WC: USA Roster

[Jez]

Shoulder injury is likely why. Last year he didn't go because of the world cup + 1st full season.

No major injury apparently but he said that he isn't 100%...

 

[Jez]

figured that...hell of a group of wingers, centers ****ting the bed for us, unless Mr. Eichel does still come!!

They might need to play Mittelstadt at center. Let's hope Schmaltz come. Larkin/Schmaltz/Mittelstadt/Gaudette as center depth isn't going to help up win against Canada but we should be ok against most teams.

 

[AmericanDream]

They might need to play Mittelstadt at center. Let's hope Schmaltz come. Larkin/Schmaltz/Mittelstadt/Gaudette as center depth isn't going to help up win against Canada but we should be ok against most teams.

definitely need Schmaltz here, I would be stunned if he doesn't play with his buddies here...we need another surprise or two when it comes to players coming..give me Bjugstad over Gaudette as well..

 

[SK94]

They might need to play Mittelstadt at center. Let's hope Schmaltz come. Larkin/Schmaltz/Mittelstadt/Gaudette as center depth isn't going to help up win against Canada but we should be ok against most teams.

I think Terry would be really good addition.

 

[Jez]

I think Terry would be really good addition.

Good shout. I'd forgotten about him (my bad).

 

[AmericanDream]

Terry played a lot of hockey with the Olympics as well, but yes very likely he gets added if we get a lot of snubs...

Have to imagine we hear tonight/tomorrow morning the latest as to the bulk of this team. They have to leave by Sunday I would imagine for a May 1st exhibition.

They can leave a spot or two open for 2nd round eliminations, we have gotten guys before who came out of the 2nd round and played - Pavelski I believe did it a few years ago for us.

 

[Eye of Ra]

having a euro/ncca/juniors player on the team is not end of world, the other top nations have it too. sweden for exemple will have elias pettersson, lias andersson, filip gustavsson, magnus Hellberg, Pilut/Brännström/wikstrand on the team.

pick the 3-5 best usa players there is in europe/ncca/juniors and they will not hurt your team.

 

[AmericanDream]

having a euro/ncca/juniors player on the team is not end of world, the other top nations have it too. sweden for exemple will have elias pettersson, lias andersson, filip gustavsson, magnus Hellberg, Pilut/Brännström/wikstrand on the team.

pick the 3-5 best usa players there is in europe/ncca/juniors and they will not hurt your team.

not being rude by any means, but when you have 240 plus NHLers that suited up this year, it would be a farce to have to rely on 3-5 Euro players or NCAA guys...Sweden simply doesn;'t have the overall depth we do. This team should be filled with NHLers plus a few very promising youngsters like Mittelstadt and Terry..

 

[Planet Hockey]

not being rude by any means, but when you have 240 plus NHLers that suited up this year, it would be a farce to have to rely on 3-5 Euro players or NCAA guys...Sweden simply doesn;'t have the overall depth we do. This team should be filled with NHLers plus a few very promising youngsters like Mittelstadt and Terry..

Sweden/USA isn't a great comparison IMO b/c all of the best American-born players are in the NHL system. A % of any European country's best skaters remain in their own club league or play in the KHL. They're used to the big ice and well-suited to the WC. If the 4th-line grinders of the NHL were really faster and more skilled than the 1st line of a championship Euro team, then countries like Russia could just pick *any* NHL player who was willing to go, make a roster of 20 and beat everybody else in Europe by 50 goals.

The talent gap is exaggerated thanks to Yahoo Sports and other ignorant dirtbags in NA. So it makes sense for Sweden to recruit 75% NHL'ers and 25% SHL pros. Made sense for Canada to bring in Chris Lee too.

That being said, it's sickening how USA Hockey makes no real effort to win the WC. They could easily put a team together that could potentially win even if the big-money guys stayed home. Instead, they gotta pass up veterans so Sunny Jim from Harvard or BC can get his "international experience."

Look at how the USAH strategy of WC "prospect" teams with the obligatory college guys is working. They say they're self-scouting young players for the Olympics. Well, they've won exactly one Olympic tournament in the past 50+ years and the pros weren't even playing then. Haven't won a WC since what, 1912 or something?

USAH can keep using the WC as "program development." Just look at the development! (It's a really awesome strategy if you hate winning medals of any kind under any circumstances.) Or, they could take a promising nucleus like this year's commits, add all the veterans they can and actually try to win a WC gold medal. Not that they or the players would care I guess.

It almost feels like a gigantic inferiority complex played out over decades. Use the tournament as preparation for another one we never win, and help keep a commissioner in power who makes it impossible by banning the players from it anyway. That way, we can say American hockey is still superior since we'd win gold medals easy if we ever tried. What a losing mentality.

