WJC: 2020 Team USA Roster Talk

[JiggsNY]

This tournament was just vintage USA hockey. Underperforming to expectations. Stubborn coaching valuing grinding over skill, unlucky seeding, and a loss to Finland.

 

[PuckProspects]

One of the worst coaching performances I've ever seen. USA had zero chemistry on any of there lines and the PP which should have been one of the best struggled. Individual talent was apparent but that can only do so much

 

[bennysflyers16]

This tournament was just vintage USA hockey. Underperforming to expectations. Stubborn coaching valuing grinding over skill, unlucky seeding, and a loss to Finland.

See bolded

 

[PuckProspects]

What was the obsession with Drury playing on the second line? How does Boldy not even get a look at camp? Starting Caufield with Drury and Ford?

 

[Smitty93]

The coaching staff seemingly had no idea how to use the players and couldn't make adjustments. Combine that with selfish play and it was a recipe for disaster.

If I'm USA Hockey, I'm seriously considering changing how I pick the coaches and moving away from college. Countries like Russia, Sweden, and Finland have dedicated u20 coaches and they're usually kept on for multiple years.

A team with so many players with extensive time playing together shouldn't have so much trouble playing as a team. I put that more on the coaching, not the players themselves.

 

[Little Psycho]

This tournament was just vintage USA hockey. Underperforming to expectations. Stubborn coaching valuing grinding over skill, unlucky seeding, and a loss to Finland.

We like to call it a tradition.

 

[kabidjan18]

See bolded

This take again? A team with no grinders is accused of overvaluing grinders.

A skill player who is not performing well is not a grinder. He's a poor skill player.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

What was the obsession with Drury playing on the second line? How does Boldy not even get a look at camp? Starting Caufield with Drury and Ford?

0 Reason why drury should have been on Zegras line... you shoulda thrown zegras with Turcotte + Caufield... or pinto/Robertson line

 

[heynowbababooey]

Embarrassing effort again against Finns. USA hockey really have to start figure it out how to play against Finns. This game went just like i expected. It is not acceptable that Finns are dominating us like this. Same story once again against them.

Finns dominated us specially in the last period. Our guys can't keep it together against Finns and then everybody try to create something but you have to play as a team if you want to achieve something.

For me QF is not acceptable anymore for USA Hockey. It should be clear that Sandelin is not going to be there again next year. There is many guys who can return as 19 year old but now i am too frustrated even think about next year.

Guys like Samuelsson and Wahlstrom have faced exit against Finland now three times. Lost two times in finals and now once in QF. Must be frustrated because every game has been similar. Still no answer how to play against them. Now player pool in every age group are really good but our coaching is behind every other top hockey nation and it is massive problem.

Coaches have to figure it out. Canada game was missed opportunity because our best players was bench warmers. Canada game also cost us easy QF opponent and medal round. I honestly rather lose against Canada or Russia in entertaining game than watch these snoozefests against Finns who dominate us with their system. Next year we also need more size. It is still important and it was clear that physicality was a huge problem this year.

We need a Greenway type player next year. It was great to see him protect the puck a long the boards and see other teams desperately try to dig it out.

 

[TheDoldrums]

That 3rd period was horrendous. Every American player trying to dangle the whole Finnish team and turning it over. Repeatedly.

But it never should've been that close. Horrible coaching job, basically every forward not named Zegras was underperforming all tournament and the coach never tried enough different lines combinations to spark something.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

The tournament was over once this coach created these lines. He marginalized his best players, he favored the grinders, and he completely messed up our offense. This team should've at the very least been medaling. There's no reason we should not be making the SF, but this coach earned the team this result. This isn't the NCHC, where this guy coaches. Skill wins at this tournament. USAH is as much at fault as the coach because they picked the coach who had a rigid style that he refused to adjust from.

I don't want to complain about other aspects. It's true that we got the hardest QF game of all the top four seeds and the refereeing in this game wasn't great either, but we should've won this game, regardless, and the team should've never been in this position where a bad Finland team can match us with the same grinding style.

