Thought we played well today.
The thing I was most interested in coming in was who would start in goal. I was hoping for Augustine, although Muszelik has upped his game the last number of months, and I'm glad they went with the better prospect. Giving Augustine this tournament could come in handy next year. It's a shame that Silverstein went down with injuries again because this should've been his tournament, but it's becoming a theme. I think Augustine is talented enough to hold his own as a U17, but it's still a tall task. Going to need to give him a lot of help. Today he responded well to a weak second period. The first goal wasn't his fault. The other two were savable, and he should've had the Bedard one, but he was far from a problem.
The other thing I'm really unsure about is the defense pairs. I've mentioned it early in the season, and would've said so recently if I was able to, that I do not think these defenseman mix well as pairs. All three current pairs I have problems with. Hutson-Chesley requires Chesley to babysit Hutson, and thats not his game. There could be a game it hurts us with him being too aggressive, although they were great today. The small pairing worries me against size. Both kids are good defensively for their size, but size matters in hockey. The third pair I'm worried how they'll do against top level competition. They had a few struggles today. I would change the pairs, but I doubt it happens at this point. Just hope they hold up. Maybe make a small change here or there like inserting Brzustewicz for Duke.
I had some concerns about the small line coming in. All three of those guys are 5'10 or smaller, but they were excellent today. Our lineup is so stacked that we have Stramel and McGroarty on the third line. Thats a joke to have that type of depth. It's too bad they cut Smith. I would've cut Hejduk, but it seems like they weren't going to cut a U18 forward, so it was either Leonard or Smith. They kept the natural winger. They must have not been comfortable enough with Smith's ability to move to wing because otherwise I don't see what Leonard is bringing that Smith isn't. A little less fancy puck skills and skating, but Smith is the better player in most regards.
Lastly, can we ever get rid of the Canadian announcing crew in the USA? In 2022 why don't we have our own broadcast? Craig Button couldn't shut up. He's normally insufferable, but having to listen to him talk about Bedard being an extra coach had me thinking I was watching ESPN talking about Zion. They couldn't ever shut up about the kid. Thats all they cared about. They didn't seem to make much mention of the score or game that was heavily in our favor.