2016 World Cup of Hockey

[EverettMike]

USA is an embarrassment and probably the most unlikable bunch from USA heads to coach to players. Disaster

Not enough grit.

 

[TheBigBadB]

Not enough grit.

As you can see from just this tournament alone and last years playoffs that dump and grind teams have been figured out. Quick transitions on dump ins and/or collapse to the front of the net because 90% of the dump and grind game revolve around shots from the point when they actually retrieve the puck. It's a dying model.

 

[Therick67]

Brilliant strategy from Tort's and USA hockey. The game has gone to speed and skill, lets show they some grit - they won't know what hit em...

 

[EverettMike]

Brilliant strategy from Tort's and USA hockey. The game has gone to speed and skill, lets show they some grit - they won't know what hit em...

Also not enough leadership.

Grit and leadership would have made a difference.

 

[Fire Sweeney]

Even David Poile understands that the game has changed, which is why he traded his fan-favorite captain who has turned into a pylon in the last few months.

 

[Fossy21]

Even David Poile understands that the game has changed, which is why he traded his fan-favorite captain who has turned into a pylon in the last few months.

We can hope. Should be interesting to see him in Montreal's system for sure.

 

[ReggieMoto]

If folks can get past the fact that this piece is written by Ryan Lambert, it's a pretty good and entertaining read on the failure of Team USA.

Excerpted from Make American Hockey Great Again

Then USA Hockey announced that Dean Lombardi, who was in charge of putting together this team pretty much from top to bottom, would be holding a press conference the morning of the US’s final, meaningless game against the Czechs. Specifically, he would address the team’s failings and his role in it.

Many assumed this meant we could expect something of a hat-in-hand, foot-shuffling apology to USA Hockey fans who probably should have seen this coming.

What we got instead was, well… It was breathtaking.

 

[bbfan419]

USA had plenty of skill, Kane, Pavelski etc. They got horrible goaltending for one thing Quick and Bishop just did not play their best. The other thing is coaching sitting out Buff for example against Europe was not a smart move either.

 

[Oates2Neely]

USA had plenty of skill, Kane, Pavelski etc. They got horrible goaltending for one thing Quick and Bishop just did not play their best. The other thing is coaching sitting out Buff for example against Europe was not a smart move either.

Byguflien actually was a big reason they lost against Canada. He was on ice for 2 quick Canada goals, wandering aimlessly in his own zone as usual.

 

[Fenian24]

If folks can get past the fact that this piece is written by Ryan Lambert, it's a pretty good and entertaining read on the failure of Team USA.

It's very tough to read anything Lambert writes, the American Damian Cox is pretty repugnant

 

[Fossy21]

USA had plenty of skill, Kane, Pavelski etc. They got horrible goaltending for one thing Quick and Bishop just did not play their best. The other thing is coaching sitting out Buff for example against Europe was not a smart move either.

Pretty much. The difference between USA and Russia this tournament was Bobrovski stepped up. Quick looked awesome in the preliminary game where Price sucked, but then when the game counted, he wasn't up for the task (admittedly in a much tougher spot than Price, but not really as tough as Bobrovski's).

 

[ReggieMoto]

Everyone seems more concerned about the goaltending not being up to snuff but ignoring the fact that despite having plenty of skill the team couldn't score. Seems misplaced.

 

[trenton1]

The creation of the under 23 team (especially) and collage of Europe team sealed the deal that this has been re-manufactured to be pretty close to hockey infomercial status rather than a true high stakes international tournament.
IMO, you cannot invent 2 out of 8 teams in a so-called "World Cup" international tournament with some teams forced to play as single nations and others not and call it anything other than a sort of night-of-the-stars showcase or a video game trip.
I think it even cheapens it for the victors because whomever wins this one wins the least ever in the history of this International tournament because there is the least on the line in the historical picture--even once those 2 new teams are eliminated.

As far as I'm concerned, once they decided to invent teams they might as well have taken the 180 or so of the best players in the world and had them place their sticks in the center ice dot while someone blindly tossed the sticks into 8 different piles around the rink. I would be equally interested in that and would feel it to be a more genuine concept than a semi-international tournament where they actually take eligible players from 2 nations and place them on a team together based on age. AGE!

Team USA was burnt the worst by having the North America under 23 team. But team Canada lost a better competitor if not now than in the near future. I used to prefer this to the Olympics because of the NHL ice and rules but this idiotic concept has me suddenly appreciating the Olympics more--maybe that is someone's point.

 

[ReggieMoto]

IMO, you cannot invent 2 out of 8 teams in a so-called "World Cup" international tournament...

You do realize that this was NOT an international tournament, right? That it was a collection of teams comprised exclusively of rostered NHL players? With that understanding, you can go about building teams just about any way you care to. They built the two "gimmick" teams to round out the tournament participants with excess players available.

I really don't see why people have so much heartburn over this. I understand frustration over Team USA's failure to perform but other than that I thought it was great seeing NHL quality play where none would exist otherwise.

 

[Aeroforce]

Like some of the players mentioned in the clips above, I wasn't totally aware of how the brackets worked in this tournament at the outset.

In hindsight, I see the biggest failing of Team USA as coming out SO flat in the first game against Europe. Turns out two losses meant an early exit, and they knew Canada was looming. That first game should have been treated as a must-win, and the desperation wasn't there.

 

[EverettMike]

Like some of the players mentioned in the clips above, I wasn't totally aware of how the brackets worked in this tournament at the outset.