We've now went three years without Gold at this level, and two years without gold at the U18 level. It'll probably be three years without Gold at that level, as well, considering thats not the most talented age group. USAH needs to pick better coaches for these WJC teams. They need to pick coaches that are big on skill, and get rid of the college hockey boys club.

 

[ViD]

I thought Kaliyev was good for the US.

a Russian can’t do any different

 

[stRANGERdanger]

Pretty much everybody had a poor effort today and we had no punch 5 on 5. NONE of our top guys showed anything today. Sure Zegras and Pinto get our top players but they underperformed when it mattered. Miller was abysmal and hard to watch. Turcotte and Caufield were nowhere to be found. Robertson was a turnover machine. Wahlstrom tunnel vision as per usual. Was Kaliyev even playing? Only player that was decent was Knight. Why can't we ever beat the Finns?? F*** it is so frustrating.

 

[Zero Pucks Given]

**** Wahlstrom. A wholly disappointing showing throughout, capped off by his sore loser act at the very end.

 

[Sojourn]

As frustrating as it is, it’s also something that you could see coming. The signs were all there leading up to this point. Coaching was awful, and not enough of the best players were performing, and you have to wonder how much the former contributed to the latter there.

 

[Breakers]

That U18 roster is so overrated.

 

[ASPIFC]

Canada, Russia, Sweden and Finland are going to medal round. It is embarrassing for us. Sweden have to beat Czechs still but it is going to happen.

I am not huge Motzko fan but bring him back. Least he has proven track record and can manage our roster much better. Also i think he is much better coach for kids than Sandelin. Not facts of course but some reason there is a feeling that it could be like this.

 

[kabidjan18]

The tournament was over once this coach created these lines. He marginalized his best players, he favored the grinders, and he completely messed up our offense. This team should've at the very least been medaling. There's no reason we should not be making the SF, but this coach earned the team this result. This isn't the NCHC, where this guy coaches. Skill wins at this tournament. USAH is as much at fault as the coach because they picked the coach who had a rigid style that he refused to adjust from.

I don't want to complain about other aspects. It's true that we got the hardest QF game of all the top four seeds and the refereeing in this game wasn't great either, but we should've won this game, regardless, and the team should've never been in this position where a bad Finland team can match us with the same grinding style.

We've now went three years without Gold at this level, and two years without gold at the U18 level. It'll probably be three years without Gold at that level, as well, considering thats not the most talented age group. USAH needs to pick better coaches for these WJC teams. They need to pick coaches that are big on skill, and get rid of the college hockey boys club.

This continues to be a reference to non-existent entities...

 

[Chazz Reinhold]

It's not officially over until William H. Bonney weighs in.

 

[Chazz Reinhold]

This continues to be a reference to non-existent entities...

You are really full of galaxy-brain takes today. To be fair, Beecher and Drury were essentially non-existent with their offensive capabilities, so you're unintentionally correct. You get a nice pat on the head!

 

[Pez68]

New coaches please. Lots of individual talent, no team game. Was like watching a bunch of 14 year olds play.

 

[ASPIFC]

2017 gold medal team was just so great. They fought until the end. Team had skill, speed, size, good goaltending and everything you need. You can say that effort was bad today but important thing is that they just have no idea how to play against Finland. It has been issue too many times and USA hockey have to figure it out. You can't play like you usually play and coach can't help you out. Of course kids get frustrated.

 

[kabidjan18]

You are really full of galaxy-brain takes today. To be fair, Beecher and Drury were essentially non-existent with their offensive capabilities, so you're unintentionally correct. You get a nice pat on the head!

You are just peddling a thoughtless narrative you favored before the tournament that you'll gladly carry through the tournament. Your take on Bobby Brink being a grinder is one of the most ironically funny things I've read during the duration of this tournament.

Drury and Beecher have never been grinders. To call them grinders is a complete misunderstanding of what the term means.

