WJC: 2021 Canada Roster Talk

[ORRFForever]

Rather selfish decision by Michigan. I have a funny feeling one that would literally never happen with an American player.

Exactly. If he was an American players and the Americans were having an early camp, he'd be released - and our American posters would applaud the decision.

 

[ORRFForever]

Regardless of what ends up happening with Power, you just know that there are people within Hockey Canada ready to crap on NCAA players next time camp invitations go out.

Pretty ridiculous precedence to set. Oh well on to the next one.

I can see Michigan's point of view. If they've given Power a scholarship, they want a return on their investment. As for the camp, IF he makes the team, he'll be fine arriving on Dec 10th.

I'm also worried about the precedent. Next year, if Covid is still here, what's to stop Michigan from holding Power back from a early camp where he would be needed more than he is needed this year?

Having said all that, I hoped for a compromise and we got one.

 

[JiggsNY]

I mean none of us know the full sequence of events so it’s a guess, but it sounds like Michigan was ready to release Power half way through camp. Perhaps HC said he needs to be here for the full camp or no dice. Maybe for a fringe roster player it doesn’t make sense to allow him to show up halfway through while others will have been battling since camp opened. HC says full camp or nothing so Michigan just goes okay nothing.

 

[ORRFForever]

I mean none of us know the full sequence of events so it’s a guess, but it sounds like Michigan was ready to release Power half way through camp. Perhaps HC said he needs to be here for the full camp or no dice. Maybe for a fringe roster player it doesn’t make sense to allow him to show up halfway through while others will have been battling since camp opened. HC says full camp or nothing so Michigan just goes okay nothing.

Again, if it was an American kid, American posters would feel different.

 

[ORRFForever]

Help me understand...

Is Power coming on Dec 10th or has Hockey Canada said no thanks to him participating at all?

The more I think about it, the more likely it is the latter.

 

[JiricekSaveUs]

Rather selfish decision by Michigan. I have a funny feeling one that would literally never happen with an American player.

I get that you’re coming from a position of passion but I just don’t think that’s true. It’s completely understandable to not want to send your number one defenseman to a camp that will make him miss near half of the 20 game schedule. I don’t think it would make a difference if the camp was being held in Buffalo or Toronto.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

I get that you’re coming from a position of passion but I just don’t think that’s true. It’s completely understandable to not want to send your number one defenseman to a camp that will make him miss near half of the 20 game schedule. I don’t think it would make a difference if the camp was being held in Buffalo or Toronto.

It's not exactly passion. I don't think losing Power has a massive effect on the team this season. He was a bubble player as it was. I just think it sets a bad precedence going forward that programs can decide to not allow their players to go to the WJC if it doesn't suite them. I just personally don't think that should be encouraged. The best junior aged players not in the NHL should be going for this if it is what they want to do. It can be a slippery slope.

 

[ORRFForever]

I get that you’re coming from a position of passion but I just don’t think that’s true. It’s completely understandable to not want to send your number one defenseman to a camp that will make him miss near half of the 20 game schedule. I don’t think it would make a difference if the camp was being held in Buffalo or Toronto.

I don't believe that - I doubt many Canadian posters do. If he was an American player, I'm sure Michigan would have made an exception.

I hope Power remembers this. The school may need a favour going forward - especially if Power goes on to an amazing career.

 

[snipes]

Rather selfish decision by Michigan. I have a funny feeling one that would literally never happen with an American player.

Horrible decision by Michigan.

This could hurt future Canadian NCAA invites I would imagine.

I guess it’s not to late for Hockey Canada to name another D man to camp if they wanted to.

 

[ORRFForever]

This could hurt future Canadian NCAA invites I would imagine.

Not sure why Michigan or the NCAA would care.

If anything, players need to negotiate this sort of thing before they agree to a scholarship. My guess : A LOT of schools wanted him, and at least one would have agreed to let him go to a Hockey Canada camp.

 

[Your Boy Troy]

It would be a nice addition on the backend (if Power is released in the future and proceeds to makes the team), but the depth is so deep that it is not a huge subtraction.

On an unrelated note; for a team that seems to get top-notch recruits every season - the Michigan hockey program has been a disappointment for almost a decade. They are almost adjacent to their football program when it comes to underachieving, and it pains me to say this as a diehard fan (of the football team).

 

[ORRFForever]

It would be a nice addition on the backend (if Power is released in the future and proceeds to makes the team), but the depth is so deep that it is not a huge subtraction.

On an unrelated note; for a team that seems to get top-notch recruits every season - the Michigan hockey program has been a disappointment for almost a decade. They are almost adjacent to their football program when it comes to underachieving, and it pains me to say this as a diehard fan (of the football team).

Because Power is not sure of a spot on Team Canada, he lacks leverage. You don't want to threaten a school and a coach that gave you a scholarship, only to not make the National team.

If Canada could guarantee him a spot, then maybe Power would push back more, but that's not fair to other prospects.

 

[JiricekSaveUs]

It's not exactly passion. I don't think losing Power has a massive effect on the team this season. He was a bubble player as it was. I just think it sets a bad precedence going forward that programs can decide to not allow their players to go to the WJC if it doesn't suite them. I just personally don't think that should be encouraged. The best junior aged players not in the NHL should be going for this if it is what they want to do. It can be a slippery slope.

It’s not setting any precedence. In a normal season, which we will get back to eventually, players won’t be missing extended portions of the season, if any, for their WJC camps. That’s completely different than asking teams to release their players for 2 montages for an extended WJC camp.

