GDT: Group A • Dec. 31 • Canada vs. Sweden • Part II

[Nithoniniel]

This is going to be controversial but Josh Ho-Sang would help this team

Would probably just be one more highly talented player that gets isolated and closed down. There have been pretty bad systematic problems in TC's game, and that's on the coaching staff.

 

[EK65IsAGod]

Yeah, now that's, well, a way to phrase it...

I hear they have 12, maybe even 13!

 

[John Agar]

This is actually shaping up to be a great tournament.

Anyone could end up winning.

Or anyone could end up whining

 

[Canucks LB]

Just hysterically bad coaching. I'm so frustrated with the state of coaching and management in hockey.

What I think:

Beauvillier-Strome-Konecny
Gauthier-Barzal-Marner
Crouse-Stephens-Point
Perlini-Quenneville-Chartier
Virtanen


That fourth line + Virtanen should rarely play. IDGAF if Point, Perlini, and Virtanen are "supposed" to be top six players on this team. Especially the latter two don't deserve to be playing any minutes.

Jv has been bad but not 13th fwd bad.come on.

He should be demoted to the 3rd line

 

[BertCorbeau]

Enough ,kid is 19 years old .And coming off an injury ,this trashing of kids needs to end

Agreed .. He was better in the second and third, but that whole line didn't do much today.

 

[Les Averman]

This defense is embarrassingly bad.

Sanheim and Mckeown are terrible.

Didn't get to watch this game but didn't TSN say Sanheim was arguably the best player in the game after the first period? He's looked good in limited minutes in the other games.

Not sure where "terrible" comes from there.

 

[SI90]

I would love to see him tweet this.

I understand the obvious reasons he didn't make the team but if you switched him with Marner and Ho-Sang had the same exact play and production Marner had to this point, people would be killing him.

Ho-sang is just another playmaker though and TC really needs Snipers and better defensman.

 

[vippe]

Very pleased with Sweden today.

Despite playing with just 11 forwards and 6D it looked like it was Canada that got gassed. We miss our #1C, #3C and a top 4D but the rest of the team really stepped up and especially happy with our 4th line (third line today). Lööke, Karlsson, Ehn.

I think that might be to our advantage as the tournament progresses. Now I am hoping that the rumored flu break out on team Sweden is false :<

 

[phil162888]

Are you serious? Other than size there are very few similarities. Marner is better offensively and LIGHT YEARS better defensively.

If Gagner was the Leaf prospect and Marner was the Oiler I wonder what you would say. Marner was good today but looks nothing like an elite prospect in this tournament (not to say he won't be but he hasn't so far in this tournament). There are a number of 17 yr olds dominating this tournament so the age and other excuses are just excuses. Imagine if he actually was playing great the amount of bs that would be on this board. He hasn't been trash like some say but he has not played great considering all the opportunities Lowry has given him. Timashov looked far better for the first two periods then Marner i'm surprised Leaf fans didn't leave the Marner hype train and jump on his during the game that I would at least respect.

 

[Breakers]

Didn't get to watch this game but didn't TSN say Sanheim was arguably the best player in the game after the first period? He's looked good in limited minutes in the other games.

Not sure where "terrible" comes from there.

Ahh no they didn't say that.

That was Koneckny

 

[vippe]

Didn't get to watch this game but didn't TSN say Sanheim was arguably the best player in the game after the first period? He's looked good in limited minutes in the other games.

Not sure where "terrible" comes from there.

Well that would be a lie. He wasnt bad, but hardly the best player on the ice even after the first period.

 

[SI90]

Would probably just be one more highly talented player that gets isolated and closed down. There have been pretty bad systematic problems in TC's game, and that's on the coaching staff.

Agreed. But The one time that Ho-sang would be great though is here because he wouldn't play to the system that Lowry has. He would selfishly try to do everything his way.

 

[dmacgreg37]

This is actually shaping up to be a great tournament.

Anyone could end up winning.

Agreed.

Finland/Sweden
USA/Russia

could be two great SF and lead to two great medal-games.

 

[Paradoc]

I thought Konecny was the best player tonight for Canada consistently. Marner had a very good showing and was one of the few forwards that created offense. All in all, a pretty disappointing game by Team Canada again.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Lowry needs to get roasted a lot more. His coaching has been beyond brutal this tournament and his idiocy is really not helping. Of course, TSN being the total shills they are, they'll never question him.

