GDT: Quarterfinal • Finland vs. Canada • Part IV

[NyQuil]

After the winning game it is nothing but unrespectful, but during the intermission I think it was supposed to show confident (I know finns aren't good at this). So in my mind there is a different.

Let's be clear here.

There are two statements:

1. The "******** their pants" comment, during the game.

2. The "Blackwood is a sieve" comment, after the game.

I don't think either comment is really wise, but again, that's my opinion, born in North American hockey culture where you don't poke fun at your opponents in the media during or after the game.

 

[Breakers]

Kids getting shish kabob'd on social media. Whoa

Lowry should be the one getting railed on

 

[FireMelnyk]

Virtanen is no Lazar, that's for sure. I don't know what the coaches were doing as he should have been benched after his penalty last game.

 

[IslesGM]

anyone have video of the strome/ref thing? It's the only thing I haven't seen yet.

 

[NyQuil]

anyone have video of the strome/ref thing? It's the only thing I haven't seen yet.

Strome has some growing up to do.

I'm sure their anger is directed at the refs immediately after the game (judging by some of the interviews), but deep down, they, and everyone who watched the game, know that they repeatedly shot themselves in the foot over and over again.

 

[behemolari]

We're talking about a different comment after the game where he mentioned that a Junior teammate of Blackwood on the Finnish team had called him a sieve.

wow that's no-class seriously you wont say that to your teammate

 

[thepuckmonster]

Virtanen is no Lazar, that's for sure. I don't know what the coaches were doing as he should have been benched after his penalty last game.

I'm not sure why he was expected to be, he was a 4th liner last years tournament.

 

[NyQuil]

wow that's no-class seriously you wont say that to your teammate

Well, it's not a big deal if it's said in the dressing room, which it was.

Not sure why Saarela would bring it up in the interview, but whatever.

I'm really not trying to harp on this, they're just kids out there.

As I said earlier, I don't blame Nattinen for saying it in the dressing room. He probably didn't know that Saarela was going to blurt it out on national television.

It's not as if Canadians haven't made their fair share of dumb comments (e.g. Virtanen - "Personally, I think the refs were a little bit on their side, that's just how I think").

 

[behemolari]

Well, it's not a big deal if it's said in the dressing room, which it was.

Not sure why Saarela would bring it up in the interview, but whatever.

I'm really not trying to harp on this, they're just kids out there.

As I said earlier, I don't blame Nattinen for saying it in the dressing room. He probably didn't know that Saarela was going to blurt it out on national television.

but he was sieve, so was Vehviläinen. finns have no generally sensitive at all, they usually say exactly what thinking. If he wasn't a sieve then that would be interesting.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Virtanen is no Lazar, that's for sure. I don't know what the coaches were doing as he should have been benched after his penalty last game.

Which is funny, since Lazar is throughly mediocre.

 

[Anardil]

Bottom line is that this year's version of team Canada was sub par top to bottom. Coaching was horrible. It reminds me of what I watch every game in Montreal. No bloody in game adjustments. What the hell was Virtanen doing back on the ice after his 3rd period penalties.

Goalies were just poor. IMHO, Hockey Canada has to go back to inviting more goalies and bring the two most deserving. No more inviting just two goalies.

D-corps just vanilla. No one really could be counted on to quarterback the power play. No shut down pair etc. This was really a poor defensive group.

On paper the offence should have been more reliable. Again, Canada never really had a true first line, and outside of Strome, no one played as expected. There was no Matthews, no Jesse P. nor Laine for Canada.

Last point is that this is probably the least disiplined Team Canada I have ever witnessed in this tournament. They talked so much about disipline, but it did not play that way at all.

Finland deserved to win simply because their top players produced, and especially today, they had a coach who actually watched the game and made the necessary adjustments to come out on top.

Congrats to Finland. Good luck for the rest of the way!

 

[NyQuil]

Which is funny, since Lazar is throughly mediocre.

This is true at the NHL level.

But he did manage to produce at the WJCs while Virtanen couldn't.

2014 Canada WJC 4th 7 3 4 7 0
2015 Canada WJC 1st 7 5 4 9 0

 

[FireMelnyk]

Which is funny, since Lazar is throughly mediocre.

Agreed, but at least he picked up 16 points in 14 WJC games and was a difference maker last year as an NHLer in the WJC.