 

[JiricekSaveUs]

I don't believe that - I doubt many Canadian posters do. If he was an American player, I'm sure Michigan would have made an exception.

I hope Power remembers this. The school may need a favour going forward - especially if Power goes on to an amazing career.

This has nothing to do with Power being Canadian, and everything to do with him missing half the season to attend the camp. If players were being held from the WJC because of their nationalities, why wouldn’t this be a thing every year? When was the last time a college coach said “nope, that player can’t go to the WJC”?

 

[ORRFForever]

This has nothing to do with Power being Canadian, and everything to do with him missing half the season to attend the camp. If players were being held from the WJC because of their nationalities, why wouldn’t this be a thing every year? When was the last time a college coach said “nope, that player can’t go to the WJC”?

I stand by my belief that if Power was American, he'd be released.

 

[JiricekSaveUs]

I stand by my belief that if Power was American, he'd be released.

Ok. Here’s a scenario for you: Kent Johnson goes back to Michigan to play his d+1 there. By you’re logic, Pearson won’t release him for the WJC in 2021 because “he’s Canadian.”

 

[ORRFForever]

Ok. Here’s a scenario for you: Kent Johnson goes back to Michigan to play his d+1 there. By you’re logic, Pearson won’t release him for the WJC in 2021 because “he’s Canadian.”

There is no point arguing something we can't prove. I believe an American player would be released. You don't. We can agree to disagree.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Isn’t there still a 14 day quarantine required going from US to Canada? Isn’t that a big factor in this which I haven’t seen mentioned by any media. Unless I’m missing something or there’s a Hockey Canada exemption I’m not aware of but Newhook said to multiple outlets he was going home to Newfoundland to ride out his quarantine unless it changed to where testing in the camp bubble satisfies that? So if Power was planning on this camp at all shouldn’t he have been in Canada already? That could also be a massive problem to him just joining when he gets released.

Also, allegedly they are going to cut like 20 guys after one week of this camp so not everyone is going to miss a month of QMJHL/NCAA play. But that also means this team is going to be set fairly quickly with obviously a seat open for Lafrenière.

 

[Leviathan899]

I think the fact Power was cut from the Hlinka team last summer may give his group pause, plus the amount of time he would miss from school and games, just to get sent home.

 

[Leviathan899]

I love your line. I agree on the forwards totally.

Newhook Dach Cozens
Perfetti Byfield Mercer
Pelletier McMichael Quinn
Holloway Krebs Tomasino
Rees Lapierre Wright

Byram Schneider
Robertson Drysdale
Harley Korczak
Guhle Barron
Power

I just don't like the idea of having two eighteen year old defenders on D-pairing 2. I would slide 19 years old Robertson in. He is a good skater who has very good size.

I actually forgot about Robertson, he probably will make this team and play a fairly big role, somewhat similar to Bahl last year.

 

[Leviathan899]

Yeah McMichael I see on one of the big lines or in multiple lines at a time, ie he's probably the 3rd most important forward we have after Lafreniere and Dach. But that's why I see Lapierre and Mercer as stable anchor of the bottom lines. With McMichael taking some rotations on any line. My comment was not against McMichael, it was "you are not placing McMichael right in the lineup"

I could see Byfield sitting on the bench again replaced by McMichael or Cozens after a few games as well.

A national team is all about trying to make as many things as possible work. This is why McMichael might seem to have a smaller role at the first, as they try to make other players go.

I think McMichael with Perfetti and tomasino would be an electric line to watch, and they would play a hard working two way game as well imo.

 

[Canada4Gold]

Can someone explain why this is an issue for Power but it's not an issue for Newhook, Holloway or Levi, all of which are also NCAA players. Are their leagues not playing anytime soon, or are their coaches not as adamant they need their player or what?

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Rather selfish decision by Michigan. I have a funny feeling one that would literally never happen with an American player.

So it's a conspiracy? That's Mel Pearson's (a Canadian by the way) game plan?

 

[Breakers]

This has nothing to do with Power being Canadian, and everything to do with him missing half the season to attend the camp. If players were being held from the WJC because of their nationalities, why wouldn’t this be a thing every year? When was the last time a college coach said “nope, that player can’t go to the WJC”?

EXACTLY
I do not know why this is so tough to understand
Michigan has absolutely zero issue with the tournament, they take issue with the Hockey Canada Changing the Selection camp time, and length of the camp.

Pearson points out in the interview that he would be behind both school, and especially with the team when his first game in the NCAA would essentially be in mid January, and who even knows if those games happen.

Granato and Pearson worked with the NCAA to space the schedule around the WJC so the badgers and wolverines dont miss games. So this conspiracy talk is almost laughable when they designed the schedule to accommodate for the tournament.

 

[JackSlater]

Can someone explain why this is an issue for Power but it's not an issue for Newhook, Holloway or Levi, all of which are also NCAA players. Are their leagues not playing anytime soon, or are their coaches not as adamant they need their player or what?

They don't have Marvelous Mel Pearson looking out for their best interest.

I do not think that this is some conspiracy or effort to impact the results of the WJC at all. I do not think that coaches, schools, or NHL teams when that issue comes up, care about the results of some international tournament. Pearson is interested in having a good player on his team for as many games as possible. His job is based on winning games and good players help teams win games. I also expect that Power is at least involved in the decision in some way.

Ultimately the covid situation has made things awkward in terms of preparing for this tournament and even staging it. While a coach putting his self-interest first and seemingly ruling out a player is not ideal, if that's the worst that happens in the build up to the tournament then that's more than acceptable.