Insane. And for Pinelli to be on the roster… I get he won’t make it and that’s just a coach trying to keep his own guy happy. But that shouldn’t happen at the Canada level
I’m not so sure about that one. I would have agreed coming into the season but he’s really amped up his game this season. He really is a much better player now than last season.
As I mentioned, his centre is Cooper Foster who isn’t a centre. His right wing has been a hodge-podge of somewhere between crap and average. It really is a situation where the opposition approaches the games as worrying about Pinelli and let everyone else beat you. Even in the face of that, he is still producing. I wouldn’t sell him short considering the jump he’s added to his game. If he were surrounded by the players he was in the past, his production would be deadly but as a solo one man gang, he’s done very well.
That still doesn’t discount some of the omissions. I’m not going to play the “this guy over that guy” game. I’m sure each player is deserving in their own right. But, Senneke should not jsut be there but should be on the team…period. I wouldn’t suggest that Pinelli is there at the expense of Senneke. Gavin McKenna is 16 years old. He’s not eligible until the 2026 draft. HE’s putting up good numbers but if I were to play that game, he’s the first one I would point to question. Luchanko would be another. But, both a good players so it is tough to really cherry pick the selections and cut them down.
Misa plays in a system that promotes offence. That could be a reason why he’s not there. Barlow has been very average overall this season. His production should be significantly higher than it has been.
All this points to a deep Team Canada program right now. The Canada vs USA series last week also proved that.