WC: Team Finland

[thestudent]

SO is Donskoi coming or not ???

 

[schmiedi]

This Team only needs a goalie urgent
of course if you get some players is great but was we really need is a top-goalie


rask would be great because he can play against Canada on Saturday
rinne or saros will come not before sunday because game 7 is on Friday

 

[Mestaruus]

Määttä and Donskoi would be nice. Same with Rinne or Saros. Or Armia. Laine looks like he's done for the season already so let him play playstation instead of representing Finland

Laine isn't done. There's Rinne in the goal and WHC won't have any goalie of that level stopping his shots, and let's not forget that he isn't a goal scorer only. I mean Rinne is the most probable Vezina winner right now and other Nashville's players are pretty sound defensively as well.

I'm really happy with Määttä + Donskoi if they fill the final slots though. All the NHL candidates are good players. Määttä + a goalie would make the biggest difference and Laine of course would.

So after last night i will say we will have our roster full after Rask comes to goal, Määttä comes to defence and 10% change if Winnipeg loses that Laine will come. Expecting Rinne to get blown out again at home.

I'm gonna say 50% chance if Winnipeg gets eliminated that Laine joins. Sure it's really disappointing to get eliminated, but he will get over it and wants to play with his mate Aho and he should realize that he can't join next year due to contract ending, so this is the perfect moment to take only about a week away of his summer practice to represent Finland. He won't be mauled in the media next year when he declines and comes this year.

 

[Mestaruus]

Leijonat.fi - Palolan kisapassiin leima - Mukana Norja-ottelussa

Olli Palola got stamped so we still have 3 slots left, 1 goalie and 2 non goalies. I actually thought we had one less slot before I read that.

I guess he will go to the 3rd line which wasn't that great yet. Good asset for PP as well. Right handed man for PP1 if Marjamäki wants to mess with that... I don't think he should mess with it yet. If PP1 is bad vs Canada then maybe take Palola in PP1 but for now he should settle with PP2.

 

[thestudent]

Palola is under sized. Should have kept that choice open for someone more suitable

 

[FinPanda]

Vamma estää Donskoin MM-kisareissun - Marjamäki: "Harmitti, kun eilen hänen kanssaan keskusteltiin"

So no Donskoi because of his injuries. Not surprising but still disappointing.

 

[FiLe]

The clear implication about them adding Palola was that Donskoi must have declined.

So now, they still got an opening for a single forward (Laine/Tolvanen), a d-man (Määttä), and a goalie (Rask/Rinne) - and those are pretty much the only options left. Though of course, adding two skaters to any position is possible, so they could technically add Tolvanen + Salomäki, but this seems rather unlikely.

 

[Kaako Kappo]

Määttä would be amazing to have

 

[Mestaruus]

Lehtinen didn't reveal anything yet but I did get the vibe that Määttä is probably coming when I read what he said. I think it was on Mtv3's site. I mean more likely that he comes than doesn't but still close to 50/50.

 

[FinPanda]

Lehtinen didn't reveal anything yet but I did get the vibe that Määttä is probably coming when I read what he said. I think it was on Mtv3's site. I mean more likely that he comes than doesn't but still close to 50/50.

I really hope. He shouldn't have any problems with injuries so.. And I think Määttä is a guy who really wants to represent Finland if he has a chance.

 

[Sanf]

What is there to wonder about people having different options about different players? I have been probably the one mostly criticizing the choice of Pokka here, so it’s not really like suddenly it became a fashionable thing to bash him. I have already posted here why I think choosing him to the team was a mistake. He is a way too slow and bad skater for the real top level, and also he has only average puck skills. When Finland plays really good and fast teams, I’m pretty sure they will be constantly hemmed to their own end when he will be playing.

No one here defending him has managed to change my opinion on Pokka, because he just really is such a terrible skater for the top level, and also he is way too mediocre with the puck. This is a really bad skillset for a defenceman in nowaday’s hockey at the top level, so this is why I so much dislike choosing him to this year’s team.

I dont dislike him generally as a player and I’m fine with some of you seeing him so much better than I see him. I dont understand though, if you can’t see how bad a skater he is, and what kind of risks and difficulties he brings to the team because of it, then I dont know what to say really. But that is just simply how I see him as a player and it makes me in fact upset at Marjamäki because he chose Pokka to the team, and especially because he is playing such a slow and average puck handler on the power play over much, much better and more skilled younger players.

I haven´t been exactly hyping Pokka here. He has flaws. Though I´m ofcourse ready to admit when he first breakthrough to SM-Liiga I was predicting NHL career for the guy. But seeing him play more in the 2016 I did lower down my expactations.

And as a sidenote when File talked about that "shiny new toy" theory I amused myself and did read older threads. And you really should take a look your older opinions about his selections before taking a postion to claim "I always knew he was good for nothing".

Pokka seem to be fine player to this level even with his flaws. Personally I wouldn´t have minded if Jokiharju or Juolevi would have been picked instead of Koivisto. I did not really get why he was straight pick to team.Jokiharju he didn´t look really solid defensively. He reminded me bit of Steve Duchesne. Can´t you really see his flaws in his game? (OFC more than enough time to get better)

 

[Mestaruus]

I haven´t been exactly hyping Pokka here. He has flaws. Though I´m ofcourse ready to admit when he first breakthrough to SM-Liiga I was predicting NHL career for the guy. But seeing him play more in the 2016 I did lower down my expactations.

