Who will win gold?
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ok I picked Canada, not because I am biased but because they have the most balanced line-up and possibly the best goalie(s) and D in the tourny. I really think that this tourny will be decided bythe goalies and the D-men and unfortunately no other country can match the Canadians in those categories. UP front there are other teams that have similar firepower, See Sweden and Russia (and to a lesser extent the USA and Slovakia). However of those four teams the talent level drops of somewhat when you get down to the prospective 3rd and 4th lines to some degree. However, with Canada the difference will lye with there third and fouth lines wich will include defensive, but offensively gifted players.
That being said, I think Russia (if they can get it together) will make a go at it as well as Sweden, who will be fueled by their loss to Belerus a few years ago. Sweden has the D and if they can get the goaltending then it might cause some noise. Menawhile Russia has the offensive weapons and goaltneding and if the D can step up they will also be dangerous.
In the end though Canada is more well rounded and if injuries become a problem they have gifted players willling to step in which other teams might not be able to say.
That being said, I think Russia (if they can get it together) will make a go at it as well as Sweden, who will be fueled by their loss to Belerus a few years ago. Sweden has the D and if they can get the goaltending then it might cause some noise. Menawhile Russia has the offensive weapons and goaltneding and if the D can step up they will also be dangerous.
In the end though Canada is more well rounded and if injuries become a problem they have gifted players willling to step in which other teams might not be able to say.
The poll reflects that most users of this forum are canadians.Psycho Joe said:
I didn´t vote for Germany though, even if I was tempted.
I went with Sweden, anything can happen in a short tournament and the swedes showed in Salt Lake City that they can win against Canada. As a fact Sweden have only won once against Canada in Canada - 1984 Canada Cup. Time for a change now.
Canuck21t
Registered User
But we're talking about the World Cup of Hockey. I don't remember seeing Canadians receiving the silver medal in '96. I don't also remember any bronze medal game. Who was 3rd in '96?Canadian_man said:
Canada has the best roster. But i can see quite a few teams posing a threat to them. I think canada's biggest threat will be Slovakia, theyre a fast team that can move the puck very well. The Russian team will also be very dangerous, if all theyre stars can play. The US team has skill, but i find that most of their players are too old, and they might not be able to keep up to the other fast pased countries. The US's largest weak point is in Goal. DiPetro and Esche are both young and they havn't quite proved to everyone that they can get the job done. I see The Canadians team winning the gold this year, but I wouldn't be surprised if someone else wins it, having said that...
GO CANADA GOOOOO
GO CANADA GOOOOO
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
bert2nazzy said:
The U.S. is a veteran team, but IS NOT SLOW. I wish people could find it within themselves to seperate the two.
Canuck21t
Registered User
Well at the beginning, the US are as fast as any team but at the end of the tournament, the veterans may have less energy and get slower.Rabid Ranger said:The U.S. is a veteran team, but IS NOT SLOW. I wish people could find it within themselves to seperate the two.
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
Canuck21t said:
At the beginning of the regular season Brian Leetch was fast. At the end of Toronto's playoff run he was still................fast. I get your point, but the average age of the U.S. is team is 30. That's not over-the-hill by any stretch, and these are elite athletes who are used to the grind of a 82+ game schedule. All will be well rested by the time the World Cup comes are around in late August, and will be more than able to handle a two week tournament.
Nikkowar
Registered User
Rabid Ranger said:The U.S. is a veteran team, but IS NOT SLOW. I wish people could find it within themselves to seperate the two.
please enlighten me with the players who ho think are fast, besides for Modano and Amonte. Amonte has actually got slower.
but anyway...The US team has average speed, but as the tourney goes on, they will get tired. No doubt, They have a good chanse to win it, but maybe not as good as Canada, Slovakia, and the Czech's
To tell you the truth, I don't know but I picked Slovakia. This is not NHL, this is the highest quality of play there is and at the end of the day I think it gets down to skill. Slovaks have in my opinion the best offence in the games, and will shoot their way to victory.
Russians are quite capable of winning it all, but will propably self-destruct. Czechs have a braindead defencive style that just doesn't work in todays game. Finns and Swedes just aren't good enough, latter will have problems scoring and the former keeping the puck out of their own net. USA will go far, but they are like Blues, good but not great in any area.
Which leaves Canada. Yes it's a balanced line-up and I'd give them about 40% chance to win it, 60% representing my belief that one of the six other teams will at the end be better. Balance is kind of a problem too. It's skilled team but not the most skilled, Czech, Russians and Slovaks have an advantage here. They are fairly tough, but US and even Finland or Sweden could actually have an edge physically. Goaltending is great, but not decisively better than other contenders. So exactly how are they going to dominate? Then again 40% reflects the fact that they don't have to, they just have to better then the other team and withstand the presure they are under.
