Can Kessel be stopped?

[jcorb58]

I don't even know where to start with this one so all I'll do is this:

That's not even confidence and pride, that's just an over inflated ego of a person who imo comes off as cocky and one that thinks no one else is worthy of the gold medal but Canada. Really, why am I surprised at this? I don't care if it's my team that does it, but I hope someone bursts that big ego of yours in this tournament.

The gentleman that started this thread basically is telling us that your next great phenom cant be stopped. If that isnt arrogent then nothing is. The best under 20 player in the world is not in this tournament. I simply stated that from reading all your ridiculous horse manure about the unstoppable Mr Kessel that it must be a forgone conclusion that not us or the russians (who also has a better player on there roster) can even challenge the great unstoppable Kessel and his band of brothers. You beat the worst team in the tournament and SOME of you started pumping your chests. Ussually i pull for the americans whenever they are not playing us. Last year we had the best team and WE PROVED IT. This year we dont but all i simply stated was that you guys havent won anything yet. If i am perceived as arrogant and cocky by thinking my team will not roll over and die then you misunderstood what i was trying to say. Sorry for crapping in your cornflakes.

And one more small thing if you really think Kessel is better than Crosby,Malkin or Ovechkin then your going to be very dissapointed in the not to distant future. Even those three can be "stopped" so this Kessel kid must be superman.

 

[jcorb58]

I disagree,he brings up valid points about our teams traditionally and this particular version.You WILL be tested in that game.It's not a done deal for your squad either in that game or this tournament.Be ready,don't take anything for granted,i sense a few of your fans are doing that and he's simply brining some of you down to earth,nothing wrong with that IMO.It only comes across as cocky if you believe the U.S can't be beat,like the U.S team is above questioning.I sure hope you are not one of those guys because ANY team can be beat.

Thanks cyclops ...i really wasnt trying to diss the americans at all. I just dont believe Mr Kessel is unstoppable.

 

[Nash]

What a stupid thread. Of course Kessel can be stopped. Just look at Ovechkin in the Gold Medal game last year ... although it was easier to key on AO then it will be to focus on Kessel. USA has a deeper team then Russia had last year and Canada was better as well.

There seems to be a lot of hype after one game, but Norway is the weakest team in this tournament. I'm glad that fans cheered for them because they are really in tough against the teams at this level. (That is not an endorsement for booing the USA.)

 

[jcorb58]

Hard to say who will be the favorite in that game. I think the U.S. is better "on paper," but Canada is an excellent team that is well-coached and very motivated. IMO, the game will be decided on special teams.

It will be a great game RR nice to see someone that hasnt got an over inflated
opinion of 1 blowout. Ive read and agreed with many of your posts about Kessel. He will go first overall and deservingly so. Do you think he is " unstoppable "? It seems i am an arrogent jerk because i dont. I think the whole line will definately give us fits. I havent even said we or the russians will beat you guys. I just said our players have a history of rising to the occasion. On paper you guys do have the edge. We would need a great game out of Pogge or we will lose. Like all championships it will come down to who wants it more. What team digs deepest. We both shouldnt discount the russians.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

It will be a great game RR nice to see someone that hasnt got an over inflated
opinion of 1 blowout. Ive read and agreed with many of your posts about Kessel. He will go first overall and deservingly so. Do you think he is " unstoppable "? It seems i am an arrogent jerk because i dont. I think the whole line will definately give us fits. I havent even said we or the russians will beat you guys. I just said our players have a history of rising to the occasion. On paper you guys do have the edge. We would need a great game out of Pogge or we will lose. Like all championships it will come down to who wants it more. What team digs deepest. We both shouldnt discount the russians.

To answer your question: No, Phil Kessel is not unstoppable. Not even close. The U.S. power play on the other hand....

 

[Nash]

It will be a great game RR nice to see someone that hasnt got an over inflated
opinion of 1 blowout. Ive read and agreed with many of your posts about Kessel. He will go first overall and deservingly so. Do you think he is " unstoppable "? It seems i am an arrogent jerk because i dont. I think the whole line will definately give us fits. I havent even said we or the russians will beat you guys. I just said our players have a history of rising to the occasion. On paper you guys do have the edge. We would need a great game out of Pogge or we will lose. Like all championships it will come down to who wants it more. What team digs deepest. We both shouldnt discount the russians.

It will come down to defensive play/goaltending as it always does. You don't always have to have the best players to be the best team and your goalie can make a difference. Look at what happened in the finals 2 years ago as an example when Fleury colapsed and Montoya played well enough to allow his team to take over in the third.

 

[espo*]

Thanks cyclops ...i really wasnt trying to diss the americans at all. I just dont believe Mr Kessel is unstoppable.

No problem,i knew you were'nt trying to diss them and there is nothing wrong with bringing up historical parts of our game that tend to make it difficult for the opposition.You can already tell this team has those hallmarks,does'nt mean they will win but it sure as hell does mean they are capable of winning and shutting teams and stars down if they bring their total "A" team game.

