WC: 2016 Team Canada Pt. II

[tade]

Talbot was amazing

3rd best Canadian goalie. Should go to WC and Olympics. Brings it

I mean, why not, if it's 3rd goalie, then does it really matter? Not so much, and it would be great award for him, it's great way to do it, and show that even if it is not the highest priority... that if you show your best there, it may work for the Olympics/World Cup nomination. I would be only happy about situation like that.

I would select Hall, Duchene, O'Reilly + arguably Perry, Stone or Marchand for World Cup. It's great opportunity to reward these players, especially Hall, Duchene, O'Reilly who are back-2-back representing Hockey Canada.

5 WHC appearances for Duchene, 3 for Hall, 3 for Perry and 4 for ROR... These players are high on my list.

 

[Johnny HFBOARDS]

O'Reilly-Scheifele-Stone has to be seriously considered by Team Canada for the next few international tournaments (assuming they maintain their levels of play in the NHL).

They're talented, physical, energetic, dangerous and have chemistry. That line is quite literally the complete package.

Body position, strength, mobility and overall offensive decisions; oh and that's the "checking" line.

 

[ijuka]

Congratulations, well deserved. Canada abused most of the holes in Jalonen's system brilliantly. Especially the face offs were impressive(Although Laine won one...)

 

[Aerchon]

I didn't think Duchene had a particularly dominant tourney. Had some turn overs and killed the play a lot down low. Perry not exactly a power house either.

Maybe because it was a bit surprising but Hall played a very strong 200 foot game and is the guy that I think should get the longest look for team Canada after this performance. Not to mention Hall is a natural LWer. I know they prefer centers but having at least a couple natural wingers isn't a bad thing.

 

[xxxx]

Wow, McDavid actually goes Crosby-like and scores his only tournament goal in the gold-medal game, and it's a winning goal!

I'm proud of all the players, incredible effort in the last 10 minutes of the game, just incredible. They were skating up and down, up and down, not letting the Finns even have a chance to shoot, incredible effort.

Btw, has Matheson been named into the All-Star team? he was good, and better than many expected I think, and it's a great accomplishment for him even though you would probably choose differently ....


Good tournament!! Now the World Cup, I believe that Babcock, who was watching the games, will want O'Reilly. The others, it's tough. If you had to decide between Hall and Duchene, who would get the spot? That's an extremely tough call for me.

 

[JackSlater]

Btw, has Matheson been named into the All-Star team? he was good, and better than many expected I think, and it's a great accomplishment for him even though you would probably choose differently ....

Amazingly, Matheson was not only named to the All Star team by the media, but the directorate also named him as the tournament's best defenceman. A guy that played seventh defenceman and then third pairing. Matheson was good, but you could easily make the case that he was Canada's sixth best defenceman. Maybe fifth ahead of Ceci. Probably the worst award decision I've ever seen, and a blatant case of plus minus watching I would imagine.

 

[Aerchon]

Amazingly, Matheson was not only named to the All Star team by the media, but the directorate also named him as the tournament's best defenceman. A guy that played seventh defenceman and then third pairing. Matheson was good, but you could easily make the case that he was Canada's sixth best defenceman. Maybe fifth ahead of Ceci. Probably the worst award decision I've ever seen, and a blatant case of plus minus watching I would imagine.

Canadas defenseman were weak. Very weak for a Canadian team.

They played well enough to win gold but just barely and only because of the possession/cycle strategy Canada uses and Talbot was amazing.

Picking the best of that bunch is both difficult and pointless. None of them should ever be on a full Canadian roster.

However Matheson was surprisingly effective through out the tourney.

 

[moon*]

Yes the All-Star and Award winners were odd to say the least but they always are (2014 Olympics MVP is best example as no way was Selanne close to the MVP).

Laine not a chance was he the MVP but he was a great story and its a great way to pump up the tournament by giving him the award.

Matheson was at best the 3rd best Canadian defenseman and likely not even that. Rielly clearly the best defenseman, Ellis 2nd best in a short stint, Tanev (surprisingly) was better as well. I personally thought Ceci was better as well but he was very up and down with some great plays and some awful play so I wouldnt argue if someone had Matheson ahead of him.

 

[JackSlater]

Canadas defenseman were weak. Very weak for a Canadian team.