Lazar will probably top out as a quality 3rd liner unless he finds his scoring touch in the next few years.

 

[86Habs]

Agreed, but at least he picked up 16 points in 14 WJC games and was a difference maker last year as an NHLer in the WJC.

Lazar will probably top out as a quality 3rd liner unless he finds his scoring touch in the next few years.

Well, to be fair Virtanen was a difference maker this year.

 

[Loko]

Its getting ridiculous to see North American ref again and again when Finland plays against North American teams.. It kind of looks like conspiracy.

IIHF refs are just bad.

It doesn't matter what country they come from.

I'm not sure why American refs would favour Canada, especially since the Finns play a pretty physical game themselves.

Well, North American refs are not bad, generally. They are just too often too sympathic for their home region. In hockey world, USA & Canada are just like old parts of Soviet Union... Russia, Belarussia, Ukraina etc.

Having US ref when playing against Canada is not quite as bad as having Belarussian etc ref when playing against Russia.. But the difference is not huge.

 

[NeverForget06]

Bottom line is that this year's version of team Canada was sub par top to bottom. Coaching was horrible. It reminds me of what I watch every game in Montreal. No bloody in game adjustments. What the hell was Virtanen doing back on the ice after his 3rd period penalties.

Goalies were just poor. IMHO, Hockey Canada has to go back to inviting more goalies and bring the two most deserving. No more inviting just two goalies.

D-corps just vanilla. No one really could be counted on to quarterback the power play. No shut down pair etc. This was really a poor defensive group.

On paper the offence should have been more reliable. Again, Canada never really had a true first line, and outside of Strome, no one played as expected. There was no Matthews, no Jesse P. nor Laine for Canada.

Last point is that this is probably the least disiplined Team Canada I have ever witnessed in this tournament. They talked so much about disipline, but it did not play that way at all.

Finland deserved to win simply because their top players produced, and especially today, they had a coach who actually watched the game and made the necessary adjustments to come out on top.

Congrats to Finland. Good luck for the rest of the way!

This. Bring 6 guys to camp and let them scrap it out. Cannot just be gifted a spot based on CHL play

 

[NyQuil]

They are just too often too sympathic for their home region.

So Swedish refs favour Finland and Finnish refs favour Sweden?

They're in the same region.

 

[Anardil]

Well, to be fair Virtanen was a difference maker this year.

LOL! Bazinga!

Maybe he has already secretly emigrated to Finland with a nice cabin and sauna in remote Lapland!

 

[BlitzSnipe]

C'mon, these are young Finnish kids on an insane adrenaline high, I don't think anyone should be taking the comments too seriously.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Agreed, but at least he picked up 16 points in 14 WJC games and was a difference maker last year as an NHLer in the WJC.

Lazar will probably top out as a quality 3rd liner unless he finds his scoring touch in the next few years.

Oh that's true, I didn't mean to suggest that Lazar wasn't an effective player in the WJC. I just mean that if Lazar can produce in the WJC and be so mediocre offensively in the NHL, what does that say about Virtanen.

 

[86Habs]

LOL! Bazinga!

Maybe he has already secretly emigrated to Finland with a nice cabin and sauna in remote Lapland!

Sounds pleasant. Probably better than the vilification he'll endure when he returns to Canada.

 

[Vanimal]

You're right, and NHL type coach would never let a bum like Virtanen play as much as he did.

Hell yeah, Virtanen was a joke.

 

[WhatTheDuck]

Not going to read the whole thread because there's enough ridiculousness on this page alone.

Congrats to Finland, the better team won today. I knew this wasn't Canada's year right from the beginning, the blueline wasn't strong enough in terms of quality nor depth. Finland is my pick to win it all, but that will be one heck of a semi final, looking forward to watching it as an impartial fan of the game.

 

[puckluck33*]

Fucale helped Canada win it's 1st Gold medal in 5 years last year,but got very little praise how do you like the goaltending this year.Don ''the idiot'' Cherry will go off on Lowry tonight why because he is not from Ontario.

 

[Juxtaposer]

C'mon, these are young Finnish kids on an insane adrenaline high, I don't think anyone should be taking the comments too seriously.

Don't you know that things said by 17 year old children in the wake of an emotional game are a perfect reflection of a nation's people as a whole???