lombardi are out of touch with reality right now.

Umm Abdelkader, Palmeri and Dubinksy are all bonafide NHL players. Abdelkader and Palmeri would probably slot in on the 1st and 2nd lines over Rust and Sheary. I love Cullen but Dubinsky would be an upgrade over him centering the fourth line. These guys are not plugs they just aren't the most talented from USA.
- Grinder47

And that right there is the problem.

if youre going to take a bunch of guys who havent played together and give them two weeks to do it, you take the guys with the best skills and hockey IQ.

I'm calling it. by the 20th game of this season Rust and Sheary are being talked about as third liners on here. Hope I'm not right but i usually am.
- Grinder47

This I agree with. I hope they develop quicker but they are still young guys and I dont have overly high hopes for them next year. But I hope I am wrong too.

Edit: You are usually right? What a douche thing to say lol, especially when its so far from true

No one south of the Canadian border knows its going on right now.......
- bcallaway

USA could have won and nobody would care or know about it. For good reason. It's the fake Olympics.

I'm calling it. by the 20th game of this season Rust and Sheary are being talked about as third liners on here. Hope I'm not right but i usually am.
- Grinder47

You were consistently wrong about everything last season

The only thing you were kind of right about is that people think Murray is better than he is, but of course you took it to the whole different extreme that made your overall point wrong again.

Backes and the others are such babies. I don't think Phil was taking a shot at them at all, how did they interpret it that way??
- BestRapperAlive

Well indirectly, he is taking a shot at them. He's saying he should be on the team, which means someone who was on the team wouldn't be.

Whether Backes thinks he's talking about him or one of his teammates, it's understandable he'd react that way.


Especially since he knows Kessel is 100% right.

They did well in the stanley cup playoffs in a top six role much like max talbot. He never s.iffed big minutes again. 15 Games into this season those guys could be goaless. How do you not know Abdelkader and palmeri they both play big roles for they're. teams
- Grinder47

Not familiar with their type of play I should have said - isn't Abdelkader a punk? Pretty sure I remember him handing out cheap shots left right & centre???

Agree with you for us not knowing what we have, but if speed is key then both Rust & Sheary have that ingredient. Now if they can continue to progress & be 'productive' (remembering you don't have to score goals to be that I've learned in Shags case ), then they will fit. Who is to say others would do as well as them?? It's that thing analytics guys hate because its not a number & it (frank)s with their chain of thought, but chemistry or intangibles aren't a thing that everyone has with everyone else. Rust & Sheary appear to have it within this group.

Did anyone else catch Chelios' statement about Torts on Kessel. He said Tortorella has been talking a lot and has been wrong most of the time. He needs to shut up. Made me laugh anyway.

Not familiar with their type of play I should have said - isn't Abdelkader a punk? Pretty sure I remember him handing out cheap shots left right & centre???

Agree with you for us not knowing what we have, but if speed is key then both Rust & Sheary have that ingredient. Now if they can continue to progress & be 'productive' (remembering you don't have to score goals to be that I've learned in Shags case ), then they will fit. Who is to say others would do as well as them?? It's that thing analytics guys hate because its not a number & it (frank)s with their chain of thought, but chemistry or intangibles aren't a thing that everyone has with everyone else. Rust & Sheary appear to have it within this group.
- Aussiepenguin

Abdelkader was brought on this team to mix it up, like Dubinski. That was the only reason for their existence. Now that we aren't mixing it up, both appointments were pointless.

Impressed with Team USA. That defense - err ... yep, Faulk wouldn't have helped. We are getting beaten by a pair of brothers and one of them couldn't score in a whore house with a fist full of 50s.

Abdelkader was brought on this team to mix it up, like Dubinski. That was the only reason for their existence. Now that we aren't mixing it up, both appointments were pointless.
- Oneonta Penguin

So Bettman creates a comp to 'showcase' the sport of ice hockey, so Lombardi says, "right, (frank) those Canadians lets turn this comp into MMA on ice"! Then can't even beat a thrown together group of international players!!!!

Not sure why people in Australia think its just fight night on ice for thugs???

Way to go U.S.A.!!!

What a flaming bag of poo. From the coach on down to Buff starting a fight to finish that game.

What a flaming bag of poo. From the coach on down to Buff starting a fight to finish that game.
- madmike71

I wonder where that fight was earlier in the tournament. Maybe the US should go through relegation to fight their way back to the next World Cup.

