Prospect Info: 2018 World Junior Championships - Buffalo, NY, USA - Dec. 26th 2017 to Jan. 5th 2018

[darko]

Because they good. The best teams have the most obnoxious fans.

Their fans are more obnoxious than usual.

 

[Harbour Dog]

Not as obnoxious as Australian hockey fans: "Guys, we're head and shoulders above the rest of division three AINEC"... f*** off, we get it!

 

[Cassano]

This Canadian roster is trash on paper compared to their previous years and they barely broke a sweat throughout the tournament. Really didn't believe they would medal this year.

 

[darko]

Not as obnoxious as Australian hockey fans: "Guys, we're head and shoulders above the rest of division three AINEC"... **** off, we get it!

Oh Aussie hockey fans are the worst especially that Mike guy that posts on here.

 

[mike14]

Oh Aussie hockey fans are the worst especially that Mike guy that posts on here.

Well when your team held the record for most goals scored in a game for 48 years (taking it from Canada no less!), you're going to brag a bit...

 

[aufheben]

If the Canadian media wants to talk about Lias Andersson instead of their country winning gold, that's fine by me.

 

[Ail]

heres the video if no one has seen it

Hahahahaha. That’s the spirit. Lias is my new favorite prospect.

 

[Machinehead]

If the Canadian media wants to talk about Lias Andersson instead of their country winning gold, that's fine by me.

The Canadian media just has to try and ruin an 18-year-old's life and they couldn't find any of their own this time after a strong tournament.

This is what we're dealing with. 18 years old.

 

[eco's bones]

Pretty sure that if Sweden had won and Dube had thrown his silver medal into the crowd, then a very high percentage of the people that are okay with what Lias did would be calling Dube down to the dirt, while those of us saying that it wasn't an okay thing to do would still be saying that.

I'm pretty sure I wouldn't.

 

[GlasgowNewYorkRanger]

Came here to say it would have been nice to have seen Lias get the gold and then saw all of this.

All opinions aside, he earned his medal, this wasn't something he was given and threw away. If he decides to do what he did, all slavering aside, it was his earned to do with as he sees fit.

 

[kovazub94]

Canadian media already feasting on this gift of a side story.

Rangers should publicly protect him, say he's passionate etc. Advise him behind closed doors to apologize.

People are super forgiving after public apologies.

Get out of here with that. He already gave an interview to Swedish tv. He owes absolutely nothing to Canadian media or general public.

 

[HatTrick Swayze]

Lias has absolutely nothing to apologize for. It's his medal. It's not a Purple Heart, it's a U20 Hockey medal.

 

[mike14]

Lias has absolutely nothing to apologize for. It's his medal. It's not a Purple Heart, it's a U20 Hockey medal.

It poses some interesting questions (ok, not that interesting, but it's a lazy Sunday here):
If giving away the medal immediately after receiving it is 'disrespectful' or showing 'poor sportsmanship', what's the acceptable amount of time before you can give it away?
Is giving it away more or less disrespectful than selling it?
If you keep it, do you have to have it on display to afford it the proper level of respect or can it be stashed at the bottom of a draw?

 

[Steve Kournianos]

Here's my problem. Some of you keep saying how "I love his passion" or "I love a kid that cares" or something along those lines.

But if you watched the games -- you know, the thing that actually matters above all else -- Andersson PROVED that he plays with passion and cares. He strengthened his reputation as a battler, leader, warrior -- whatever superlatives you can think of -- with his play on the ice.

His play. On. The. Ice.

If Andersson simply took the medal and skated away, not a single soul would say anything other than -- "what a warrior this Andersson kid is. He had an excellent tournament. He can play for my team any day".

Watch the video again. Lias turns down the IIHF's official's attempt to put the medal on, then skates away with the IIHF official's hand extended for a handshake, then tosses the medal into the crowd. Lias wasn't the only teenage Swede who "battled" and "fought" that day. He had an entire team go about the process the way it was intended to go. I've been watching this tournament since the late 1980s -- Andersson isn't the first teenage "warrior" or "battler" who lost a crushing game.

That's not being a "warrior" or a "battler" or a "kid". That's called being a sore loser, and the overwhelming majority of parents that have kids involved in competitive anything have taken or would take their kid aside and say "You, know. That's not how you're supposed to act."

 

[PlamsUnlimited]

I don't see what the problem is, he earned it, he can do what he wants with it. He doesn't owe Canadian media anything. I get a kick when people talk about that and how the players should act according to posters' expectations. It's silly.

 

[Matte99]

Here's my problem. Some of you keep saying how "I love his passion" or "I love a kid that cares" or something along those lines.

But if you watched the games -- you know, the thing that actually matters above all else -- Andersson PROVED that he plays with passion and cares. He strengthened his reputation as a battler, leader, warrior -- whatever superlatives you can think of -- with his play on the ice.

His play. On. The. Ice.

If Andersson simply took the medal and skated away, not a single soul would say anything other than -- "what a warrior this Andersson kid is. He had an excellent tournament. He can play for my team any day".