 

[jcorb58]

To answer your question: No, Phil Kessel is not unstoppable. Not even close. The U.S. power play on the other hand....

Agreed
I am a little more worried about Bourque. If the team pays too much attention to Kessel he will burn us. Also being an Oiler fan i have seen first hand what Schremp can do on the PP. Yikes.....best we just try to stay out of the box. We must be agressive but disciplined.

 

[jcorb58]

It will come down to defensive play/goaltending as it always does. You don't always have to have the best players to be the best team and your goalie can make a difference. Look at what happened in the finals 2 years ago as an example when Fleury colapsed and Montoya played well enough to allow his team to take over in the third.

And last year i think the americans suffered the same goalie meltdown. Kessel definately showed flashes but i was most impressed with Bourque. Didnt he get injured and left their playoff game early last yr ? He definately has his dads passion for the game. Wait till AO has him as a team mate.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

To answer your question: No, Phil Kessel is not unstoppable. Not even close. The U.S. power play on the other hand....

Robbie Schremp looks like a duck in water on the PP, the guy is a PP dynamo!!! The key for Canada to beat the US would be to play physical,smart (minimize penalties), and have out-standing goaltending. I truly believe that Goaltending is the USA's weakness.

 

[southpaw24]

I think that there are three things that can be said to end this thread....

1. Kessel can be stopped.. its just a matter of if they do it

2. USA does have a deeper team... Canada has the Extra Man ie. the crowd

3. Its gonna be one hell of a game on new years eve

Oh yeah we gotta find a name to call the game somethin like the thrilla in vanilla if ya know where im tryin to go here....

 

[psycho_dad*]

Kessel who? He was quite invisible against Finland, Ryan is one who is much harder to stop. Even the horrible defense of finland, and the vast amount of PP they got, Kessel was not one of their top 5 forwards in the game.

I am not saying he is bad, just not up to the hype just yet. Maybe he will get better against Canada.

 

[NYR2]

You WILL be tested in that game.It's not a done deal for your squad either in that game or this tournament.Be ready,don't take anything for granted,i sense a few of your fans are doing that and he's simply brining some of you down to earth,nothing wrong with that IMO.It only comes across as cocky if you believe the U.S can't be beat,like the U.S team is above questioning.I sure hope you are not one of those guys because ANY team can be beat.

And I'm sure you WILL be tested also. I'm definitely not one of the people who think no one can beat my team. I want to see them work hard and play the best they can, if a gold medal comes out of that I will be extremely proud.

Right on Hockey is the main sport for me! But Basketball Baseball and Football are the main sports in the States. I really wish hockey would take off in the in the south states.

Same for me. With baseball second, and football third. I draw the line there. How pathetic is it that nascar is bigger than hockey? I swear I could rant all freaking day about that pathetic excuse of a "sport." And yes I need to use quotes because anyone that calls THAT a sport should get run over by one of those cars.

The gentleman that started this thread basically is telling us that your next great phenom cant be stopped. If that isnt arrogent then nothing is. The best under 20 player in the world is not in this tournament. I simply stated that from reading all your ridiculous horse manure about the unstoppable Mr Kessel that it must be a forgone conclusion that not us or the russians (who also has a better player on there roster) can even challenge the great unstoppable Kessel and his band of brothers. You beat the worst team in the tournament and SOME of you started pumping your chests. Ussually i pull for the americans whenever they are not playing us. Last year we had the best team and WE PROVED IT. This year we dont but all i simply stated was that you guys havent won anything yet. If i am perceived as arrogant and cocky by thinking my team will not roll over and die then you misunderstood what i was trying to say. Sorry for crapping in your cornflakes.

That was an asinine comment to begin with, I didn't even take my time to comment on it. Anyone can be stopped, Kessel is no exception.

On the part I put in bold, we know we haven't won anything yet, but maybe you guys should keep that mentality too in all the international tournaments that you all basically proclaim yourselves the gold medal winners before anything is decided. I see it every time. That's my only problem when it comes to these tournaments, it leaves such a bad taste in my mouth against Canada and I hate that.

And one more small thing if you really think Kessel is better than Crosby,Malkin or Ovechkin then your going to be very dissapointed in the not to distant future. Even those three can be "stopped" so this Kessel kid must be superman.

I hope that wasn't directed at me.

 

[NYR2]

I am not saying he is bad, just not up to the hype just yet. Maybe he will get better against Canada.

I'm so tired of all the extreme hype put on some of these guys, like Kessel this year. Just shut up and let them play.

 

[therealdeal]

After watching Kessel again last night for about the 7th or 8th time, I will say that next game I predict Kessel will come in on a 1 on 1 probably about 3 times, and try the outside-inside move everytime, and maybe get the puck through each team, but should be stopped if the defense is at all competent.

I don't get the hype about this guy frankly, I'm thinking Chara will stop that move everytime.

 

[Aarex]

Dustin rose could skate circles around kessel while sleepin with his momma!

 

[VOB]

Well once again Kessel looms large, I often wondered when all the discussion over this player would die down but that is unlikely to happen.