They played well enough to win gold but just barely and only because of the possession/cycle strategy Canada uses and Talbot was amazing.

Picking the best of that bunch is both difficult and pointless. None of them should ever be on a full Canadian roster.

However Matheson was surprisingly effective through out the tourney.

The Canadian defence was helped immensely by Canada's elite two way forward play. O'Reilly and Stone are some of the best defensive forwards in the world. Marchand is pretty elite in that regard. Scheifele played well, McDavid is competent, Duchene showed very well defensively. Reinhart will be elite defensively very soon. The whole team forechecked at an incredible level in the final, which mostly eliminated any pressure from the defencemen.

Matheson was good. He wasn't even a top four defenceman on Canada though. It's a strange selection.

Yes the All-Star and Award winners were odd to say the least but they always are (2014 Olympics MVP is best example as no way was Selanne close to the MVP).

Laine not a chance was he the MVP but he was a great story and its a great way to pump up the tournament by giving him the award.

Matheson was at best the 3rd best Canadian defenseman and likely not even that. Rielly clearly the best defenseman, Ellis 2nd best in a short stint, Tanev (surprisingly) was better as well. I personally thought Ceci was better as well but he was very up and down with some great plays and some awful play so I wouldnt argue if someone had Matheson ahead of him.

I can at least understand the Selanne selection - it was a nostalgic pick to honour a legend. Anyone who saw the tournament knows that Karlsson or maybe Doughty deserved the MVP. Fine, that is at least a reason to pick him. Same reason that Jagr won at this tournament last year over any number of more qualified choices. What is the story with Matheson though? He isn't some old legend. Rielly, Tanev, Ellis, Murray were all undoubtedly better. There's a reason that Canada only played two pairings for the final eight minutes or so of this game.

 

[snipes]

Good tournament for Canada. Good to win obviously, but I'm more pleased with what I saw from some of the young players in the final game. Canada finally played a game tactically similar to what we saw in the 2014 Olympics and 2015 World Championship, and they were able to execute the plan very well. It's clear that the other teams, particularly the European teams, can't handle an all out forecheck. This is the way of the future for Canada.

Good to see McDavid do more today, he still has a lot more to give though given his abilities. Good learning experience for him.

Very impressed with what we saw from Rielly and Murray in the final three games. Both look like potential options for Canada's weaker left side in future best on best competition, which is exactly what I wanted to see. Steady, smooth and smart hockey.

Stone impressed me a lot too. Elite defensively. If the NHL is at the 2018 Olympics, I want and expect Stone to be Canada's defensive line RW. He was dominant in the final.

Scheifele really impressed me too. I was never a fan, but he pretty much dominated Barkov. Could one day be an A team player on the wing. His line was probably the best Canadian checking line I can ever remember at this tournament.

Marchand, Duchene, O'Reilly and Hall all did pretty well in their World Cup auditions. I think there's a small but clear edge for Duchene over Hall given how impressive he was defensively. Marchand and O'Reilly bring different things, but both executed very well. I think that Marchand will get selected over O'Reilly for that team, but both should be proud. Hall still has room to grow defensively but he was, next to McDavid, Canada's best neutral zone player.

I'm happy that many of those players were able to win gold of some kind with Canada. A lot of those players were WJC losers for Canada, sometimes in very tough circumstances. Good for Scheifele, Murray, Rielly, Jenner (quite good in limited minutes) and so on.

Good exposure for Tanev. I've liked his game for a long time now, and he didn't disappoint. He's the kind of defensive player who thrives internationally. Vlasic-esque.

Matheson was a good player to watch, Hockey Canada got one right with him. I could see him forming an elite pairing with Ekblad very soon in the NHL, and I like that he will be able to learn from Brian Campbell. Laughable that he was named to the tournament all star team though.

Happy for Perry and Ellis. Perry could have easily refused Hockey Canada given all that he has done and accomplished and no one would have batted an eye, but he set a good example and came over. I'm glad that he was rewarded. Ellis has always been a good soldier for Hockey Canada, and I liked his comments that he was actually excited when Hockey Canada called after the second round and that he would never refuse to play for Canada. Good to see him get his first championship since the 2009 WJC.

Anyway, good informative tournament. I hope to see that playstyle from Canada in the future, and I hope that the young guys are able to apply what they learned in the future.

