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Where is "TEAM" Canada?

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The rust really shows at times, especially for the D. They seem to be a step behind the play most of the time. Guys like Phillips who've played in Europe look pretty good, but it's too bad most haven't did anything, and it shows. I think Canada will come out and make a statement against the Ukraine, and start rolling. Just wait till we get a second line that can score. :propeller
 
I'm still convinced that if everyone in our roster had been playing all year, or maybe we didn't have habscheid, we'd be dominating. The roster itself looks fine. I would have liked one more game-breaker-type player rather than another character/defensive guy ( 6 is more than enough ). I mean, we've got Thornton, Smyth, Doan, Gagne, Morrow, Draper, Maltby, Fisher AND Walker all capable of playing a defensive role? Our only real gamebreakers are Heatley, Thornton, and probably Nash.

Our defense is playing horribly. Sure, I expected rust, but who would have ever thought guys like Hannan or Regehr would be coughing up the puck so much?
 
I'm not gonna rip these guys for being at the tournament and for being who they are. In the judgment of much smarter people than me, these were the best players who were both available and willing. They looked tired and played poorly against Finland, but then staged an impressive and gutsy comeback. I like that a lot. They fell asleep for 11 minutes against the Swedes and it cost Canada a game it was winning handily. That happens (hell, it happened to the supremely talented London Knights yesterday against outgunned Ottawa). I doubt they'll let it happen again. It sure as hell won't happen against Ukraine. Canada doesn't have a lot of time to scape off the rust and get some of their D up to speed. But they can do it. After all, the only Canadian D-man who has been totally solid is Redden, who didn't play all year.
(No one seems to be talking about this, but a major factor in this event has been the ice, which appears to have been resurfaced with a roto-tiller instead of a Zamboni. It's tough to make highly skilled, precision plays when the puck takes to the air most of the time.)
 
Canuck21t said:
Maybe Canada has the best team on paper but by far? I don't think so. People tend to look at the roster with an NHL mindset but this is an international tournament on a big ice surface. European players you've never heard of or barely can be much more dangerous than you think because the bigger ice is their territory.

Our roster is the main problem. The team could have been much better if the management had concentrated more on skill over character. I know that some players are injured and some refused to play but I suspect the management omitted many skilled players. Maltby, Draper and Smyth are enough, did we had to have more grinders? There should only be one checking line, the rest should be all skill. I really don't enjoy watching this year's Team Canada. Thank goodness for the first line and I believe the second line will get better but the rest are brutal IMO.
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IMO, yes, Canada has by far the best team on paper.

They have the two best goaltenders in the world. Maybe they don't have as much firepower on offense as Slovakia or Russia, but their defense is 10 times better than anyone's in this tournament.
 
markov` said:
but their defense is 10 times better than anyone's in this tournament.
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On paper I suppose but they certainly haven't showed it. They're confused, ****ing up their assignments and too busy getting caught flat-footed. Jovo and Souray have been huge disappointments this tournament (no excuse for Souray, he's been playing all year).

I have to agree that it looks an awful lot like a team that hasn't skated all winter. The guy's performing are the guys that have been playing.

If the way Nash and Thornton are playing is any indication, I think every locked out Canadian should take a trip to Switzerland next year. :D
 
BigE said:
On paper I suppose but they certainly haven't showed it. They're confused, ****ing up their assignments and too busy getting caught flat-footed. Jovo and Souray have been huge disappointments this tournament (no excuse for Souray, he's been playing all year).

I have to agree that it looks an awful lot like a team that hasn't skated all winter. The guy's performing are the guys that have been playing.

If the way Nash and Thornton are playing is any indication, I think every locked out Canadian should take a trip to Switzerland next year. :D
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I'm saying on paper, because on the ice the defense looks awful.
 
Has anyone ever seen a worse performance than the one Special Ed is putting for the Canadian blueline? (OK possibly Souray the immobile)
Yes they look good on paper but both these players have been worse than useless.

Its obvious why they call him "Special Ed". Its also obvious that he relies on his physical tools to play hockey since he clearly has no hockey sense. Now that he's rusty he is of no value.
I would not take this player on my team. (maybe for free but i certainly wouldn't trade for him nor would i pay him.)
 