It cannot be said with enough frequency. A skill player who is playing poorly is not a grinder. He is a poor skill player. The US roster has no grinders. Drury has, at no point, been a grinder in his entire career, whether in the USHL, or in college. If you wanted to pick a grinder, you would pick someone else who actually has the skillset suited for grinding. Drury is a poor skill player. Beecher is also not a grinder. Despite being a big player, if you actually watched the game you would have seen that his choice method of creating offense was trying to go wide with speed and go behind the net, mixed with other things like ill-advised passes. Despite one dirty hit, he was not all over the ice trying to grind out possession and enable his linemates or pressuring the net. Players who play a skill game and play it poorly are not grinders. The bolded is the precise point I am making. When a skill player fails in his capacity as a skill player, he does not become a grinder. If Matt Martin decided suddenly to stop hitting players, he would not become a skill player. Playing poorly doesn't make you a different style of player, it just makes you a bad player at implementing the style you want.

 

[NUhockey]

Tourney Grades:
A: Zegras: What he did with 13min ATOI was remarkable. Emerged as a star playmaker.
Pinto: Consistent two way presence down the middle. Very impressive.
Jones: Kept things buzzing on the back end, loved his style of play.

A-: Emberson: Was a rock defensively, had some quality games.
Robertson: Generated big plays on his own when the team needed a push.

B+: Kaliyev: Great finisher, played hard for the most part
B:

B-: Samuelsson: Showed he's a solid stay at home guy and nothing more.
Harris: Had some messy breakouts but made up for it with good skating/2 way play.

C+: Knight: Ok at best. Solid rebound control but wish a goalie of his caliber made a few more saves
Miller: So inconsistent, I wish we saw more of what he was able to do 3 on 3 in OT vs. CZE.
Brink: Needed to be out there more but didn't play aware enough
Stastney: Very effective in his own end but undisciplined and meh offensively.

C: Hall: Played well against FIN but seemed replaceable early in the tournament.
Beecher: Played physically and created opportunities but just couldn't finish.

C-: Wahlstrom: Yes he had 5 points - but at the cost of selfish, undisciplined play. Honestly thought they would've been better off without him.
Caufield: Just didn't have it this tournament. I don't think he was bad this tournament, but you needed more from him.
Ford: Didn't fit well against European guys.

D: Turcotte: :ghostemoji:
Drury: 4th liner getting big minutes, didn't see it with him.

Not Rated: York, Wolf, Pivonka (too little playing time)

I don't think Sandelin was the right guy for the job here. They needed someone who could produce a twitchy lineup and that's not his style.

 

[Chazz Reinhold]

You are just peddling a thoughtless narrative you favored before the tournament that you'll gladly carry through the tournament. Your take on Bobby Brink being a grinder is one of the most ironically funny things I've read during the duration of this tournament.

Please point out to me where I said that. I'll wait.

Drury and Beecher have never been grinders. To call them grinders is a complete misunderstanding of what the term means.

It cannot be said with enough frequency. A skill player who is playing poorly is not a grinder. He is a poor skill player. The US roster has no grinders. Drury has, at no point, been a grinder in his entire career, whether in the USHL, or in college. If you wanted to pick a grinder, you would pick someone else who actually has the skillset suited for grinding. Drury is a poor skill player. Beecher is also not a grinder. Despite being a big player, if you actually watched the game you would have seen that his choice method of creating offense was trying to go wide with speed and go behind the net, mixed with other things like ill-advised passes. Despite one dirty hit, he was not all over the ice trying to grind out possession and enable his linemates or pressuring the net. Players who play a skill game and play it poorly are not grinders. The bolded is the precise point I am making. When a skill player fails in his capacity as a skill player, he does not become a grinder. If Matt Martin decided suddenly to stop hitting players, he would not become a skill player. Playing poorly doesn't make you a different style of player, it just makes you a bad player at implementing the style you want.

Fine, how about I just call them scrubs relative to the top-end talent on the team? It conveys the same point.