It's interesting how many Kärppä players of this era that became NHL players are late bloomers. Donskoi and Nutivaara, Mäenalanen is going to North-America now. Kemppainen did half a season in Boston as a late bloomer as well. I wonder why it happens more in Kärpät than anywhere else in Finland. Marjamäki has something to do with it, good or bad as he was a coach there for so long time. For Donskoi Marjamäki certainly had a positive effect as we know.

Pokka didn't get a breakthrough in NHL as a young player but maybe after some years after he develops he can go back there and be one of those late bloomers as well. He lost some of the development years being stuck in AHL so he could bounce back if he can develop in KHL properly or become another Lepistö who is a NHL level defender but chooses to take higher KHL salary.

 

[chauron]

I've for long thought that Aho looks a lot like S. Koivu. They have a lot of similarities in the game and both had phenomenal vision and on ice awareness. However I'm starting to wonder if Aho could even surpass what Koivu was in his best days. I think Sebastian already can score goals better than Saku ever could. Aho is also likely to play middle starting next year in the NHL and I've got a feeling he's going to be regarded as a top 10 center in the world when all is said and done. He's been on a whole another level in these two first games than the other guys in the team and no matter the opponent, when you have 10 points in 2 games, that's pretty breathtaking.

As a player in terms of skills, he might already be better than Koivu. Not in terms of leadership thought, but raw skills such as vision, stickhandling, skating et cetera. He is unique, there’s not one single reference as a finnish player, but internationally his style is perhaps somewhat between P. Kane and Nicklas Backstrom (swe).

He also plays with his head up all the time and doesnt look at the puck, which in fact makes him more immune to clean hits as he won’t look away. But of course he has dead corners too.

 

[Hockeyisl1fe]

I think Pokka has been decent so far, but why in the hell he is quarterbacking the first pp unit? We have Honka, Heiskanen and Nutivaara on the team ffs.

 

[rduck1]

I think Pokka has been decent so far, but why in the hell he is quarterbacking the first pp unit? We have Honka, Heiskanen and Nutivaara on the team ffs.

Right hand shot, good vision, familiar to head coach. Honka would offer more firepower and his skating might also lessen the possibility of an SHG, but at the same time he's a more adventurous player that requires possession to truly shine, so it makes sense that he's on the second unit where there are fewer puck-hungry playmakers to compete with.

 

[Hockeyisl1fe]

Right hand shot, good vision, familiar to head coach. Honka would offer more firepower and his skating might also lessen the possibility of an SHG, but at the same time he's a more adventurous player that requires possession to truly shine, so it makes sense that he's on the second unit where there are fewer puck-hungry playmakers to compete with.

Well that makes sense, kinda. I still don't think he should be there though, but I am willing to delay my judgement till they play vs better competition.

 

[DoubleGold]

I hope Määttä joins the team, he'd bring much needed depth to our defense. Really doubt that Laine or Rinne will come.

 

[BB88]

Lehtinen didn't reveal anything yet but I did get the vibe that Määttä is probably coming when I read what he said. I think it was on Mtv3's site. I mean more likely that he comes than doesn't but still close to 50/50.

We need another honest NHL D-man against bigger teams. On paper it looks very thin considering the group Canada is going to ice.

 

[QnebO]

I bet laine comes over if theyd drop (but i dont hope they do)

Laine sees we got nice thing going, and perhaps he gets to play with aho teuvo or granny/rane so why not

 

[Mestaruus]

We need another honest NHL D-man against bigger teams. On paper it looks very thin considering the group Canada is going to ice.

Priority #1, any of the 3 goalies.

While our current goalies are really good, need to maximize our goalie potential so nothing funny will happen in the QF.

Priority #2 Määttä.

No need to say much about this. He would be our #1 D-man in this team.

I will take any of the remaining players available for the final slot.

I prefer it in this order: Laine, Armia, Salomäki, Niku, Tolvanen.

I think Salomäki could be hungry as hell, because their coach is and has been limiting his minutes all season and not even let him play sometimes.

Why not Tolvanen? Too inactive and long season for him with U20 and The Olympics. I'll still take him if all others decline or can't come.

 

[DoubleGold]

I bet laine comes over if theyd drop (but i dont hope they do)

Laine sees we got nice thing going, and perhaps he gets to play with aho teuvo or granny/rane so why not

I doubt he'd join. He would probably want to start training for the upcoming season asap.

We're able to produce in the goal scoring department quite well at the moment, so Rinne or Määttä would be the wisest choice against stronger countries.

 

[Mestaruus]

I doubt he'd join. He would probably want to start training for the upcoming season asap.

It's just 10 days off and he has a chance to be a national hero again. Next year he won't probably come because his contract is ending so he avoids the media circus crap if he comes this year instead. Plus Aho and Rantanen are his good mates and he has probably been watching how Finland is doing.

I'll go with 50% chance if Winnipeg drops that Laine would come.

 

[DoubleGold]

It's just 10 days off and he has a chance to be a national hero again. Next year he won't probably come because his contract is ending so he avoids the media circus crap if he comes this year instead. Plus Aho and Rantanen are his good mates and he has probably been watching how Finland is doing.

I'll go with 50% chance if Winnipeg drops that Laine would come.

Good points. I didn't take those into account.

 

[BaileyMacTavish]

SO is Donskoi coming or not ???

Hip injury and he was injured during the playoffs. Don't think he's game form at the moment.

 

[Hasa92]

This team Finland seems promising, i know it hasn't been tested by a real challenge yet but when was the last time Finland scored more than "just" 5 goals in a game?

With this offense i don't see any team shutting it down really, this team should be able to score 4+ goals even against the other top teams in this tournament.

Not getting scored against is a different story ofc.