WC Group D: Apr 25 GDT - Austria vs. Canada (2-2)
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Leafer4Life
Go Leafs Go!
s7ark said:Woot!!! Go Canada - Thx Cooke...
Shorthanded too. man I wish I could be watching the game
Awww why aren't you?
Leafer4Life
Go Leafs Go!
Leafer4Life
Go Leafs Go!
Canada should have been able to win this. It's embarrassing, but give Austria credit for playing a good game.
Awesome game Austria! This was more than an earned point and with more luck they would have held on to the win.
Vanek and Divis played awesome...Im so proud of this team.
Remember those guys are an average of 24.2 years old.
Vanek and Divis played awesome...Im so proud of this team.
Remember those guys are an average of 24.2 years old.
Epsilon
#basta
Very impressed by Thomas Vanek. A lot of people are going to be eating their words when it comes to this guy, I think.
Epsilon said:
Vanek is an amazing player, when he shows up. That being said, and Ovechkin not being in the NHL next year, 50-60 pts and a Calder isn't out of the question.
ManuelCalavera
La-La-La-Locked Out
Really a fun game to watch.
Canada really only tried for 15 minutes. (First 5 minutes of game, last 10 minutes).
Austria played a strong system all the way through.
Canada came out hard, dominating for the first five minutes before trailing off. Austria took control. They played a strong game, reading and breaking up any plays Canada could come up with. Luongo was tested a good amount in the first period (looked a bit shaky at first). The first goal was a screen shot, which Luongo probably could have had.
Being a Buffalo fan, I closely watched Vanek. He was very strong on the forecheck, and even better when he had the puck. He opened up opportunities for his linemates, and his subsequent passing was top notch. On the power play, one play in particular stood out for him. He was just above the slot when the puck came to him. Two Canadian players came at him, trying to first poke check him and then to take the body. He simply shrugged them off and made a nice passing play for a decent scoring chance. He has a hard and accurate wrist shot which directly lead to Austria's second goal.
But his critics do have some valid concerns. In the defensive zone, he always stays above the faceoff dots while his teammates muck it up and fight for the puck. He usually skated very slowly back into his own end. The one thing I did notice was his skating. Because he is so big, his skating is rather different, which makes him look rather lazy out there. I wonder if that adds to the negative hype?
Anyway, regardless, he had a decent game, but not dominant by any stretch of the imagination. Just great when he had the puck and on the forecheck.
Cooke's shorthanded goal was a combination of hard work and luck. He raced down on the near side 1 on 1, took a hard slap shot which was deflected off of the Austrian defenseman to go perfectly top shelf. That goal ignited an effort from Canada, and they dominated for the remaining 9 and a half minutes.
I thought the best and most conistent combination on offense for Canada was Briere and Heatley, with the other winger mostly being Friesen (occasionally Dumont). They seemed like they had good chemistry. The last goal was from Briere fighting in front of the net and Heatley coming in at full speed to tip it in from a bad angle. Other than that, the Canadian offense was rather quiet. Ryan Smyth, Glen Murray, and Bergeron alternatively stood out and had relatively strong games.
Oh yah, and Thomas Pock and Scott Neidermeier were monsters. Both lead their teams defensively and had great games (especially Pock... Wow, he was just as good defensively as offensively, taking the body, leading the rush, etc).
Best players (in order, my opinions):
1.) Divis (Some amazing saves on a talented group)
2.) Pock (Monster at both ends of the ice)
3.) Scott Neidermeier (See above, but to a lesser extent)
4.) Matt Cooke (For igniting his team - he did his job)
5a.) Danny Briere (most consistent offensive effort, I thought)
5b.) Luongo (A few nice glove saves and shut the door after 40 minutes
7.) Andre Lakos (I know that there were 2 Lakos, but he was all over the ice, contributed on the score sheet)
8.) Dany Heatley (Quiet for most of the night except when it mattered)
9.) Tomas Vanek (Amazing goal, created a few other noticable chances)
10.) Glen Murray (Had a boatload of chances, couldnt finish on Divis)]
11.) Ryan Smyth (I thought he played particularly well, though it didnt show up on the score sheet. Played a power forward role on international ice...)
Canada really only tried for 15 minutes. (First 5 minutes of game, last 10 minutes).
Austria played a strong system all the way through.
Canada came out hard, dominating for the first five minutes before trailing off. Austria took control. They played a strong game, reading and breaking up any plays Canada could come up with. Luongo was tested a good amount in the first period (looked a bit shaky at first). The first goal was a screen shot, which Luongo probably could have had.
Being a Buffalo fan, I closely watched Vanek. He was very strong on the forecheck, and even better when he had the puck. He opened up opportunities for his linemates, and his subsequent passing was top notch. On the power play, one play in particular stood out for him. He was just above the slot when the puck came to him. Two Canadian players came at him, trying to first poke check him and then to take the body. He simply shrugged them off and made a nice passing play for a decent scoring chance. He has a hard and accurate wrist shot which directly lead to Austria's second goal.
