The dumbest thing you've seen a national team coach do

[mattihp]

I don't speak Swedish but it seems like here Forsberg is talking about that game.

Such a different guy from the guy who hated to lose no matter what.

"There was no reason to win. No reason what so ever. But it wasn't orders from a coach for us to lose."

 

[KillerMillerTime]

Not coaching per se, but the U.S. brain trust behind the 2016 U.S. World Cup of Hockey team. I guess to be fair the addition of the young guns team really gutted us for that event.

Even then they left off Kessel, Johnson and Kreider
upfront. Tortorella should have been shot into the sun
leaving those three off in favor of Dubinsky, Abdelkader
etc. Just shockingly horrible selections.

Another one goes all the way back to 1976 US Olympic Team selections. Badger Bob Johnson took Salem St defensemen Dick Lamby over Minnesota's Reed Larson...lol. Now, unless Larson told Johnson
I hate you and Wisconsin and want no part of you
how was that possible?

He then passed on Tom Rowe and Mike Fidler
upfront and took forwards Buzz Schneider
and Ted Thorndike.

 

[ForsbergForever]

Even then they left off Kessel, Johnson and Kreider
upfront. Tortorella should have been shot into the sun
leaving those three off in favor of Dubinsky, Abdelkader
etc. Just shockingly horrible selections.

Another one goes all the way back to 1976 US Olympic Team selections. Badger Bob Johnson took Salem St defensemen Dick Lamby over Minnesota's Reed Larson...lol. Now, unless Larson told Johnson
I hate you and Wisconsin and want no part of you
how was that possible?

He then passed on Tom Rowe and Mike Fidler
upfront and took forwards Buzz Schneider
and Ted Thorndike.

If you want to go down the path of errors in roster selection, there are numerous threads on here about the egregious misjudgements that built the Team Canada 1998 and 2006 editions.

 

[ORRFForever]

Let Canada collapse during the GMG at the WJR's in Buffalo in 2011.

 

[Lartsaman]

Let Canada collapse during the GMG at the WJR's in Buffalo in 2011.

But just remember everybody: "Canada is not Finland".

 

[Preposterone]

Not to do with coaching directly but Jukka Jalonen leaving Jussi Jokinen off the 2010 Olympic team was pretty brutal. Jokinen was first in goals and second in points among Finns that year.

Also a shootout ace, which is actually important in International competition

 

[Zero Pucks Given]

For us, I'd nominate Dan Bylsma at the 2014 Olympics, abandoning the gameplan that had been working for us prior to the Canada game.

We most likely still lose but surely we wouldn't have been as badly outplayed.

 

[Mestaruus]

I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned already but Oleg Snaroks with the cut throat gesture. Dunno if it's the dumbest thing but very memorable one at least.

 

[Phil McKraken]

Pär Mårts picking Johnny Oduya over Victor Hedman for the 2014 Olympics. Even back then Hedman was leagues better than Oduya had ever been.

 

[Lartsaman]

I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned already but Oleg Snaroks with the cut throat gesture. Dunno if it's the dumbest thing but very memorable one at least.

I mentioned that at my post(page 1). Looks like only finns have salty feelings about that.

 

[Mestaruus]

I mentioned that at my post(page 1). Looks like only finns have salty feelings about that.

My bad. Tried to ctrl+F the world Snarok but fail .

 

[Eye of Ra]

Pär Mårts picking Johnny Oduya over Victor Hedman for the 2014 Olympics. Even back then Hedman was leagues better than Oduya had ever been.

It was Tallinder who should not been on the roster.

Oduya was at that time a good NHL defender with Stanley Cup champions Chicago. He and Hjalmarsson had awesome chemistry.

 

[SaltNPeca]

This is a tough one.

Wayne wasn't nearly a goal-scorer at that point in his career. And he was never anything special on breakaways, even at his peak. Most of his 894 career goals came from having a 6th-sense of knowing exactly where to be at the exact right time.

On the other hand, it is Gretzky. If anyone could summon magic or use any kind of Jedi-type tricks to somehow find a way to fool Dominik Hasek on a shootout attempt, it would be Wayne Gretzky.

Maybe an even bigger mistake than not choosing Gretzky was choosing Bourque.

Unless we are all unaware of some kind of secret breakaway talent that Bourque had, then choosing him over several forwards wasn't too smart.

Even if you ignore Gretzky, then why not have Yzerman or Recchi take a shootout attempt rather than Bourque?

Those who actually watched 80's hockey know the Jets & Oilers in particular were breakaway machines. There'd be breakaways every game and maybe 6+ 2 on 1's. Sometimes these numbers every period in high scoring games.
As a kid I thought it was normal to get a breakaway at the end of a penalty kill.

The same Goaltenders that are quoted on the record as saying "Wayne wasn't that good on breakaways", be it Mike Liut or Bryan Hayward, usually go on to talk about being absolutely lit up by him, also on breakaways... people just don't read the full text/context and come away thinking the guy didn't score on breakaways (besides there are YT vids of just him scoring breakaway goals endlessly)

There's a book: Facing Gretzky. Bryan Hayward also repeats that Wayne wasn't "known for being particularly good on breakaways", then goes on to describe Wayne going 3 for 3 in 1 game on him: high glove, low stick, and 1 deke.

