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WC: 2015 — Team USA

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Namejs said:
You haven't won the gold medal in 55 years and it's not going to happen again anytime soon.

Sure, over the long term it's bound to happen. Then again, there's also a realistic chance that some people reading this will die from natural causes by the time it will happen.
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Xokkeu said:
It's doubtful with the way our players respond. It'll probably take a real special class of u20s like in 2013 with a crazy hot goalie.
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This team won the IIHF WC four years ago:

Juhamatti Aaltonen
Mikael Granlund
Jarkko Immonen
Topi Jaakola
Jesse Joensuu
Niko Kapanen
Mikko Koivu
Leo Komarov
Lasse Kukkonen
Janne Lahti
Jani Lajunen
Sami Lepistö
Janne Niskala
Petteri Nokelainen
Janne Pesonen
Antti Pihlström
Pasi Puistola
Mika Pyörälä
Tuomo Ruutu
Anssi Salmela
Ossi Väänänen
Jyrki Välivaara

Niko Hovinen
Teemu Lassila
Petri Vehanen

USA can match that every year even with a ridiculous number of refusals. I don't expect USA to be the favourite in any individual year, but I wouldn't be surprised for them to win either. They will win at some point.
 
JackSlater said:
This team won the IIHF WC four years ago:
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Actually the Finnish team last year was even worse and it made to the final.

I always remember how pumped Alex Galchenyuk was after bronze in 2013. The translation from his interview (Jatkoaika):
"Winning the game for the team and my country was unbelievable. I must happier than ever in my life"

It matters that those players care who are in.

I agree that Team USA can win the tournament without NHL stars, but it's not easy with young players, minimal preparation and unfamiliarity with large ice. Canada tends have so good WHC players that they can win with "brute force", but it's not easy for Canada either.
 
Urbanskog said:
The difference is that those players took the tournament seriously whereas the WHC seems like a nice vacation in Europe to North Americans.
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Also, what type of training camp do teams like that go through (at least with a majority of the players)? I'm not sure about Finland but I know some of the other national teams have significant pre-tournament camps. USAH basically just assembles the team and shows up for the games.
 
William H Bonney said:
Also, what type of training camp do teams like that go through (at least with a majority of the players)? I'm not sure about Finland but I know some of the other national teams have significant pre-tournament camps. USAH basically just assembles the team and shows up for the games.
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Yep, the training camps started a while ago already.
 
Urbanskog said:
The difference is that those players took the tournament seriously whereas the WHC seems like a nice vacation in Europe to North Americans.
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That is a stupid myth and excuse. Teemu Selänne said that many Finnish NHL players were partying late the night before Nagano semi-final. I could claim that Finland would've won gold if they'd taken it seriously and not take it as a vacation Japan. It'd be a bigger problem if players had to participate in WHC even though they don't want to.

Billy the kid: Finland has played 4 training games so far (two per week) to evaluate players. It continues this week. First NHL players are going to join the team during the next weekend, so they won't get many training games. Basically the worst players making to the WHC have spent the most time in camp and training games.
 
roto said:
Actually the Finnish team last year was even worse and it made to the final.

I always remember how pumped Alex Galchenyuk was after bronze in 2013. The translation from his interview (Jatkoaika):
"Winning the game for the team and my country was unbelievable. I must happier than ever in my life"
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Somehow I'm not surprised that Galchenyuk would care more about this tournament than the typical "American" player...

roto said:
It matters that those players care who are in.

I agree that Team USA can win the tournament without NHL stars, but it's not easy with young players, minimal preparation and unfamiliarity with large ice. Canada tends have so good WHC players that they can win with "brute force", but it's not easy for Canada either.
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Yeah it won't be easy, but the talent is more than capable. The roster is good enough, and USA has been doing well with goaltenders so there is always a chance that a quality goaltender gets hot.

Urbanskog said:
The difference is that those players took the tournament seriously whereas the WHC seems like a nice vacation in Europe to North Americans.
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For some definitely, but from year to year things can change. I've read about the 1994 Canadian team and how serious they were, and I've read about the 2012 Canadian team captain going out to bars during the tournament and threatening to fight everyone in the place. The talent is there, and I assume that sometimes the attitude is also there.