Excellent analysis.

 

[CanadianPantherFan]

Amazingly, Matheson was not only named to the All Star team by the media, but the directorate also named him as the tournament's best defenceman. A guy that played seventh defenceman and then third pairing. Matheson was good, but you could easily make the case that he was Canada's sixth best defenceman. Maybe fifth ahead of Ceci. Probably the worst award decision I've ever seen, and a blatant case of plus minus watching I would imagine.

Ok

An expert in you who said it was a joke he was there. He was way better than Hutton, Dumba, and even Rielly. Tanev and Ceci were solid as tournament went along but by no means dominant or better. Ellis was ok and other times not good at all. Murray was very impressive early but fell off a bit come medal time.

The only argument is Matheson did not PK and got very little PP time (which he should of got more). Matheson was engine to the team 5 on 5 and PMD that made difference today and in past games on blueline. His skating only fell behind Hall and McDavid (those three best players today not even close).

 

[Knave]

Ok

An expert in you who said it was a joke he was there. He was way better than Hutton, Dumba, and even Rielly. Tanev and Ceci were solid as tournament went along but by no means dominant or better. Ellis was ok and other times not good at all. Murray was very impressive early but fell off a bit come medal time.

The only argument is Matheson did not PK and got very little PP time (which he should of got more). Matheson was engine to the team 5 on 5 and PMD that made difference today and in past games on blueline. His skating only fell behind Hall and McDavid (those three best players today not even close).

He didn't play very much.

It's not just that he didn't play on the PK or PP - it's that he didn't play very much period.

It's like giving Dmitri Orlov the Norris because he was so effective with the minutes he was given (especially offensively). Why the hell would you do it?

No one is saying Matheson is bad - but his role was so limited.

 

[snipes]

Ok

An expert in you who said it was a joke he was there. He was way better than Hutton, Dumba, and even Rielly. Tanev and Ceci were solid as tournament went along but by no means dominant or better. Ellis was ok and other times not good at all. Murray was very impressive early but fell off a bit come medal time.

The only argument is Matheson did not PK and got very little PP time (which he should of got more). Matheson was engine to the team 5 on 5 and PMD that made difference today and in past games on blueline. His skating only fell behind Hall and McDavid (those three best players today not even close).

Agreed. Matheson and Rielly's skating stood out to me all tournament, the Panthers got a good one in Matheson.

 

[moon*]

Ok

An expert in you who said it was a joke he was there. He was way better than Hutton, Dumba, and even Rielly. Tanev and Ceci were solid as tournament went along but by no means dominant or better. Ellis was ok and other times not good at all. Murray was very impressive early but fell off a bit come medal time.

The only argument is Matheson did not PK and got very little PP time (which he should of got more). Matheson was engine to the team 5 on 5 and PMD that made difference today and in past games on blueline. His skating only fell behind Hall and McDavid (those three best players today not even close).

NOt a chance he was better than Rielly.

I like Matheson and this is not meant to be a knock against him, I thought he was fine all tournament long but no way was he the best defenseman on his own team let alone the whole tournament.

Rielly for me was by far the best Canadian defenseman and I don't really think anyone was that close.

 

[slobbergob]

I didn't think Duchene had a particularly dominant tourney. Had some turn overs and killed the play a lot down low. Perry not exactly a power house either.

Maybe because it was a bit surprising but Hall played a very strong 200 foot game and is the guy that I think should get the longest look for team Canada after this performance. Not to mention Hall is a natural LWer. I know they prefer centers but having at least a couple natural wingers isn't a bad thing.

He wasn't dominant but he was good. The biggest problem is when he and McDavid play on a line, there's only one puck. Duchene's at his best with the puck on his stick, even as a winger. He and McDavid were constantly out of position together. Because they're both such great skaters, they'd both beat the opposition to the puck, and there you have two Canadian players within 5 ft of each other.

Duchene should make the WC roster. When he's used properly like he was in this tournament, he's such a strong forechecker and strong defensively. I hope Roy's taking notes.

 

[jj cale]

Agreed. Matheson and Rielly's skating stood out to me all tournament, the Panthers got a good one in Matheson.

McD proved you right in the end snipes!!


What a game.







I feel so good today,even getting off the whiskey.

