WC: Quarter Finals!

[Mainiac]

Pains me to say it, but I think FInland is a big favourite over CAN. Hoping for otherwise but don't see it.
Picking CZE to knock off the US.
Love to see LAT beat Sweden but not gonna happen.
Swiss & Germany....tough one. Swiss are on a roll this year so assuming CAN & LAT get bounced I hope they go all the way.

 

[Old Man Jags]

I'd say it's 51-49 in favor of Switzerland. Which is nothing.

I'd say it's 51-49 in favor of Switzerland. Which is nothing.

I’d say it’s at least 60/40. Which is something.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

USA
Switzerland
(Mörkö lyö sisään for) Finland
(hoping for) Latvia

 

[Artorius Horus T]

Sweden had to travel to Latvia, Latvia with the support of home crowd, Latvia has upset team Sweden before,
its Hallam's first ever must win game behind team Sweden, all 3 team Sweden goalies are tre kronor debutants
- i see lots of if's and but's with team Sweden

its a lose go home game, anything can happen

 

[karhukissa]

Well of course you're the heavy favourites, you should be, the team is well drilled with far more preparation, led by one of the best coaches who has been in this position for years now and has the system well oiled with all these players, it's a home game and Finland at least has one bona fide game breaking star against the weakest Canadian roster seen in ages. You have got about every possible advantage going into this game you could hope for, it's a deck stacked in your favour.


Anything less then beating them is a pretty big failure and everyone knows it.

Exactly, that's why i said we are favourites. If we lose it's a disaster and fair play to Canada. I'm the first guy to admit that if we lose in home soil, not finding any excuses that it's a meaningless tournament and whatnot.

 

[Oberyn Martell]

How is it seen as a suprise if germany beats switzerland lol? Last two quarterfinals between them germany won and also this year I would say it's pretty even with an slight advantage switzerland. 55/45 in favour of the swiss

 

[weklof]

I think the US and the Swiss will win their QFs comfortably. The other two I think will be more hard fought. I think Finland powered by the home fans barely outlasts Canada in a heated game, might go to extra time. Latvia will make it very though for Sweden, with a fanatic home crowd in their back the Latvians will play a hardworking defensive game. The Swedes will control play, but struggle to score. Sweden will win eventually but just by 1-2 goals in a reallt tight game

 

[Old Man Jags]

How is it seen as a suprise if germany beats switzerland lol? Last two quarterfinals between them germany won and also this year I would say it's pretty even with an slight advantage switzerland. 55/45 in favour of the swiss

How it is a surprise? Because every year most of the better teams end up playing their B, C, D or E team as their best players are either still playing in the NHL playoffs or decline to play. This year Switzerland have pretty much all their stars - their A team. Nobody else has their A team (Czechs - C team I guess, Canada maybe E team). This is why this year Switzerland are favourites in every game, let alone against the Germans.

 

[Weltschmerz]

How it is a surprise? Because every year most of the better teams end up playing their B, C, D or E team as their best players are either still playing in the NHL playoffs or decline to play. This year Switzerland have pretty much all their stars - their A team. Nobody else has their A team (Czechs - C team I guess, Canada maybe E team). This is why this year Switzerland are favourites in every game, let alone against the Germans.

Switzerland has a history of doing great in the group phase just to choke when the knockout games start.

 

[SwissFan12]

How it is a surprise? Because every year most of the better teams end up playing their B, C, D or E team as their best players are either still playing in the NHL playoffs or decline to play. This year Switzerland have pretty much all their stars - their A team. Nobody else has their A team (Czechs - C team I guess, Canada maybe E team). This is why this year Switzerland are favourites in every game, let alone against the Germans.

Well, not really our A team for a simple reason named Josi. What he can bring to our team is tremendous and he was here for our last medals. Even though we also miss guys like Timo or Schmid, Josi is the true game changer.