William H Bonney said:
Also, what type of training camp do teams like that go through (at least with a majority of the players)? I'm not sure about Finland but I know some of the other national teams have significant pre-tournament camps. USAH basically just assembles the team and shows up for the games.
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No doubt that the European teams have a minor advantage in that regard, but it isn't as if the Canadian and American teams just stumble around disjointed for the first few games piling up losses and never improve. They have enough games to round into a somewhat cohesive unit. USA typically sends enough talent to this tournament to compete, and generally if you can compete you have a chance to win. The American teams are generally full of good skaters, and if that skill is paired with great goaltending then winning a short tournament against rosters of pretty similar calibre isn't out of the question. Anyway, my conclusion is that USA can win this tournament (though it is unlikely) any year, including this year. Given the quality of many of the rosters included, it wouldn't shock me very much either.
 
JackSlater said:
Yeah it won't be easy, but the talent is more than capable. The roster is good enough, and USA has been doing well with goaltenders so there is always a chance that a quality goaltender gets hot.
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I've been watching the World Champs for about 20 years now. The Americans always have a disjointed ragtag team that pretty much every year struggles against teams like Latvia, which has the same core of players playing together for a very long time and which holds a month-long training camp before every World Championship.

To put things into perspective, there was a point where our head-to-head record was actually tied. You almost got relegated to the 2nd tier once.

You're always slow to adapt to the big ice, you lack chemistry, you lack motivation and to a certain degree - skill (at least relative to a couple of the top teams).

So, sure, Team USA is capable of beating most teams on a good day, but it takes a major streak of luck to win almost every game in the tournament up until the final, so at any given year it's just highly unlikely to happen, unless the American approach to the World Champs is changed.
 
AmericanDream said:
hahaha....you know, one day we should try and figure out a way to get the "few" of us USA posters together somewhere, maybe during the World Cup for a weekend...I mean I think you are high balling on the 8 so I am sure we could figure something out..:laugh: actually came up with 10 posters who are always on for USA tournaments

Xokkeu
AD
Rabid
Bonney
usahockey22flyers
Cagney
orangeandblack
sandogbrewin
magic school bus
PaulieVegas - usually chimes in around this time -plus if he is in Vegas like Bonney - we know our destination! plus a few other So Cal posters here so looks like some traveling might be needed!!

and no offense if I am forgetting anyone as just off the top of my head these are the guys that post in USA Hockey tournament threads more than others...so don't get bent out of shape if you didn't make the team :laugh: always the JV squad for ya :nod:
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I'm in! (yes I am in Vegas, although a California transplant)

Still no #1 goalie yet, eh?
 
This USA team is bad...

Last USA team had players like Gaudreau, T. Johnson, Trocheck, Abdelkader, Nelson, Wingels or C. Smith (not like it was some "all-star" team but much better than what we are seeing now) then Trouba, Seth Jones, Gardiner, DeKeyser and Petry on back end.

This years team? It is not even comparable. Moses, Sexton, Lewis then who? Likes of J. Morin, Arcobello, Vesey, Hendricks or Ben Smith... It's not good. Larkin is nice addition but he's still very young and you can't expect him to do crazy things against european top talent and some very good NHLers from other teams.

Atleast we will see Faulk, Krug or Gardiner/Murphy. Alex Lyon seems to be good goalie so there's something but not everything is over. Hopefully some good NHLers will be added. I love to cheer for team USA on WHC.

//What happened to Jack Eichel? Why is he not on the roster?
 
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Any masochists around here feel like throwing together some lines and powerplay combos? I'd give it a shot but I just ate.
 
cagney said:
Any masochists around here feel like throwing together some lines and powerplay combos? I'd give it a shot but I just ate.
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Haha. I'm a glutton for punishment:

Jimmy Vesey - Mark Arcobello - Steve Moses
Trevor Lewis - Jack Eichel - Jeremy Morin
Matt Hendricks - Dylan Larkin - Ben Smith
Dan Sexton

Jake Gardiner - Justin Faulk
Torey Krug - Connor Murphy
John Moore - Zach Redmond
Mike Reilly

Alex Lyon

I would imagine the ship has sailed on any of the maybes like Atkinson, JVR and Schneider which is a disappointment.

If Nashville and Winnipeg go out there could end up being some quality help on the way with potential additions Jones, Trouba, Smith, Wilson and Hellebuyck would join the team. The team also needs to hope they get 2 or 3 more quality forwards though like Gaudreau, Johnson, Zucker, etc.
 
The lineup for the Worlds is just too dependent on whether a pending UFAs won't participate, injuries and which teams finish out of the NHL playoffs or are ousted in the 1st round.
 
Devils have Schneider, Greene, Merrill and Gomez available and it's Matteau getting invited. I guess they prioritize development of young players more than winning.
 
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