One of my favourite Lowry moments of the game was putting out Strome-Crouse for a majority of the 4 on 4 in the second.

Bigger ice, 4 on 4 .. And you put some of your slower skating forwards out together? Strome-Marner would have been better, or Strome-Virtanen ... At least someone with some speed! That line was hemmed in for most of that stretch.

Lowry

 

[phil162888]

Didn't get to watch this game but didn't TSN say Sanheim was arguably the best player in the game after the first period? He's looked good in limited minutes in the other games.

Not sure where "terrible" comes from there.

He was great in the first but his second and third weren't great not horrible but if you don't like him you'll point it out. Fact is none of the defence has been good or bad they all have been ok at best.

 

[John Agar]

Very pleased with Sweden today.

Despite playing with just 11 forwards and 6D it looked like it was Canada that got gassed. We miss our #1C, #3C and a top 4D but the rest of the team really stepped up and especially happy with our 4th line (third line today). Lööke, Karlsson, Ehn.

I think that might be to our advantage as the tournament progresses. Now I am hoping that the rumored flu break out on team Sweden is false :<

Yes Sweden stepped up shorthanded.

But Canada was artificially shorthanded due to a myopic coach... ice time was not balanced. As a result Canada who should have had the energy advantage was gassed because the gassed players were kept being put out.

Very frustrating to watch as a Canadian fan who has appreciated good coaching over the years.

 

[Breakers]

One of my favourite Lowry moments of the game was putting out Strome-Crouse for a majority of the 4 on 4 in the second.

Bigger ice, 4 on 4 .. And you put some of your slower skating forwards out together? Strome-Marner would have been better, or Strome-Virtanen ... At least someone with some speed! That line was hemmed in for most of that stretch.

Lowry

Nope.... nothing beats his terrible decision to play joe Hickets for over 4 minutes in the overtime against the swiss.

4 MINUTES

 

[Advanced stats]

Jv has been bad but not 13th fwd bad.come on.

He should be demoted to the 3rd line

Absolutely 13th forward bad. Absolute meathead all tournament and deserves almost as much blame as the coaching staff for today's loss. Brutal awful.

 

[phil162888]

Ahh no they didn't say that.

That was Koneckny

No TSN mentioned that the Travis's (Sanheim, Konecny and Dermott) were the three best players in the first period.

 

[phil162888]

Absolutely 13th forward bad. Absolute meathead all tournament and deserves almost as much blame as the coaching staff for today's loss. Brutal awful.

Perlini, Chartier and Quennville have been far worse

 

[BertCorbeau]

Nope.... nothing beats his terrible decision to play joe Hickets for over 4 minutes in the overtime against the swiss.

4 MINUTES

We'll make a list at the end of the tournament of the best Lowry-isms

 

[Breakers]

Absolutely 13th forward bad. Absolute meathead all tournament and deserves almost as much blame as the coaching staff for today's loss. Brutal awful.

Wow that opinion sounds incredibly unbiased.

 

[Advanced stats]

Perlini, Chartier and Quennville have been far worse

At least they weren't singlehandedly responsible for 2 goals today.

 

[Random Forest]

Jv has been bad but not 13th fwd bad.come on.

He should be demoted to the 3rd line

Yes, he is 13th forward bad. Not because he's less talented than Chartier or Quenneville or Perlini or whomever. It's because he is a physical impediment to his other linemates. His style of play is not conducive to developing chemistry with the other players he is alongside. His end to end rushes that end up behind the net or with low percentage shots from the corner minimize the skills of his linemates. You know how some players make their linemates better? Virtanen is the opposite of that.

So, yes, Virtanen is talented. Probably one of the most talented on the team. But when he's on the ice, he minimizes the impact of the other talented players on whatever line he's on.

That's what happened to him in Calgary. Remember when you guys were frustrated at his usage in Calgary? That wasn't because of some vendetta against Virtanen. That was because they couldn't find a place to put him in their lineup because he made whomever he was playing with worse. So, sorry, until he proves he can play with linemates and not bring them down, he should be the 13th forward.


EDIT: I guess since Perlini and Quenneville have been trash, I wouldn't be opposed to a Perlini-Quenneville-Virtanen fourth line just to let Virtanen do his own thing down there. But I don't want him near players like Strome, Marner, Barzal, Konecny, or Beauvillier. You know, guys who can actually contribute to their linemates success.