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WJC: Canada 2019 Roster Talk Part 2

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Hughes Hefner said:
Mciassac should be on there first PK unit...
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Some people on here were giving McIsaac shit earlier on in the pre tourney but I actually think hes been really solid the last couple games defensively and a stud on the PK. Hunter might be noticing this too bcause McIsaac was out there defending in the last minute during the 6 on 4.

JackSlater said:
I don't think that the issue is Hunter critiquing Lafreniere. It's more him then telling the media that he's been ripping Lafreniere. No need to coach through the media in this setting.
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Yeah I'm really becoming less and less of a fan of Hunter. How does ripping a 17 year old make any sense in a small tourney like this? An NHL coach can healthy scratch a guy, call him out and allow him to make adjustments over the course of a long season but in a tourney like this playing with a young guys confidence and calling him out in the national media seems pretty dumb to me. Especially because its not like hes been complete dog shit. Is there stuff to work on? Sure, but has he been bad enough he deserves a public whipping from the coach? I dont thinks o
 
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Blender said:
I also didn't see all these horrible turnovers you keep mentioning. He made some really risky passes along the offensive blue line that he needs to clean up, and one turnover that lead to a scoring chance against. When you move the puck as much as he was, there are going to be some turnovers. The numbers are also not "cancelled out" by turnovers, it's not even close. His successful transitions far outweigh failed ones.

Evan Bouchard who played by far the most minutes against Switzerland was awful for the second game in a row, constantly being caught out of position, caught up ice, missing zone coverage, etc. It's less obvious stuff than a few turnovers, but it's far worse defending than anything Smith has done. He's 19 though, so I expect Hunter to continue to roll him out for big minutes as that is what he said he was basing usage on before the tournament.
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Bouchard wasn’t awful lol he had 3 points the first game and both games he was moving the puck well.

No defender has been perfect so far, nor should we expect them to be. You don’t need to throw shade at Bouchard because someone said something about Smith.
 
snipes said:
Bouchard wasn’t awful lol he had 3 points the first game and both games he was moving the puck well.

No defender has been perfect so far, nor should we expect them to be. You don’t need to throw shade at Bouchard because someone said something about Smith.
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Bouchard was awful defensively, notice I didn't say anything bad about his offensive game. He has great instincts in the offensive zone, but he was dreadful in the Canadian zone and in the neutral zone. He was way overplayed in the Switzerland game relative to how poorly he was defending.
 
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PWJunior said:
While I do agree with you, the media is going to ask him why he benched him in the last game. I don't agree with nuking the kid like he did, but stuff like this is going to come out when you're an open book to he media like he has been.

It's a short tournament and there is only one acceptable outcome for Team Canada in their minds. I would like to think TC knew what they were getting into when they named him the HC. If this is his way of getting the job done, then you have to live with it. If they win gold, he will be praised. If he doesn't, then he'll get ripped. There is no middle ground.
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I on't really care if the media asks him, that is the media's job. He isn't obligated to actually answer them though. Making good with the media at the expense of one player's confidence might help with his NHL job quest (see tsn.ca) but it doesn't help the team. In any event you are right that he will have the fate of most team Canada coaches. f they lose he will be ripped, if they win he will likely be praised. Thus far I find his on-ice work (system, tweaks, line management etc.) to have been mediocre. You can also go back to a Go Ara avatar, that cracked me up for some reason.

Regarding Canada's defencemen, none of them have been consistently good or consistently bad. Phillips is pretty obviously limited but Hunter seems committed to him. Dobson was getting ripped before but he had a better second game and now it's Smith. If Smith has a goo game tonight it might be someone like Mitchell who gets ripped next. I will say that I want to see Bouchard shoot the puck more quickly. Having a hard shot is only half the battle. I'd also like to see McIsaac eat more into Phillips' minutes tonight to see if there's something there.
 
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Jason MacIsaac said:
https://www.tsn.ca/after-impressing-devils-smith-trending-up-at-world-juniors-1.1233213

Terrible tourney for Smith
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Quote from that for added reference:

"Last game he played was outstanding," Hunter raved. "Thirty-seven second average shift and he was jumping in the play at the right time. He was urgent defensively and offensively. When he was averaging one minute per shift, you can't play like that. Last game was the best game we've seen him play so I know he's going to get better, because he's in that mindset."
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JackSlater said:
I on't really care if the media asks him, that is the media's job. He isn't obligated to actually answer them though. Making good with the media at the expense of one player's confidence might help with his NHL job quest (see tsn.ca) but it doesn't help the team. In any event you are right that he will have the fate of most team Canada coaches. f they lose he will be ripped, if they win he will likely be praised. Thus far I find his on-ice work (system, tweaks, line management etc.) to have been mediocre. You can also go back to a Go Ara avatar, that cracked me up for some reason.

Regarding Canada's defencemen, none of them have been consistently good or consistently bad. Phillips is pretty obviously limited but Hunter seems committed to him. Dobson was getting ripped before but he had a better second game and now it's Smith. If Smith has a goo game tonight it might be someone like Mitchell who gets ripped next. I will say that I want to see Bouchard shoot the puck more quickly. Having a hard shot is only half the battle. I'd also like to see McIsaac eat more into Phillips' minutes tonight to see if there's something there.
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Wow, you knew it was Go Ara? Now you have really impressed me. You're not Korean, are you? I'll eventually go back to it. Maybe change it up to someone else.

The defense definitely needs to improve. Brook has been the rock so far and Mitchell has been steady, the others need to step up. Regardless of age, Hunter should be slotting them into appropriate roles. It's a good thing the USA isn't in the pool because they look like a bad matchup for this group.
 
Excellent effort all around from top to bottom. Played the Canadian way and just took the game over.

Keep building momentum, Russians up next.
 
They should switch Tippet for Suzuki on the PP. Tippet has no vision he just shoots all the time without thinking
 
bert said:
In my opinion those numbers get cancelled out by the turnovers he makes that are dreadful. When you said you only saw one then came back with a bunch of advanced stats means you clearly want to portray the player a certain way. He had 3 really bad ones. I couldnt believe how irresponsible he was with the puck and i looked at the time and it was 11:54 of the 2nd period. I said to my buddy wow you see that, thats his third one and the game isnt even half over. He said yup thats brutal.
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What is your tune tonight?
 
Jason MacIsaac said:
Why not start with the 2nd unit, 2 for 2 today when starting the PP.
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I feel like they keep starting the 2nd PP and then following up with the 1PP. The 2PP is to soften up the opposition and to tee it up for 1PP.

Suzuki seems to provide a highlight reel pass every game. Would be nice to see a highlight reel goal to go with it.
 
Jason MacIsaac said:
I agree, better puck distributers on the 2nd unit who understand how to open lanes.
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I find the first unit predictable. Trying to feed Bouchard or hitting a cross-ice pass.

The 2nd unit is more creative and has better movement and puck distribution. They look more dangerous.
 
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