The defense is playing bad but it's not really their fault. I blame the management for selecting 6 lefties on 7 defenseman. The transition and cohesion between the defenseman is awfull with guys not used to play on the right side leading to many turnovers and unforced errors. I know that Blake, Foote and Desjardins wouldn't have come but where are the Adrian Aucoin, Nick Boynton or even Jason Smith? Some might say that it's not the real problem but i think that it's the main reason why that defense has no chemistry.
 
Id take Mike Fisher on the team before most of the other guys. At least he gives 100% on every shift and makes the other team pay.
The next good thing Doan does out there will be the first. Same for Captain Canada Ryan Smyth. ditto Morisson.
 
Concerned...no progress with defensemen...

usually by this point I have seen "gel'ing". I see none. The higher the quality the skaters (Sweden - Finland examples) exposes the weakness of this defense.

I do believe the righty - lefty thing does contribute, but a bigger contribution is rust.

Souray shouldn't be rusty, but I believe the main problem with him is lack of international experience at high level competitions. Also I don't believe he is mobile enough for the bigger ice surface at these high level competitions.

Other than Wade Redden who I think is the class of this defensive crew the rest of the bunches instincts are behind the play. You can't think about what you need to do, there isn't enough time with elite competition to "think". You must react - instincts in other words; you must play on a regular basis to have them.

They should have chosen at least 2 more defensemen that played this year - internationally if possible to pair with others who didn't play. Souray doesn't count for reasons I explained above.

As far as the forwards are concerned - I'm less concerned about this group. I think they can do the job.
 
This team is far and away the best team in this tournament ON PAPER but they dont have the chemistry yet. Im not gonna add up all the NHL scoring but I guarantee they are the highest scoring team by far based on the last nhl season.

The biggest dissapointments upfront have been Morrison, Morrow, Smyth and especially Maltby (the weazel spearing guys behind the play I hate that, reflects badly on everyone, atleast he has been decent on the pk and has good speed)

Why is Ryan Smyth on a grind line, he is a goal scorer put him with Marleau/Morrison and Walker.

Walker is a good offensive player he scored 70+ points last year he has good instincts, he isnt flashy but he is productive.

Morrow is having a hard time skating im finding it very frusterating to watch. He is perfect for the nhl game but on this big ice and all this creativity he isnt a good fit.

Morrison is playing with Doan and Heatley why isnt he doing anything? Unless his play picks up hopefully he gets injured and Spezza can come over, he would be pefect between those two.

Someone bashed Fisher, atleast he finishes every check and yes he has skill but he is clearly in a grinder role. He also is a good enough skater to be used effectively on the big ice unlike Morrow.

I wouldnt mind seeing Marleau tried between Heatley and Doan.

Gagne Thornton Nash
Heatley Marleau Doan
Smyth Morrison Walker
Maltby Draper Fisher
Morrow

The D has been a whole other story I really dont know what is wrong with a few of these guys. Jovanovski should be sat and shouldnt see the ice unless team canada falls under some terrible injury troubles. Boyle Phillips and Redden have all been pretty consistent. Redden and Boyle appear to have some chemistry as does Phillips and Hannan. Souray hasnt been as bad as people seem to suggest but he hasnt been good. Regher has been brought down by Jovanovski he hasnt been that bad.

Redden Boyle
Phillips Hannan
Souray Regher
Jovanovski

Brodeur has been better than Luongo but not by much he should start the rest of the way.
 
bert said:
This team is far and away the best team in this tournament ON PAPER but they dont have the chemistry yet. Im not gonna add up all the NHL scoring but I guarantee they are the highest scoring team by far based on the last nhl season.

The biggest dissapointments upfront have been Morrison, Morrow, Smyth and especially Maltby (the weazel spearing guys behind the play I hate that, reflects badly on everyone, atleast he has been decent on the pk and has good speed)

Why is Ryan Smyth on a grind line, he is a goal scorer put him with Marleau/Morrison and Walker.

Walker is a good offensive player he scored 70+ points last year he has good instincts, he isnt flashy but he is productive.

Morrow is having a hard time skating im finding it very frusterating to watch. He is perfect for the nhl game but on this big ice and all this creativity he isnt a good fit.

Morrison is playing with Doan and Heatley why isnt he doing anything? Unless his play picks up hopefully he gets injured and Spezza can come over, he would be pefect between those two.

Someone bashed Fisher, atleast he finishes every check and yes he has skill but he is clearly in a grinder role. He also is a good enough skater to be used effectively on the big ice unlike Morrow.