I wonder where that fight was earlier in the tournament. Maybe the US should go through relegation to fight their way back to the next World Cup.
- Oneonta Penguin

Complete and total embarrassment to start a fight with a guy like Z. Team USA sh*t the bed so Buff decides he might as well roll around in his own feces. What a f'n moron.

This I agree with. I hope they develop quicker but they are still young guys and I dont have overly high hopes for them next year. But I hope I am wrong too.

Edit: You are usually right? What a douche thing to say lol, especially when its so far from true
- thickman1178

I don't disagree with him rust and sheary are traditional 3rd line types I think. But the modern NHL is about having 3 scoring lines and a 4th line with some skill. You know what no team outside of maybe Tampa has? 9 top 6 guys. Balancing lines work. Especially when you are paying 3 super stars there's no way you can afford that many legit top 6. So you build lines around your 3 stars - Crosby Malkin and kessel. Mix in some guys who I'd call top 6 Hornqvist bonino and hagelin. Then add in guys who hustle and retrieve pucks - rust sheary Kunitz. Only one puck on the ice at a time so you don't need everyone to be stud scorers.

Ryan Wilson: Team USA Doubles Down On Terrible Decisions
Team USA Doubles Down On Terrible Decisions
- Ryan_Wilson

"The reality is that Phil Kessel was tied for 2nd in the scoring lead for Team USA in this tournament. His stat line of 0G 0A +/- 0 was better than that of Backes' 0G 0A -1."

I wonder where that fight was earlier in the tournament. Maybe the US should go through relegation to fight their way back to the next World Cup.
- Oneonta Penguin

Relegation would be good for the program. Would force the brass to seriously consider replacing Lombardi after such an embarrassment and would also force whoever is the GM whether it be Lombardi or someone else to select the very best players USA has to offer in order to even make the tournament in the first place rather than concocting a half baked #gritness formula to beat Canada.

USA=Zero wins in tournament. Proof they sucked right there.

USA=Zero wins in tournament. Proof they sucked right there.
- powerhouse

as did Finland

as did Finland
- martox

At least Finland lost to teams that were loaded with NHL talent. Quite a few analysts noted how lopsided the groupings were.

At least Finland lost to teams that were loaded with NHL talent. Quite a few analysts noted how lopsided the groupings were.
- Thunderbolt

ye. I whined about the groups and how canada just got handed a win in the group without any "real" challenge. when the groups got announced. honestly in order of best teams in the tournament (before it started) was 1. Canada 2. Sweden 3. NA 4. Russia
5. Finland 6,7 and 8 mixed between usa,chezh and EU and 2,3,4,5 got in the same group. it is ridiculous really.

This has to be put on the GM more than the coach.

Coach only uses the materials (players) he has at hand.... not like Torts decided the direction or anything...

they were nowhere ready to compete against Canada... Europe or anything else...

This has to be put on the GM more than the coach.

Coach only uses the materials (players) he has at hand.... not like Torts decided the direction or anything...

they were nowhere ready to compete against Canada... Europe or anything else...
- kaptaan

I can't believe Tortorella had zero input on the players. Yes, most of the blame needs to go to Lombardi and Burke but to absolve Torts of this mess is wrong. Quite honestly this team was just bad and it played out that way.

ye. I whined about the groups and how canada just got handed a win in the group without any "real" challenge. when the groups got announced. honestly in order of best teams in the tournament (before it started) was 1. Canada 2. Sweden 3. NA 4. Russia
5. Finland 6,7 and 8 mixed between usa,chezh and EU and 2,3,4,5 got in the same group. it is ridiculous really.
- martox

I too felt that talent wise Group B had the 2-5 rankings. I think one problem (not that it mattered) that hampered Team USA was the exhibition game they beat Canada. The US let it go to their head when in reality the game looked like a varsity team playing half speed and a JV team playing full speed and still only won by one goal.

You obviously can't look at the team you root for without pens fans goggles on if you think those three players wouldn't be upgrades over players on our team. They have all scored 20 goals. Abdelkader and palmeri both have more of those i. them. Sheary and Rust might never score 15 in a single season. Just because someone doesn't play along with a boring narrative doesn't make them an idiot.
- Grinder47

You really aren't smart are you? The reason the pens won the cup is because of how players fit into their system they played. Palmeri has had one good season which I would like to see more from before I call him a goal scorer. Abdelkader wouldn't be on the team. Not what pens looking for. And dubinsky wouldn't fit the same as cullen. Cullen meant more to young pens players than just on the ice. Before you go off on people make sure you know what your talking about.