I would agree with the addition of Terry though, he's actually played well in the Olympics. If the final roster comes in with 20 solid players instead of 17 NHL guys and 3 bros from the frosh team at South Dakota, I'll be stunned and happy.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Yeah, USA Hockey is purposefully keeping superior talent off the WC teams....

 

[The Great Dame]

Seems really strange to me, given the current group, that Kyle Palmieri wasn't asked.

 

[Planet Hockey]

Yeah, USA Hockey is purposefully keeping superior talent off the WC teams....

"He stood in a field where barley grows..."

It only took you 2 minutes to straw-man somebody as hard as you just did me? I didn't say "superior talent." There are 15-year-olds who have enough *talent* to play at the Worlds.

USAH should be willing to take an unheralded, older checking center or defenseman or an extra experienced goalie (even bubble AHL/NHL guys) before they put a bunch of college guys on the team and give interviews about how "we'll get a good look at these youngsters who could possibly play in the Olympics someday after Gary Bettman dies and after they hit puberty."

Going with a fantastic youngster like McDavid or Barzal is one thing. Adding 3 guys from Notre F'ing Dame just b/c it's what USAH does and they do it for the "development?" They've developed a program that loses big ice hockey tournaments FIFTY YEARS IN A ROW.

 

[JTD]

According to Craig Custance the roster will be revealed in the “next few days”. It’s weird how quiet USAH has been throughout this. Other national teams have been confirming guys on their twitter accounts left and right and USAH has said nothing and the tournament starts in 7 days. Only confirmation has come from a few players but even some who are reported as playing haven’t said much. Definitely a different approach than usual

 

[Planet Hockey]

According to Craig Custance the roster will be revealed in the “next few days”. It’s weird how quiet USAH has been throughout this. Other national teams have been confirming guys on their twitter accounts left and right and USAH has said nothing and the tournament starts in 7 days. Only confirmation has come from a few players but even some who are reported as playing haven’t said much. Definitely a different approach than usual

This could sound crazy, but do you think it has anything to do with the U18s? There's a big push to publicize that tournament, every game is on NHL Network, USAH social media is 99% focused on it & the Yanks beat the Russians to advance. Wonder if they made a pact with the midgets not to step on any toes headlines-wise until the medal round is over.

 

[Friar85]

According to Craig Custance the roster will be revealed in the “next few days”. It’s weird how quiet USAH has been throughout this. Other national teams have been confirming guys on their twitter accounts left and right and USAH has said nothing and the tournament starts in 7 days. Only confirmation has come from a few players but even some who are reported as playing haven’t said much. Definitely a different approach than usual

Different management structure. USAH exec Jim Johannson has been the GM of previous teams. This year, with Johannson's passing, the NHL guys are running the show. As for the talent level and bringing a couple of college kids, the rosters allow for a 13th forward and 7th defensemen who dress and rarely play and an 8th defenseman and 14th forward who don't dress. Do you think scratching NHL guys would go over well?

I will admit bias here. I was involved with USAH as a coach and working development camps for years. I don't believe USAH would ever turn down talent for this tourney. I am guessing it is just difficult to get NHL players to go when no one in this country cares about this tournament. I say that as someone who loves this tournament. I was in Cologne last year and would be in Denmark this year if the US was in the Copenhagen group. Not sure how old some of you posters are but USAH has done a remarkable job getting us to the point where we win medals at all junior levels, women's hockey and are piling up on the number of Americans in the NHL. Go back and take a look at our 1976 Canada Cup roster. How far we have come is remarkable.

 

[Bajahobo]

I'm kind of cautiously optimistic that they haven't named many players this late into the game. It makes me think they're really going for top level NHL talent although Palmieri not being asked is baffling.

 

[jaro]

Fact is that 1st may USA play against Denmark at 5 p.m. that means they have to fly to europe latest 30.april .. and it is only 3 days !! So few days must means tomorow

 

[Planet Hockey]

Different management structure. USAH exec Jim Johannson has been the GM of previous teams. This year, with Johannson's passing, the NHL guys are running the show. As for the talent level and bringing a couple of college kids, the rosters allow for a 13th forward and 7th defensemen who dress and rarely play and an 8th defenseman and 14th forward who don't dress. Do you think scratching NHL guys would go over well?

I will admit bias here. I was involved with USAH as a coach and working development camps for years. I don't believe USAH would ever turn down talent for this tourney. I am guessing it is just difficult to get NHL players to go when no one in this country cares about this tournament. I say that as someone who loves this tournament. I was in Cologne last year and would be in Denmark this year if the US was in the Copenhagen group. Not sure how old some of you posters are but USAH has done a remarkable job getting us to the point where we win medals at all junior levels, women's hockey and are piling up on the number of Americans in the NHL. Go back and take a look at our 1976 Canada Cup roster. How far we have come is remarkable.