But his critics do have some valid concerns. In the defensive zone, he always stays above the faceoff dots while his teammates muck it up and fight for the puck. He usually skated very slowly back into his own end. The one thing I did notice was his skating. Because he is so big, his skating is rather different, which makes him look rather lazy out there. I wonder if that adds to the negative hype?
Anyway, regardless, he had a decent game, but not dominant by any stretch of the imagination. Just great when he had the puck and on the forecheck.
Cooke's shorthanded goal was a combination of hard work and luck. He raced down on the near side 1 on 1, took a hard slap shot which was deflected off of the Austrian defenseman to go perfectly top shelf. That goal ignited an effort from Canada, and they dominated for the remaining 9 and a half minutes.
I thought the best and most conistent combination on offense for Canada was Briere and Heatley, with the other winger mostly being Friesen (occasionally Dumont). They seemed like they had good chemistry. The last goal was from Briere fighting in front of the net and Heatley coming in at full speed to tip it in from a bad angle. Other than that, the Canadian offense was rather quiet. Ryan Smyth, Glen Murray, and Bergeron alternatively stood out and had relatively strong games.
Oh yah, and Thomas Pock and Scott Neidermeier were monsters. Both lead their teams defensively and had great games (especially Pock... Wow, he was just as good defensively as offensively, taking the body, leading the rush, etc).
Best players (in order, my opinions):
1.) Divis (Some amazing saves on a talented group)
2.) Pock (Monster at both ends of the ice)
3.) Scott Neidermeier (See above, but to a lesser extent)
4.) Matt Cooke (For igniting his team - he did his job)
5a.) Danny Briere (most consistent offensive effort, I thought)
5b.) Luongo (A few nice glove saves and shut the door after 40 minutes
7.) Andre Lakos (I know that there were 2 Lakos, but he was all over the ice, contributed on the score sheet)
8.) Dany Heatley (Quiet for most of the night except when it mattered)
9.) Tomas Vanek (Amazing goal, created a few other noticable chances)
10.) Glen Murray (Had a boatload of chances, couldnt finish on Divis)]
11.) Ryan Smyth (I thought he played particularly well, though it didnt show up on the score sheet. Played a power forward role on international ice...)
thanks for the kind words 
I very much agree that the way Vanek skates adds a lot to the negative hype of him being lazy. Seeing him play though I have to disagree. Just remember that guy is 20 years old...
I very much agree that the way Vanek skates adds a lot to the negative hype of him being lazy. Seeing him play though I have to disagree. Just remember that guy is 20 years old...
I didn't watch the whole game, but only saw the third period where Canada came back to tie it 
Can anyone tell me how Bergeron played in the first two periods?
Can anyone tell me how Bergeron played in the first two periods?
HF_Rangers
Registered User
Very surprising result... if Austria actually gets a better goal differential than Canada they'd win 1st in group (They have to beat the Swiss first), what a way to come into next year's WC when you're hosting it. I personally think Austria is the next country (just as the new Slovakia came in 1993) to be among the elite countries in the hockey world, especially with players like Pock and Vanek making a splash in the NCAA.
I know everyone's been raving about Pock, and I for one still can't believe Sather had the brains to sign him. If Pock plays like he did today for the Rangers they may have a steal.
I know everyone's been raving about Pock, and I for one still can't believe Sather had the brains to sign him. If Pock plays like he did today for the Rangers they may have a steal.
Knucklez
Registered User
I half-expected us to start like this, oh well, we'll just keep getting better as the tournament goes on.
How did Morrison play? and Scott? Sounds like Cooke played pretty well, shorthanded goal
Go Canada
How did Morrison play? and Scott? Sounds like Cooke played pretty well, shorthanded goal
Go Canada
I didn't catch the game today, so could someone kindly tell me how Luongo and Bouwmeester played?
Should Luongo still be the #1 guy for the tourney, or do you think he is done?
Should Luongo still be the #1 guy for the tourney, or do you think he is done?
Boomhower
Registered User
Knucklez said:How did Morrison play? and Scott? Sounds like Cooke played pretty well, shorthanded goal
Cooke saw very few shifts in the first two periods, but started getting a regular shift in the third.
Morrison was OK, he was centering a line dubbed the "3M" line with Morrow and Murray. They generated a lot of good chances for Murray (4 or 5), but Murray was uncharacteristically firing blanks today.
I think Luongo played a fairly solid game, the 1st goal was deflected off the guy going towards the net. The 2nd goal was a hard wrister from Vanek near the slot. I think they will start J.S. Giguere against France on Tuesday though.
great game, austria could have had a 3-2 lead but luongo made an awesome save on setzinger with two minutes or so to play
best players
divis
luongo
niedermayer
pöck
vanek
briere
setzinger
in no order
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