Disappointing to say the least. USAH always finds a way to lose in the semifinal: sometimes we don't show up, sometimes we blow a lead, sometimes we play well and just don't get the breaks, but no matter what, we can't close.
As for today's game itself, that was about as even as it gets. Either team would have felt like they didn't get the breaks if they were down, and today just happened to be the day we lost out on the breaks. If that game was replayed 10 times, they'd probably each win 5 times. This is not all that surprising as the teams were built very similarly: strong goaltending, top-line heavy, and unheralded/young defensive groups. The two biggest difference makers today were that Canada's top line buried a couple and the USA's did not, and USA couldn't win a damn face-off.
Jones and Wolanin were the horses once again, as was Garland. Blackwell, Labanc, and Chemelvski were also creating out there but didn't get nearly enough ice time. Petersen was good but not great, but he matched Kuemper's play, so he's not to blame here.
On the downside:
- Robertson was invisible again today. We didn't have the scoring depth to continually overcome one of our top 2 forwards no showing, especially since Donato, Thompson, etc. have provided no offense.
- Tennyson broke a cardinal rule in hockey twice in the early 3rd, and it cost the team dearly. He was the last d-man on both breakaways and misplayed them both. You always fall back when the other defenseman has jumped in and puck possession changes teams, but he didn't on either, and let Canadian forwards get behind him for easy breakaways. Yes, he's a journeyman but he knows better than that.
- I wasn't thrilled with the coaching urgency/decisions today.
- Moore and Blackwell couldn't win a face-off, and while we have the top face-off man in the tournament (Rooney), we only have him take 1 draw. Mind boggling. We had to chase possession too much post-face-off, which especially hindered the 1st line from being able to generate sustained pressure.
- Coaches didn't change things up enough to ride the hot hands today. For example, Garland was bringing it again, but Moore and Robertson were dead weight. Garland should have been double shifting with other players who were also bringing it like Labanc, but we went with the status quo and it didn't work.
- I've been closely following USAH since the mid-90s and I don't think I've ever seen a player on our teams with worse hockey IQ than Thompson. He always makes the wrong play. Passes when the pass isn't there, endlessly shoots and either endlessly misses the net or shoots it right into the opposition, etc. But the coaches were obsessed with him for some reason, and he was 2nd in forward TOI in the 3rd today. More than Garland, Moore, Labanc, Blackwell, etc. who are all better than him and all have easily outplayed him in the tournament. I don't get the obsession with him by the staff and what he did to earn such prime playing time over better and more effective players.