I won't call any result for Switzerland against this German team, they are solid and History shows that games between us are always close. But yes, with this team, we would have absolutely no possible excuse for a lost.

For the other games, I'd say :

Usa, Finland, Latvia.

 

[swissexpert]

I have seen every game. Germany played pretty convincing in all games and were really unlucky to have lost all games vs. Sweden, USA and Finland. Each game by only one goal difference. Should have had 3-6 points there with normal puck luck.

Germany also beat all bottom 4 teams of their group relatively easily (admittedly Swiss did even better). Germans have the 4th best offense in the tournament overall.

Swiss are favourites for sure, just saying these odds seem a little crazy to me. Germans have some decent NHL players (Seider, Peterka, Sturm) playing for them.

Ok your reason number one: Germany lost against the 3 best teams but it was close...
well, SUI won against CZE, SVK and CAN and were the better team each time so this is why they're favourite.

GER beating the bottom teams comfortably is nice but as you said, so have the Swiss.
GER 4th best Offensive? Well SUI is 2nd in goals with the 3rd best D (GER 7th defensively).

Germany decent NHL players? Yes, but SUI has more and better ones too.

I'm not here to brag how fantastic our team is but those are exactly the reasons why SUI should be favourites in that game and are currently top odds for Gold.
Germany has done well too, not denying that.

 

[Old Man Jags]

Well, not really our A team for a simple reason named Josi. What he can bring to our team is tremendous and he was here for our last medals. Even though we also miss guys like Timo or Schmid, Josi is the true game changer.

I won't call any result for Switzerland against this German team, they are solid and History shows that games between us are always close. But yes, with this team, we would have absolutely no possible excuse for a lost.

For the other games, I'd say :

Usa, Finland, Latvia.

Among the top teams, it is by far the closest to its best possible team, even if some players are missing. And the Swiss have shown it, too - the best team performances at the tournament to date. I would be amazed if they don’t win a medal.

 

[Old Man Jags]

Switzerland has a history of doing great in the group phase just to choke when the knockout games start.

That is true, but I don’t think that (at least in living memory) Switzerland ever had this quality at a WC, and - more crucially - they have never had the best roster at a WC as compared to other top teams’ rosters. So while anything is possible and of course every team in the QF has a chance to win their next game, I would be stunned if this Swiss team does not manage to beat Germany.

 

[swissexpert]

Among the top teams, it is by far the closest to its best possible team, even if some players are missing.

Why is this so important to you? Can we please stop with the A/B/C team crap?
We are talking about that specific tournament and the teams / players in it, not some hypothetical best on best Olympics that hasn't happened in a decade.
If the best players decline, it's certainly a shame but not a reason to downgrade others. Each team had the chance to bring better players.

 

[illone84]

Why is this so important to you? Can we please stop with the A/B/C team crap?
We are talking about that specific tournament and the teams / players in it, not some hypothetical best on best Olympics that hasn't happened in a decade.
If the best players decline, it's certainly a shame but not a reason to downgrade others. Each team had the chance to bring better players.

We just have to make do with what we have. Otherwise, if no best on best in the next few years, I will resort to exclusively watching the world juniors. But Skoda is mostly appealing to me because I moved back to Europe and it's too annoying to watch NHL due to time difference. Hopefully next year Prague will help cajole some superstars' wives to take a vacation there so that we actually get some top end talent come over.

 

[jj cale]

Exactly, that's why i said we are favourites. If we lose it's a disaster and fair play to Canada. I'm the first guy to admit that if we lose in home soil, not finding any excuses that it's a meaningless tournament and whatnot.

We are just calling it like it is.

 

[KahunWOW]

Ok your reason number one: Germany lost against the 3 best teams but it was close...
well, SUI won against CZE, SVK and CAN and were the better team each time so this is why they're favourite.

GER beating the bottom teams comfortably is nice but as you said, so have the Swiss.
GER 4th best Offensive? Well SUI is 2nd in goals with the 3rd best D (GER 7th defensively).