In hindsight, I see the biggest failing of Team USA as coming out SO flat in the first game against Europe. Turns out two losses meant an early exit, and they knew Canada was looming. That first game should have been treated as a must-win, and the desperation wasn't there.

Dean Lombardi said they cared TOO much.

 

[HockeyMomx2]

USA had plenty of skill, Kane, Pavelski etc. They got horrible goaltending for one thing Quick and Bishop just did not play their best. The other thing is coaching sitting out Buff for example against Europe was not a smart move either.

Uhhhhhhhh that's your opinion. My view? Buff was way more responsible for the two goals he was on the ice for in the Canada game than any other player or goalie on the ice. He sucks. Straight up sucks.

 

[HockeyMomx2]

Everyone seems more concerned about the goaltending not being up to snuff but ignoring the fact that despite having plenty of skill the team couldn't score. Seems misplaced.

Yep, because not for nothing, but who else were they going to use for goalies? if anything, the goalies were the only thing they couldn't screw up because there was no one else to even consider. Can't win this game if you don't score. The players though? The list is endless of the different players that should have been there. This team was a disaster and it all starts at the top.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

You do realize that this was NOT an international tournament, right? That it was a collection of teams comprised exclusively of rostered NHL players? With that understanding, you can go about building teams just about any way you care to. They built the two "gimmick" teams to round out the tournament participants with excess players available.

I really don't see why people have so much heartburn over this. I understand frustration over Team USA's failure to perform but other than that I thought it was great seeing NHL quality play where none would exist otherwise.

These teams were not built using NHL rostered players.

Off the top of my head:

RUS - Dadonov, Datsyuk, Telegin and Shipachyov

CZE - Sobotka, Cervenka, Kundratek


I'm sure there were others on the Finnish team as well.

 

[trenton1]

I agree that this is much better than no hockey at all (is that the dichotomy?) but I don't agree at all with a concept where a couple of teams who are also there playing under the banner of their nation have to actually forfeit the right to use their own talented players because they under the age of 24. Bizarre. Even the "Best of the rest under 24" while still a bit silly, would have made more sense to me.

"Team USA Over 23" was handicapped as is "Team Canada Over 23" ever so slightly.
I can see some fans rooting for "Team Canada Over 23" to think of what help the Canadian-born Connor McDavid might have offered.

Losing the under 24 players is probably not the reason USA won't win it all, but it is still a pretty silly concept to have a team that is supposedly representing their nation have certain players automatically diverted to another team in the tournament based on their age.

The teams playing as Team USA and Team Canada are both kind of operating split-squad spring training style exhibition teams with their young talent being mixed together. Seems so bizarre.
I actually think I'd rather see clear-cut A and B squads competing from each nation if they want to highlight name-recognition.

This tourney was always an exhibition but now it actually feels like one and I don't think that's a good thing.

 

[BigGoalBrad]

Uhhhhhhhh that's your opinion. My view? Buff was way more responsible for the two goals he was on the ice for in the Canada game than any other player or goalie on the ice. He sucks. Straight up sucks.

With you here.

Good hands and puts up a respectable point total most years but the guy still sucks overall.

Probably the last guy you would want to rely on showing up in shape for a tournament like this in September.

 

[ReggieMoto]

These teams were not built using NHL rostered players.

Off the top of my head:

RUS - Dadonov, Datsyuk, Telegin and Shipachyov

CZE - Sobotka, Cervenka, Kundratek


I'm sure there were others on the Finnish team as well.

My bad then. I thought I had read somewhere that the teams were all NHL players.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

I agree that this is much better than no hockey at all (is that the dichotomy?) but I don't agree at all with a concept where a couple of teams who are also there playing under the banner of their nation have to actually forfeit the right to use their own talented players because they under the age of 24. Bizarre. Even the "Best of the rest under 24" while still a bit silly, would have made more sense to me.

"Team USA Over 23" was handicapped as is "Team Canada Over 23" ever so slightly.
I can see some fans rooting for "Team Canada Over 23" to think of what help the Canadian-born Connor McDavid might have offered.

Losing the under 24 players is probably not the reason USA won't win it all, but it is still a pretty silly concept to have a team that is supposedly representing their nation have certain players automatically diverted to another team in the tournament based on their age.

The teams playing as Team USA and Team Canada are both kind of operating split-squad spring training style exhibition teams with their young talent being mixed together. Seems so bizarre.
I actually think I'd rather see clear-cut A and B squads competing from each nation if they want to highlight name-recognition.

This tourney was always an exhibition but now it actually feels like one and I don't think that's a good thing.

Not sure why this setup bothers you so much. It's worked out splendidly and it certainly hasn't seemed like an exhibition at all. From what I've seen, all these players are playing for keeps. A couple of the most entertaining games of this century. And that was just the preliminary round.

 

[RoccoF14]

If folks can get past the fact that this piece is written by Ryan Lambert, it's a pretty good and entertaining read on the failure of Team USA.

Great article and spot on.

 

[Fossy21]

Everyone seems more concerned about the goaltending not being up to snuff but ignoring the fact that despite having plenty of skill the team couldn't score. Seems misplaced.

Sure. They scored 5 goals on 110 shots (4.5% shooting), that's not good. But they also allowed 11 goals on 78 shots (86% save percentage). That's arguably even worse - the point being they weren't exactly outplayed by Team Europe or the Czechs, but they were absolutely outplayed by Halak and Mrazek.

Even the Canada game was winnable but for the 15 second breakdown with two somewhat fluky goals against (one of which was mostly on Buff, the other a bad rebound by Quick with unlucky results).