Russians are quite capable of winning it all, but will propably self-destruct. Czechs have a braindead defencive style that just doesn't work in todays game. Finns and Swedes just aren't good enough, latter will have problems scoring and the former keeping the puck out of their own net. USA will go far, but they are like Blues, good but not great in any area.
Which leaves Canada. Yes it's a balanced line-up and I'd give them about 40% chance to win it, 60% representing my belief that one of the six other teams will at the end be better. Balance is kind of a problem too. It's skilled team but not the most skilled, Czech, Russians and Slovaks have an advantage here. They are fairly tough, but US and even Finland or Sweden could actually have an edge physically. Goaltending is great, but not decisively better than other contenders. So exactly how are they going to dominate? Then again 40% reflects the fact that they don't have to, they just have to better then the other team and withstand the presure they are under.
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
bert2nazzy said:
I maintain that everyone on the U.S. roster is a good to great skater except for:
Hull
Hatcher
Miller
Chelios
Of those four, Chelios and Miller are "average", leaving two below average skaters on the team. You don't think guys like Roenick, Leetch, Rafalski, Leopold, Drury, Rolston, Guerin, etc are fast? I'm not sure what league you're watching. Than again, you're pumping up Slovakia's chances to win, so............
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
teme said:
Fair points, although I think Slovakia's offense is overrated. Pretty much the same team was shut down in the World Championships by Ty Conklin and the U.S. I know it's one game, but it can clearly be done, and I think it will. Too many soft players.
Yeah totally agree that the US should have the weapons up front, however there biggest weekness still is in goal and on D. THey have good D-man but as Canada proved in 2002 they can be bothered by a good forcheck which Canada should excel at!
Slovakia will be an offensive force but alas you got to keep pucks out of your net as well and in order to win things like this you need defence...slovakia may finish as high as 4th if they get some excellent goaltending
Slovakia will be an offensive force but alas you got to keep pucks out of your net as well and in order to win things like this you need defence...slovakia may finish as high as 4th if they get some excellent goaltending
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
Estey said:
The biggest problem the U.S. defense had in SLC was lack of size. That won't be as big a problem with the World Cup team.
teme said:
I don't think the run-and-gun style will be at all effective for Slovakia. I agree with you that they have a highly potent and capable offense, but I question whether they have the goaltending and defensive prowess to take chances and play mostly offensively.
When your goaltender is Jan Lasak, I don't think you can afford to play a wide open style and just try to outscore your opponent. Pump up the skill of the Slovaks all you want, but if the game turns into run-and-gun, Canada will destroy them. I'll take Martin Brodeur or Roberto Luongo as my goaltender over Lasak in a wide-open, offensive game easily. Canada has forwards such as Joe Sakic, Dany Heatley, Jarome Iginla, Marty St. Louis, Joe Thornton, etc. that will excel in the open style of game.
With that said, 95% of the players in this tournament play in the NHL and will not abandon their defensive philosophies instilled by their NHL coaches. Any team that plays Canada will not try to play run-and-gun with them. That'd be downright foolish, since Canada's hulking defense and Godly goaltending will likely limit the goals against while their forwards are still considerably better than any other team's set of forwards in the tournament. To beat Canada, teams will have to play like the Czech Republic and Germany did at Salt Lake City... play a smart, conservative game and wait for the Canadians to make mistakes once they get impatient with an even score.
teme said:
You have got to be kidding me.
Canada has the best offense.
Canada has the best defense.
Canada has the best goaltending.
Canada has the most toughness.
Canada has, by far, the best team in the whole tournament.
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
RoyIsALegend said:
Well, that settles that. Might as well roll over and give the championship to Canada right now! You know, Canada does have the best team, but that doesn't mean they will win. Anything can happen, and the SLC Olympics proved that. Sweden beat Canada, Belarus beat Sweden, but Canada ended up beating the U.S. for the gold, so the script is hardly written in advance.
But for the US, how do you think players like Conroy will do? He had a great playoff, but what did he have so great before that?
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
Canadian_man said:
He's a great two-way player who has size, speed, and offensive instincts. He'll be an ideal 4th line center for the U.S. As for what he did before this year's playoffs, one of his accomplishments is being named as a finalst for the Selke Trophy.
Rabid Ranger said:
Nowhere in my post did I imply the tournament is pre-decided and Canada will win.
Nowhere.
Please refrain from putting words in my mouth.
Everything I stated is a fact and it cannot be denied that Canada is superior to every single team in every facet of hockey.
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
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