I wouldnt mind seeing Marleau tried between Heatley and Doan.

Gagne Thornton Nash
Heatley Marleau Doan
Smyth Morrison Walker
Maltby Draper Fisher
Morrow

The D has been a whole other story I really dont know what is wrong with a few of these guys. Jovanovski should be sat and shouldnt see the ice unless team canada falls under some terrible injury troubles. Boyle Phillips and Redden have all been pretty consistent. Redden and Boyle appear to have some chemistry as does Phillips and Hannan. Souray hasnt been as bad as people seem to suggest but he hasnt been good. Regher has been brought down by Jovanovski he hasnt been that bad.

Redden Boyle
Phillips Hannan
Souray Regher
Jovanovski

Brodeur has been better than Luongo but not by much he should start the rest of the way.
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That second line looks mighty good and that would give us two heavy dominant lines. Ive never really been a fan of Morrison although he's a good player.
 
A few things, canadian fans talked before the tournament about how allot of people underrated their talent when Canada wasn't mentioned as the favorite in this tournament. I belive thoose fans really underestimated what it means not having played competetive hockey for more then a year for some players. Canada have two straight gold medals and have a better roster this year then they had in 03'&04'.

The WCH is and have the past 11-12 years been a extremly thight tournament. If Canada wins it with so many players not playing this years it would IMO be a huge accomplishment.
 
2-1 vs Ukraine?!?! Oh the shame… :shakehead

I’m gonna get slaughtered for this one, but…to fall back on that old Canadian line of thought…

I seriously think this team is missing THAT one guy to fire the team up on the bench. The one-shift-per-period guy who skates on his ankles, and isn’t even aware there is a puck on the ice. The guy who will charge out and paste a few guys against the glass, then sneer at the little weenies as they lay writhing in pain. :madfire: Not sure who would have fit the bill – a Jordan Tootoo kinda guy.
Sure he’ll get a penalty or two but - what the hell - we’ve got 38 PENALTY KILL SPECIALISTS over there!!!!!!!!!!! :rant:

These guys are sleep-walking over there.
There is something to be said for contagious adrenalin. :teach:
 
So what role are Morrow, Fisher, Maltby, Doan and Walker playing exactly?
 
bert said:
So what role are Morrow, Fisher, Maltby, Doan and Walker playing exactly?
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Guys who can skate really fast to no place in particular.
 
bert said:
The biggest dissapointments upfront have been Morrison, Morrow, Smyth and especially Maltby (the weazel spearing guys behind the play I hate that, reflects badly on everyone, atleast he has been decent on the pk and has good speed)

Morrison is playing with Doan and Heatley why isnt he doing anything? Unless his play picks up hopefully he gets injured and Spezza can come over, he would be pefect between those two.

The D has been a whole other story I really dont know what is wrong with a few of these guys. Jovanovski should be sat and shouldnt see the ice unless team canada falls under some terrible injury troubles.
Redden Boyle
Phillips Hannan
Souray Regher
Jovanovski
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What has Morrison done?! Are you really asking that question? Only Nash and Thornton have scored more goals than him on this team. BMo has more goals than Heatley and Doan combined. He is also a +3. While I would like to see that line producing more, I don't think you can fault Morrison...someone light a fire under Heatley's ass!
Jovanovski sucked big time earlier in the tournament, his first real hockey all year. But he has found his legs, and was Canada's best d-man in the last game versus Ukraine.
Sitting Jovo to give Sheldon Souray more ice time is about the most assinine thing I have read on these boards, and that is saying something.
 
bert said:
So what role are Morrow, Fisher, Maltby, Doan and Walker playing exactly?
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Not sure if you're asking a serious question there bert.

To answer the question, those guys are doing Sweet FA! Most of them are skating around in pretty circles, getting picked, and getting flung around like baby kittens!!!!

How dangerous do you think those guys have been? :confused:
 
That was more like it!

The Smyth – Heatley combo was relentless today.
Drapes and Maltby were at their pesty best – too bad they didn’t have better hands close-in.
Gagne carried his line until the 3rd. Thornton looked absolutely drunk until his goal.
Walker has hands like Harold Snepts.
Defence was as scary as ever – is Jovo still on Pacific Mountain Time???
Brodeur is Money baby!

Canada held an edge in overall play and chances. A well-deserved win borne out of hard work. :clap:

Gold or nuthin’ fellers!!!!!!!!!!
 
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