Germany decent NHL players? Yes, but SUI has more and better ones too.

I'm not here to brag how fantastic our team is but those are exactly the reasons why SUI should be favourites in that game and are currently top odds for Gold.
Germany has done well too, not denying that.

I literally said that Swiss are favourites. I was specifically questioning the odds for sports betting. Swiss seems like unreasonable high favs in this match to me.

According to them, Swiss are higher favs to win than Bruins at home vs Blackhawks.

 

[karhukissa]

We are just calling it like it is.

Meaningless is subjective, it's not meaningless for most of the nations and for the players participating. The fact that it's meaningless for Canadian hockey fans doesn't make it any lesser, just makes you guys look like fools when you have to bring it up in every other sentence, especially after losses.

You don't see Germans crying for missing Drai, Swedes missing 99% of their stars etc. because it doesn't matter. For some reason only Canadian fans does it and it seems really odd.

 

[Old Man Jags]

Why is this so important to you? Can we please stop with the A/B/C team crap?
We are talking about that specific tournament and the teams / players in it, not some hypothetical best on best Olympics that hasn't happened in a decade.
If the best players decline, it's certainly a shame but not a reason to downgrade others. Each team had the chance to bring better players.

Of course it’s important. It’s completely absurd not to acknowledge it. It’s like having a football World Cup where Brazil brings their best players and Germany players from the second Bundesliga. It has an impact on the quality, as it does every year at this tournament. Whoever secures a good roster has a disproportionate advantage. I don’t have a problem with this, I enjoy the tournament every year regardless of what quality players we have available. If my Czechs do well, I am happy and if they do badly I am unhappy, regardless of roster. If we had a stacked roster and won, I would not be less happy because our opponent did not get its best players from the NHL. But acknowledging that reality, which is the single biggest factor in determining each team’s quality surely is allowed? In particular, it must be allowed in discussions about which team is the favorite in an upcoming game, given that the fact that most top Swiss players are there is a massive factor in Switzerland being favorites. I guess many Swiss fans don’t like this kind of talk this year, because they know they could get a medal and they don’t want anything that might look like it diminishes their upcoming victory… it won’t diminish your victory, but it’s a reality. Just look at how my team completely changed last year after Pasternak arrived. Our first medal since 2010, and before he arrived we lost for the first time ever to Austria at the same tournament… He completely lifted the team. And we had players like Hertl, etc., but overall still very few top, top players - but they made all the difference.

 

[NyQuil]

For some reason only Canadian fans does it and it seems really odd.

You're saying this as a Czech fan is doing this exact thing right now in this exact same thread.

The fact remains that every fanbase does it - you just dislike Canada a lot and it shows.

 

[jj cale]

Meaningless is subjective, it's not meaningless for most of the nations and for the players participating. The fact that it's meaningless for Canadian hockey fans doesn't make it any lesser, just makes you guys look like fools when you have to bring it up in every other sentence, especially after losses.

You don't see Germans crying for missing Drai, Swedes missing 99% of their stars etc. because it doesn't matter. For some reason only Canadian fans does it and it seems really odd.

I was talking abut our viewpoints on who is the favourite, not whether the tournament is meaningless or not.

Strange that you would have taken it that way, i'm a little taken aback at that knowing the respect you have for Canadian hockey and it's fans and all.