 

[snipes]

McD proved you right in the end snipes!!


What a game.

He sure did. Best player on the ice. Offensively and defensively. He shut down Laine and Barkov in the last two minutes, he had like 4 turnovers in crunch time.

I'm glad he was able to shut up everyone doubting him. Game winning goal, player of the game. Brought his best when it mattered the most, he's generational. Period.

Great game for Canada. I'm a very happy man right now, listening to music and having a beer smiling ear to ear.

 

[jj cale]

He sure did. Best player on the ice. Offensively and defensively. He shut down Laine and Barkov in the last two minutes, he had like 4 turnovers in crunch time.

I'm glad he was able to shut up everyone doubting him. Game winning goal, player of the game. Brought his best when it mattered the most, he's generational. Period.

Great game for Canada. I'm a very happy man right now, listening to music and having a beer smiling ear to ear.

Well you certainly set the bar high for the kid, but thank God...............he came through.



A beer and music?...............I would suggest Magnolia.

 

[JackSlater]

Ok

An expert in you who said it was a joke he was there. He was way better than Hutton, Dumba, and even Rielly. Tanev and Ceci were solid as tournament went along but by no means dominant or better. Ellis was ok and other times not good at all. Murray was very impressive early but fell off a bit come medal time.

The only argument is Matheson did not PK and got very little PP time (which he should of got more). Matheson was engine to the team 5 on 5 and PMD that made difference today and in past games on blueline. His skating only fell behind Hall and McDavid (those three best players today not even close).

Laughable case of a homer. Canada's fifth or sixth defenceman was named the top defenceman. It's an indefensible decision. Your analysis of the other defencemen is almost completely backwards as well. He looked good in the tournament, but he played on Canada's third pairing and was probably Canada's fifth best defenceman at best.

 

[snipes]

Well you certainly set the bar high for the kid, but thank God...............he came through.



A beer and music?...............I would suggest Magnolia.

Yeah and I apologized for it. Shouldn't have done that. But when we needed his very best, he elevated his game and showed the world how talented he is. Feels good man.

Just fired it up right now. I've been playing some Journey - Don't Stop Believing, Darius Rucker - Wagon Wheel. And of course, Wiz Khalifa - We Dem Boyz.

This beer tastes so sweet right now. Thank you Team Canada, you boys played the Canadian way and came out with the heart of a champion. This was a team win in every way. Hockey is our game.

 

[jj cale]

Yeah and I apologized for it. Shouldn't have done that. But when we needed his very best, he elevated his game and showed the world how talented he is. Feels good man.

Just fired it up right now. I've been playing some Journey - Don't Stop Believing, Darius Rucker - Wagon Wheel. And of course, Wiz Khalifa - We Dem Boyz.

This beer tastes so sweet right now. Thank you Team Canada, you boys played the Canadian way and came out with the heart of a champion. This was a team win in every way. Hockey is our game.

Jesus Christ...............journey.

Steve Perry is splitting my head as we speak.


You dont have season tickets to oilers games do you?

 

[Gormo]

Amazing turnaround.

In their first game against Finland I saw Perry with that completely idiotic takedown of Laine and Marchand taking off that guy's helmet (funny, but bush league) and I was really questioning this team. They looked like they were undisciplined and unhinged.

They proved otherwise in the last game, as if they were a completely different team.

 

[snipes]

Jesus Christ...............journey.

Steve Perry is splitting my head as we speak.


You dont have season tickets to oilers games do you?

lol sometimes a little cheesy music is good in small doses.

And no on the season tickets.

 

[jj cale]

Amazing turnaround.

In their first game against Finland I saw Perry with that completely idiotic takedown of Laine and Marchand taking off that guy's helmet (funny, but bush league) and I was really questioning this team. They looked like they were undisciplined and unhinged.

They proved otherwise in the last game, as if they were a completely different team.

I agree.

It was as if they were coming unhinged mentally.

And then they seemed to put it alltogether that last game.

I lack an answer for that.

 

[NyQuil]

I agree.

It was as if they were coming unhinged mentally.

And then they seemed to put it alltogether that last game.

I lack an answer for that.

Canada has lost to far worse teams in the round-robin games of any tournament.

Finland played very well in their win, but elimination games are always a different story.