Your work with the program is respectable. Any program has good people working on the inside. I think USAH is a massive screwball of failure and underachievement, but it's nothing personal against anyone. As you point out it is a cultural problem first and foremost.

Taking last year as an example, there were more than a couple greenhorns on the roster. Team USA brought 4 college kids and 2 teenagers. Only 3 guys on the team were older than 25. I saw a photo of the squad kneeling on the ice with bored half-a** facial expressions, and texted a friend "CZE 4, USA 1, Quarterfinals." Turned out it was FIN 2, USA 0, but all the same.

I agree that the junior teams are impressive. It makes the decade-after-decade lack of success in the WC/Olympics even more striking.

Not sure the women's team can be used as a badge of honor for USAH, considering that last year they almost made the entire women's team quit and the men alongside them.

Good point about nobody in the U.S. caring. I can't believe some of the crap I read from casual American fans about the WC. They'll say things that a 5-year-old knows aren't true, like "all of the best players are still playing in the final 4 NHL playoff teams." As if they're All-Star teams with unlimited $ who hoarded the 80 top-ranked players in the world. Americans don't like hockey itself enough to care about bollocks but one club team in their home city. They'll say anything to rationalize ignoring all else.

But it's not like USAH is helpless to it. They can send a more experienced team and go all-out to win the WC instead of treating it like a developmental skate. They can stand up to NBC and YouTube when those companies work to keep the Worlds off TV here. Get players to speak out when people from ESPN or Yahoo Sports trash the tournament. Challenge the myths.

Heck, they could make a big push to host a WC in America. Why not? Pro hockey and the IIHF have a win-win relationship in every other country and on every other level. We're not the smart ones, we're the freaks.

Trying to win the Olympics if you can't medal at the WC is a fool's errand. Every year they go and lose, it reinforces a pattern of losing. I am 38 years old. Born in the most recent year that Team USA won a gold medal in an elite men's tournament on big ice. 40+ attempts at it since then. Something needs to change even for the sake of changing, because staying the course means having no chance at all.

Again, if they announce a solid team without 5 skinny bros from a fraternity somewhere, I'll consider that a fantastic step in the right direction. It would also be great not to hear the words "Olympics" or "for the future" during any of the coach or GM pressers.

 

[jaro]

Larkin
Gaudreau
Hanifin
Kreider
Mittelstadt
Lindgren
Debrincant
Murphy
Kane
Butcher
Kinkaid
Not bad i thing ... i cant wait for rest of squad ..

 

[migi]

Larkin
Gaudreau
Hanifin
Kreider
Mittelstadt
Lindgren
Debrincant
Murphy
Kane
Butcher
Kinkaid
Not bad i thing ... i cant wait for rest of squad ..

Hanifin?

 

[jaro]

 

[SanDogBrewin]

Different management structure. USAH exec Jim Johannson has been the GM of previous teams. This year, with Johannson's passing, the NHL guys are running the show. As for the talent level and bringing a couple of college kids, the rosters allow for a 13th forward and 7th defensemen who dress and rarely play and an 8th defenseman and 14th forward who don't dress. Do you think scratching NHL guys would go over well?

I will admit bias here. I was involved with USAH as a coach and working development camps for years. I don't believe USAH would ever turn down talent for this tourney. I am guessing it is just difficult to get NHL players to go when no one in this country cares about this tournament. I say that as someone who loves this tournament. I was in Cologne last year and would be in Denmark this year if the US was in the Copenhagen group. Not sure how old some of you posters are but USAH has done a remarkable job getting us to the point where we win medals at all junior levels, women's hockey and are piling up on the number of Americans in the NHL. Go back and take a look at our 1976 Canada Cup roster. How far we have come is remarkable.

It wouldn’t go over well at all and I bet some players want that to be understood before coming over. Still wouldn’t have any issue if say if Donato (if Boston were out of the playoffs) and Greenway were invited. Hellebuyck Hadn’t played one lick of NHL hockey before he helped USA hockey to a bronze with 7 wins and a .948 SV% in 2015.

You are right about USA hockey, compared to where they used to be, is much better now.

 

[AmericanDream]

I figured Noah would be coming too, I actually have him written down on my roster lol...him and Atkinson

Surprised he doesn't have Alec Martinez and Cam Atkinson...not sure who this guy is so hopefully he is right with those names.

 

[William H Bonney]

Darren Dreger reporting that Quinn Hughes is on the team.

 

[AmericanDream]

Darren Dreger reporting that Quinn Hughes is on the team.

must have had a lot of declines...I have no problem with him here, but he had a rough go at the WJC...so hopefully he does better here.