Watch the video again. Lias turns down the IIHF's official's attempt to put the medal on, then skates away with the IIHF official's hand extended for a handshake, then tosses the medal into the crowd. Lias wasn't the only teenage Swede who "battled" and "fought" that day. He had an entire team go about the process the way it was intended to go. I've been watching this tournament since the late 1980s -- Andersson isn't the first teenage "warrior" or "battler" who lost a crushing game.

That's not being a "warrior" or a "battler" or a "kid". That's called being a sore loser, and the overwhelming majority of parents that have kids involved in competitive anything have taken or would take their kid aside and say "You, know. That's not how you're supposed to act."

He doesn't turn it down, he thought it was ok to get it in his hand. When he realized it wasn't he put his head forward. He doesn't treat anyone or anything with disrespect. He simply treats the medal with disinterest, he doesn't want it. In reality he isn't being disrespectful to the medal or anyone else. Your feelings about his choice to give the medal away is simply a reflection of you and your feelings and has nothing to do with him.

 

[Mikos87]

This Canadian roster is trash on paper compared to their previous years and they barely broke a sweat throughout the tournament. Really didn't believe they would medal this year.

They went with speed, and a system that valued short passes. Lined up a lot of Lefty/Righty guys the best way possible, and took multiple guys for the same type of role.

In other words, it's not the most talented team they iced, but one that worked out well for the system. There wasn't a star among them that was a top pick with 3+ years of junior league dominance. Very different approach, but one that worked.

 

[Steve Kournianos]

He doesn't turn it down, he thought it was ok to get it in his hand. When he realized it wasn't he put his head forward. He doesn't treat anyone or anything with disrespect. He simply treats the medal with disinterest, he doesn't want it. In reality he isn't being disrespectful to the medal or anyone else. Your feelings about his choice to give the medal away is simply a reflection of you and your feelings and has nothing to do with him.

No.

In your reality he's not being disrespectful. You either agree with what he did, or your don't. Considering all the criticism, public hate mail and flak he's catching from thousands upon thousands of people from across the hockey spectrum -- players, media, fans, coaches -- I'd say the best thing to do would have been to take the stupid medal, put it around his neck and go cry in the locker room like the thousands upon thousands of 2nd-place winners in the history of sport.

And yes, I hope it's a reflection of me. I've never thrown away a gift or an award in front of the person who gave it to me. And I'm teaching my kids to act the same.

 

[Graves94]

No.

In your reality he's not being disrespectful. You either agree with what he did, or your don't. Considering all the criticism, public hate mail and flak he's catching from thousands upon thousands of people from across the hockey spectrum -- players, media, fans, coaches -- I'd say the best thing to do would have been to take the stupid medal, put it around his neck and go cry in the locker room like the thousands upon thousands of 2nd-place winners in the history of sport.

And yes, I hope it's a reflection of me. I've never thrown away a gift or an award in front of the person who gave it to me. And I'm teaching my kids to act the same.

Steve, the problem with what you're saying, is that the medal is not a "gift"! He earned that medal on the ice!
He, along with the rest of the Swedish team woke up with a silver medal on the day of the game, and when the final game ended, they didn't win the silver medal, they LOST the gold!
As I said on another post, and as you mention in your post above, the didn't act as the NORM, his reaction was different, and god forbid, in today's politically correct world, he's being criticized for it...

 

[Irishguy42]

Andersson has received a lot of support from reputable media figureheads and players.

Only receiving criticism from people who want all players to be robots and not show emotions.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

If it's so meaningless then why the hell is he trending on Twitter?

Because negativity always gains more popularity than positivity

 

[Steve Kournianos]

Andersson has received a lot of support from reputable media figurehead and players.

Only receiving criticism from people who want all players to be robots and not show emotions.

So every single silver-medal winner in the history of competition are "robots" if they don't take what's given to them and throw it in the stands?

Maintaining composure and respecting a tradition -- a very fair, reasonable and harmless tradition -- is not robotic. Besides, the kid was already crying before he went up for the medal.

Steve, the problem with what you're saying, is that the medal is not a "gift"! He earned that medal on the ice!
He, along with the rest of the Swedish team woke up with a silver medal on the day of the game, and when the final game ended, they didn't win the silver medal, they LOST the gold!
As I said on another post, and as you mention in your post above, the didn't act as the NORM, his reaction was different, and god forbid, in today's politically correct world, he's being criticized for it...

Gift, award, medal, certificate -- semantics. It was the IIHF's way of recognizing the TEAM effort. It was a friendly gesture the IIHF has been doing for decades and Andersson -- on emotion or planned -- decided (key word) to do what he wanted to do, not what he should have done.

Political correctness has ZERO to do with a medal ceremony. Second-place trophies were being awarded in Ancient Greece during a time when people were throwing their own babies over cliffs if they caught a fever and public beheadings were weekly.

 

[PlamsUnlimited]

Earning something and being gifted something are two very different things.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

I like the comparison someone used with the conference finals trophy that no player wants to touch