Point: Greatest nhl scorer of all time. Scored from everywhere. Had more breakaway experience than any player on that team. And yeah agree with u that he was on a level to do something to score on the Dominator.

 

[Hasbro]

Ron Wilson not bag skating Team USA in Nagano for treating it like spring break.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Bilyaletdinov in Sochi 2014 - whole Team Russia's tournament was one big dumbest thing by him. Same with Bykov in Slovakia in 2011.

I heard the team had to beg him to pull the goalie earlier than he did in their loss. Stupid.

 

[Caser]

I heard the team had to beg him to pull the goalie earlier than he did in their loss. Stupid.

Which exactly loss are you referring to?

 

[DieSendungmitderMaus]

Replacing Tretiak vs USA in 1980 also was questionable.

Questionable seems like a bit of an understatement. I wasn't around back then of course, but from reading up on it it seems like the worst of all time by a country mile. Rage-pulling the best goalie in the world because he gave up a bad rebound, I mean, come on.

 

[TheGoldenJet]

Bilyaletdinov in Sochi 2014

Yeah, this was the moron who kept Ovechkin and Malkin together despite them going scoreless for 4 straight games.

 

[3 Minute Minor]

Putting Liam Kirk on the 2nd PP unit for GB and benching him in the last minute down 1 goal with their net empty.

 

[lawrence]

Not coaching per se, but the U.S. brain trust behind the 2016 U.S. World Cup of Hockey team. I guess to be fair the addition of the young guns team really gutted us for that event.

Nah they beat Canada with all they got, but they didn’t care about anyone else which costed them.

 

[lawrence]

abandoning the gameplan

what was the game plan prior to Canada?

 

[Old Man Jags]

Crawford keeping 99 on the bench for the shootout

Ah yes, I have very fond memories of that game because I was lucky enough to be in Nagano and watch it in the stadium. (I happened to live in Japan 1997-1998. Now back living here (since 2006 till now)). I managed to watch the final in the stadium as well. Mainly I guess I have fond memories of the time because I was 23 years younger!! As for that game, I never understood how it went into overtime at all, the Czechs were far superior on the day, outplaying the Canadians, and should have won in regulation. Weird goal tied it a minute or so from the end. I have always been amused about how many Canadians seem so convinced that Gretzky would have scored if he had not been kept on the bench. He was nothing magical on breakaways and he was up against Hasek, who was nearly impossible to score against at the time. I agree that choosing Bourque over others was a very strange choice though, but I am not sure why so many Canadians seem convinced that the player who would have taken the shot instead of Bourque would have scored. How many other Canadians scored in that shootout, hm?

 

[Czechboy]

Ah yes, I have very fond memories of that game because I was lucky enough to be in Nagano and watch it in the stadium. (I happened to live in Japan 1997-1998. Now back living here (since 2006 till now)). I managed to watch the final in the stadium as well. Mainly I guess I have fond memories of the time because I was 23 years younger!! As for that game, I never understood how it went into overtime at all, the Czechs were far superior on the day, outplaying the Canadians, and should have won in regulation. Weird goal tied it a minute or so from the end. I have always been amused about how many Canadians seem so convinced that Gretzky would have scored if he had not been kept on the bench. He was nothing magical on breakaways and he was up against Hasek, who was nearly impossible to score against at the time. I agree that choosing Bourque over others was a very strange choice though, but I am not sure why so many Canadians seem convinced that the player who would have taken the shot instead of Bourque would have scored. How many other Canadians scored in that shootout, hm?

I've mentioned this a few times about Nagano... there are 2 prevalent theories

1. Czechs wanted a shootout
2. It was all Hasek

The game is available on Youtube.. rewatch it and tell me the Czechs were struggling or not as good as Canada? We had a lead after 59 minutes but wanted a shootout? We even had some very good chances in OT.

Last. Any country that has Hall of Famer Patrick Roy, with Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur and Curtis Joseph as their 1-2-3 does NOT get to complain about a goalie advantage.lol

 

[Old Man Jags]

I've mentioned this a few times about Nagano... there are 2 prevalent theories

1. Czechs wanted a shootout
2. It was all Hasek

The game is available on Youtube.. rewatch it and tell me the Czechs were struggling or not as good as Canada? We had a lead after 59 minutes but wanted a shootout? We even had some very good chances in OT.

Last. Any country that has Hall of Famer Patrick Roy, with Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur and Curtis Joseph as their 1-2-3 does NOT get to complain about a goalie advantage.lol

Exactly. But Canadians in particular always seem to find a good reason their team lost, and it is never ever because the other team were actually better on the day, even though the Canadians had their best players at their disposal. As you say, the entire game is available on youtube. I think anyone with any sense watching it will admit that it should never have gone to a penalty shootout as the Czechs should have wrapped it up in regulation.

 

[flemo]

My bad. Tried to ctrl+F the world Snarok but fail .

It may have to do something with the fact his name is Znarok ;-)