 

[Czechboy]

Of course it’s important. It’s completely absurd not to acknowledge it. It’s like having a football World Cup where Brazil brings their best players and Germany players from the second Bundesliga. It has an impact on the quality, as it does every year at this tournament. Whoever secures a good roster has a disproportionate advantage. I don’t have a problem with this, I enjoy the tournament every year regardless of what quality players we have available. If my Czechs do well, I am happy and if they do badly I am unhappy, regardless of roster. If we had a stacked roster and won, I would not be less happy because our opponent did not get its best players from the NHL. But acknowledging that reality, which is the single biggest factor in determining each team’s quality surely is allowed? In particular, it must be allowed in discussions about which team is the favorite in an upcoming game, given that the fact that most top Swiss players are there is a massive factor in Switzerland being favorites. I guess many Swiss fans don’t like this kind of talk this year, because they know they could get a medal and they don’t want anything that might look like it diminishes their upcoming victory… it won’t diminish your victory, but it’s a reality. Just look at how my team completely changed last year after Pasternak arrived. Our first medal since 2010, and before he arrived we lost for the first time ever to Austria at the same tournament… He completely lifted the team. And we had players like Hertl, etc., but overall still very few top, top players - but they made all the difference.

I think the key in these arguments is to say '7 of their 10 best players are here' vs 'almost their A team'.

Second you say 'almost the A team' (which would clearly imply 1 or 2 guys are missing) you will hear about Josi and Meier. If you say '7 out of 10' then it negates that. Pro tip!

FTR.. no one is even close to having 7 of their 10 best players here.

I'm not sure why people are defensive of this though. I'm beyond jealous. I think it's great so many guys showed up for them. I hope they win their first gold.

We will be playing tomorrow with Pasta, Vrana and Hertl watching from home or a beach vacation.lol And, of course, you could also point out the 40 or so studs not on the US team we play.

 

[jj cale]

I think the key in these arguments is to say '7 of their 10 best players are here' vs 'almost their A team'.

Second you say 'almost the A team' (which would clearly imply 1 or 2 guys are missing) you will hear about Josi and Meier. If you say '7 out of 10' then it negates that. Pro tip!

FTR.. no one is even close to having 7 of their 10 best players here.

I'm not sure why people are defensive of this though. I'm beyond jealous. I think it's great so many guys showed up for them. I hope they win their first gold.

We will be playing tomorrow with Pasta, Vrana and Hertl watching from home or a beach vacation.lol And, of course, you could also point out the 40 or so studs not on the US team we play.

It's the nature of this tournament to have a yearly fluxuation on roster paper strength, not sure why anyone is more annoyed by it this year, anymore then any other year.

 

[Old Man Jags]

You're saying this as a Czech fan is doing this exact thing right now in this exact same thread.

The fact remains that every fanbase does it - you just dislike Canada a lot and it shows.

Every fan base does do it to an extent, but you have to admit Canadians do tend to do it (quite a bit) more. And to be fair, roster-wise, Canadians also tend to have more of a reason given that generally many more of the top players from Canada are missing than from European teams, so I get why the competition does not mean that much to most Canadians. For Europeans, despite the obvious issue with each country’s roster in any given year, the tournament is still a big event every year, it’s a party, we really enjoy it and it means something to us. There is comparatively little interest in this tournament in Canada. The tournament has a very long tradition and huge rivalries in Europe, and before the fall of the iron curtain, most European nations’ top players participated in the world championships because they didn’t play in the NHL. Only Canada and the US for understandable reasons sent below par teams. So the tournament has a lot of significance in Europe and I look forward to it every year! Doesn’t negate the actual point about the rosters though – there is a reason why suddenly Switzerland is an overwhelming gold favorite, and it’s not because their prowess suddenly dwarfs that of the traditional top nations.

 

[Czechboy]

It's the nature of this tournament to have a yearly fluxuation on roster paper strength, not sure why anyone is more annoyed by it this year, anymore then any other year.

Exactly, when Canada sent that Prague team it wasn't cheating. It was a chance to watch a Juggernaut.

Last year the Czechs had some of our top guys - Krejci, Hertl, Pasta, Hronek, Vejmelka, Cervenka, Kampf and Vrana.. all guys that would make our best on best roster. Probably our best 2C'S, our best Winger for sure and one of our 3 starters at a best on best. We got bronze out of it. This year we sent no one and finished 4th in our group.lol