Forcasting a 2020 Team North America (u23)

[AdamoR61]

To qualify for this team, the player must be born after September 15th 1996. He must represent either Canada or the United States. Players such as William Nylander, Dylan Larkin and Brayden Point do NOT count.

These lines are not necessarily composed of the best on the top lines but rather what line chemistries would make the most sense when icing a competitive team.

Obviously there is no hockey going on right now so this is a fun little idea and we should NOT expect to see this team to ever lace them up together.

Now for the roster...

Honourable Mention Cuts: Clayton Keller, Samuel Girard, Vince Dunn, Jack Hughes

Anthony Cirelli - Connor McDavid - Jack Eichel
Brady Tkachuk - Auston Matthews - Mitchell Marner
Matthew Tkachuk - Mathew Barzal - Travis Konecny
Kyle Connor - Pierre-Luc Dubois - Brock Boeser
Alex DeBrincat - Alexis Lafreniere

Thomas Chabot - Cale Makar
Quinn Hughes - John Marino
Zach Werenski - Charlie McAvoy
Adam Fox

Carter Hart (1A)
Mackenzie Blackwood (1B)
Cayden Primeau (2)

Brief Line Explanations:

Cirelli-McDavid-Eichel - Eichel and McDavid are not really known for their effort in the defensive zone so to counter this lack of defence I put Cirelli on their wing who should in my opinion be a top 3 candidate for the Selke. Cirelli and McDavid also have a history as the Cirelli led Oshawa Generals manhandled the McDavid led Erie Otters in the 2015 OHL Finals. The game plan for the Generals was to have 2 players (Cirelli being one of them most of the time) on McDavid the entire time to shut him down. Needless to say Cirelli and the Gens game plan worked as they gentlemen swept the Otters en route to becoming OHL champions.

B.Tkachuk-Matthews-Marner - Matthews and Marner have played together on the Maple Leafs for about just over half a season and have become one of the premier deadly duos in the NHL. Brady and Auston are already good friends off the ice. Auston actually gave his spot in this year’s all star game to Tkachuk when he couldn’t participate. Brady would add that sandpaper element to this line making them a pain for other teams to matchup with.

M.Tkachuk-Barzal-Konecny - Barzal and Konency played together in 2016 on the Canadian world junior team. Although never really seeing the ice together, there is still that sense of knowing how each other plays. This line would also be a rough go for the opposing team as Konency and Tkachuk are two pests that have a ton of skill. Combine that with Barzal’s elite speed, puck handling and passing and there really is no stopping this third line.

Connor-Dubois-Boeser: This line is kind of the best of the rest. None of them have really ever played against each other. Connor would be the main focal point as he was having a sneaky ridiculous season. Boeser has been injured quite a bit this season but we all know what his goal scoring abilities are capable of. Dubois has also had a sneaky good season. He has developed into one really good playmaker for the Blue Jackets.

Chabot-Makar - For my defensemen, I personally like when they are on their strong hand sides. It makes moving the puck away from the boards much easier especially when the majority of these guys have elite puck moving ability. Makar is a lock for the top right side pair. As for Chabot his competition is much better for this spot however I think he would work extremely well beside a guy like Makar who can skate just as good, if not better then him.

Hughes-Marino - This pairing has a bit of everything. Hughes is exceptional at driving play into the offensive zone while Marino is exceptional at preventing it. Hughes' in-zone offensive passing is arguably top 5 amongst defencemen in the NHL while Marino is very sound and good at getting his stick into passing lanes. These two have somewhat contradicting play styles however I feel would work very well.

Werenski-McAvoy - It is definitely weird seeing these two as #5 and #6 defencemen. This pairing could easily be the 1st or 2nd just based on pure experience alone; well compared to the rest of the team that is. Werenski has the big shot from the point compared to McAvoy’s sneakily good passing and puck moving ability in transition. Both are pretty good skaters who are able to make up for each other's defensive deficiencies.

Goalies - Hart and Blackwood have both been terrific netminders this season for their respective teams. If I were coach I would play them in a 1A-1B type of thing until there is a clear starter moving forward into the ladder rounds of the tournament. Primeau would be the third goalie. In his very short stint with the Canadiens, Primeau looked composed in his net and saw the puck well. He is capable of facing NHL shooters but I would leave the job up to the two goalies in front of him on the depth charts.

Thoughts? Who did I miss?

Click to read more...

 

[The Great Mighty Poo]

The John Marino Under 25 John Marinos:

John Marino- John Marino- John Marino
John Marino- John Marino- John Marino
John Marino- John Marino- John Marino
John Marino- John Marino- John Marino
Extras: John Marino, John Marino, John Marino

John Marino- John Marino
John Marino- John Marino
John Marino- John Marnio
Extras: John Marino, John Marino

John Marino
John Marino
3rd Goalie: John Marino

Head Coach: John Marino
Associate Coach: John Marino
Assistant Coach: John Marino
GM: John Marino

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Eichel and McDavid aren't known for their defensive effort, but Matthews supposedly is? What did I just read?

 

[Gold Standard]

have no interest in these types of gimmicky teams. I've been ignoring NHL news while in lockdown, so, as we emerge from lockdown, what prompts this thread? Are the NHL and NHLPA planning on continuing with their stupidity of gimmicky teams at a proposed WCoH in the near future?

The only gimmick I have any interest in seeing would be a 8 game summit series in 2022 between Team Canada and Team USA.

 

[BOS358]

I've been ignoring NHL news while in lockdown, so, as we emerge from lockdown, what prompts this thread?