A few objective points about Kessel.

What he is not

- a once in a generational talent ala Crosby.

- the best potential American player ever

- Head and shoulders over every other 06 draft eligible player


What he is

- a dynamic offensive player who if given the space can crack a game wide open

- a lethal PP specialist

- a pin point shooter who possesses a wicked wrister

- a potential NHL all-star

Can Kessel be stopped? What a ridiculous question. Any player can be stopped. Look what the London Knights did to Crosby in the Memorial Cup final.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Well once again Kessel looms large, I often wondered when all the discussion over this player would die down but that is unlikely to happen.

A few objective points about Kessel.

What he is not

- a once in a generational talent ala Crosby.

- the best potential American player ever

- Head and shoulders over every other 06 draft eligible player


What he is

- a dynamic offensive player who if given the space can crack a game wide open

- a lethal PP specialist

- a pin point shooter who possesses a wicked wrister

- a potential NHL all-star

Can Kessel be stopped? What a ridiculous question. Any player can be stopped. Look what the London Knights did to Crosby in the Memorial Cup final.

Have we switched bodies this morning? I totally agree!

 

[VOB]

Have we switched bodies this morning? I totally agree!

I believe my position on Kessel has been consistant for quite some time. Perhaps yours has changed?

 

[Rabid Ranger]

I believe my position on Kessel has been consistant for quite some time. Perhaps yours has changed?

Well, I never anointed him the golden child, but my enthusiasm has been tempered by reality. I still think he'll be the number one pick, and that's an accomplishment, especially for an American hockey player.

 

[luv_canadian_hockey]

Of course he can be stopped!

 

[PecaFan]

A few objective points about Kessel.

What he is not
- a once in a generational talent ala Crosby.

Well yeah, neither is Crosby. People toss out that term *way* too easily.

- the best potential American player ever

To be fair, while remote, that's still theoretically possible. *Someone* is going to come along and be the best American ever. It's just natural progress.

 

[Genghis Keon]

Well yeah, neither is Crosby. People toss out that term *way* too easily.

To me, so far he looks like a generational talent. In juniors as a 16 and 17 year old, he put up points like no one in the history of the CHL (especially in relation to his competition) and won the CHL player of the year in both years he played (something else that has never been done). Gretzky outpointed him at 16 (but still didn't win his league's scoring title, probably mostly because the draft age was 20 at the time) and played in the WHA at 17. You could potentially argue that Lindros was a better junior player than him (he was definitely a better prospect at the same age becasue of his size), but none of Canada's other so called generational talents since Lindros can compare to him at a junior level (at least I don't see how you can logically rank anyone over him). Lindros is 14 years older than Crosby, which is a generation in hockey.

At the NHL level, I don't think any 18 year old rookie has led his team in points since Yzerman 22 years ago, and it looks like Crosby has more than a good chance of doing that this year, even surrounded by a cast of name players. Maybe he won't improve terribly much and be the one and only dominant offensive player in the NHL, but from everything he's shown so far in his career, he is a generational talent. At least he's shown for me that I can't say he's not a generational talent at this point.

At the same stage of their career as Crosby, who would you consider, or who have you considered a generational talent? Or do you wait until they've reached a dominating status before you call them a generational talent (like how Gretzky, Lemieux, and Jagr dominated the Art Ross)? If you do wait, I agree that you should wait, so you don't annoint guys like Spezza or Schremp generational talents at 14, or guys like Cleary and Samsonov generational talents at 15, but at 18, Crosby is producing and playing in the NHL like very, very few before him.

 

[jcorb58]

And I'm sure you WILL be tested also. I'm definitely not one of the people who think no one can beat my team. I want to see them work hard and play the best they can, if a gold medal comes out of that I will be extremely proud.



Same for me. With baseball second, and football third. I draw the line there. How pathetic is it that nascar is bigger than hockey? I swear I could rant all freaking day about that pathetic excuse of a "sport." And yes I need to use quotes because anyone that calls THAT a sport should get run over by one of those cars.

Thats funny because my roommate who is canadian eats sleeps and breathes NASCAR.

That was an asinine comment to begin with, I didn't even take my time to comment on it. Anyone can be stopped, Kessel is no exception.

On the part I put in bold, we know we haven't won anything yet, but maybe you guys should keep that mentality too in all the international tournaments that you all basically proclaim yourselves the gold medal winners before anything is decided. I see it every time. That's my only problem when it comes to these tournaments, it leaves such a bad taste in my mouth against Canada and I hate that.

Accually since the world cup i for one havent thought we would automatically win anything.


I hope that wasn't directed at me.

Nope just thinking how great this kid must become to be considered "non stopable". Hell maybe he will be better then those guys. But as you said ...way to much hype on these kids on these boards.

 

[AgentNaslund*]

Have we switched bodies this morning? I totally agree!

im surprised you agree with this guy. Consdiering you do everything in your power to say only good things about him, and try to convince the hockey world he belongs with the same breath as Crosby.