The same thing that prompts most other threads: blind speculation, boredom, and the thought that the NHL actually cares about the fans.

Are the NHL and NHLPA planning on continuing with their stupidity of gimmicky teams at a proposed WCoH in the near future?

No more than they are planning a World Cup of Hockey for later this year.

The only gimmick I have any interest in seeing would be a 8 game summit series in 2022 between Team Canada and Team USA.

That would be interesting to see how much better the top-ranked national team is than the sixth-ranked national team.

 

[Gold Standard]

The same thing that prompts most other threads: blind speculation, boredom, and the thought that the NHL actually cares about the fans.



No more than they are planning a World Cup of Hockey for later this year.



That would be interesting to see how much better the top-ranked national team is than the sixth-ranked national team.

so gimmicky teams = caring for the fans. interesting. I don't get it, but I do get the boredom in lockdown.

and you're giving too much credit to IIHF rankings. I don't give their rankings any credence. not when Canada is ranked #1 or when ranked #5

and a 8 game summit series with the U.S. would provide infinitely more entertainment value than any of the other "top 4" IIHF ranked countries. but that's just my deal. blind speculation.

 

[AdamoR61]

Eichel and McDavid aren't known for their defensive effort, but Matthews supposedly is? What did I just read?

No they aren't. Stop judging players based of their rookie season, Matthews is by far a better defensive player then McDavid and Eichel. Look at their RAPM charts, McDavid is actually one of the worst defensive centres in the league.

 

[AdamoR61]

have no interest in these types of gimmicky teams. I've been ignoring NHL news while in lockdown, so, as we emerge from lockdown, what prompts this thread? Are the NHL and NHLPA planning on continuing with their stupidity of gimmicky teams at a proposed WCoH in the near future?

The only gimmick I have any interest in seeing would be a 8 game summit series in 2022 between Team Canada and Team USA.

Are you not a fan of fun? North America was literally everyone's favourite team. They were fast, skilled and fun.

 

[AdamoR61]

Eichel and McDavid aren't known for their defensive effort, but Matthews supposedly is? What did I just read?

That's not me saying Matthews is better then McDavid cause he's not however in terms of defensive McDavid has only declined since his rookie season. This could possibly be effort based. He can absolutely become a Selke winner if he put in the effort, he has the tools too.

 

[BOS358]

so gimmicky teams = caring for the fans. interesting. I don't get it, but I do get the boredom in lockdown.

I meant more generally, but apparently somebody really does want this to happen...I'm scared.

and your giving to much credit to IIHF rankings. I don't give their rankings any credence. not when Canada is ranked #1 or when ranked #5

Well, they are kind of the only rankings for international hockey, so there's that. But if you care to hear me out, let's only look at the two World Cups since the turn of the century and the 2002-2014 Olympics. For the World Cup: Canada won it twice, USA didn't reach the final. For the Olympics: Canada won three golds, USA won two silvers and finished outside the medals twice.

Sure, the USA was missing a lot of its young rising stars in 2016, but so was Canada and that didn't seem to hurt them at all. The gap between the US and Canada wider than many people realize. Maybe the US isn't #6, but they're a lot closer to that than they are to #2.

 

[ORRFForever]

have no interest in these types of gimmicky teams.

Amen.

 

[canuck2010]

No they aren't. Stop judging players based of their rookie season, Matthews is by far a better defensive player then McDavid and Eichel. Look at their RAPM charts, McDavid is actually one of the worst defensive centres in the league.

Rubbish.

 

[Mc Hael Productions]

Im using 2016 Draft or later for mine

Forwards
Auston Matthews, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Alex DeBrincat, Clayton Keller, Kailer Yamamoto, Matthew Tkachuk, Brady Tkachuk, Luke Kunin, Robert Thomas, Nick Suzuki, Cody Glass, Joel Farabee and Jack Hughes.

Defence
Cale Makar, Adam Fox, Quinn Hughes, Charlie McAvoy, Jakob Chychrun, Dante Fabbro and Samuel Girard

Goaltending
Carter Hart, Jake Oettinger and Cayden Primeau

As a bonus here is Europe

Forwards
Leon Draisaitl, Anze Kopitar, Tomas Tatar, Nico Hischier, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Nikolaj Ehlers, Timo Meier, Kevin Fiala, Nino Niederriter, Dominik Kahun, Zemgus Girgensons, Lars Eller, Alexandre Texier and Mats Zuccarello.

Defence
Roman Josi, Zdeno Chara, Erik Cernak, Moritz Seider, Andrej Sekera, Korbinian Holzer and Martin Marincin.

Goalies
Frederik Andersen, Elvis Merzlikins and Jaroslav Halak

 

[Lartsaman]

Im using 2016 Draft or later for mine
As a bonus here is Europe

Forwards
Leon Draisaitl, Anze Kopitar, Tomas Tatar, Nico Hischier, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Nikolaj Ehlers, Timo Meier, Kevin Fiala, Nino Niederriter, Dominik Kahun, Zemgus Girgensons, Lars Eller, Alexandre Texier and Mats Zuccarello.

Defence
Roman Josi, Zdeno Chara, Erik Cernak, Moritz Seider, Andrej Sekera, Korbinian Holzer and Martin Marincin.

Goalies
Frederik Andersen, Elvis Merzlikins and Jaroslav Halak

Otherwise a good prediction but swap Girgensons for Teddy Blugers. He´s the top latvian right now and Halak for Grubauer.