Brock
Registered User
Just a few thoughts I gathered from the game...
For a team that is very big and seems to be chosen for that purpose and to supposedly intimidate the opposition, that was an extremely weak effort by Canada physically. That was probably one of the least physical games I've ever seen a Canadian WJC team play before. I'm not necessarily saying this is a bad thing or whether it could be a good thing. I'm just stating I was a bit suprised that this team just wasn't very physical out there at all.
The offense seemed totally out of whack, although maybe thats due to the fact that the lines haven't developed much chemistry yet (although it's not exactly like they have much time). Most of the scoring chances were just off lose pucks infront of the net and broken plays that happened to bounce our way. The offensive lines just didn't seem to be clicking very well, it was kind of ugly.
A few player thoughts...
Brent Burns was Canada's best player IMO. He was all over the ice, was one of Canada's only physical players and the time he spent in the NHL seems to have really elevated his game.
The only line for Canada that actually did show a bit of chemistry was the Richards, Dawes and Stewart line which was solid.
Josh Gorges and Derek Meech were brutal today. Lots of giveaways, failures to clear the zone and neither of them could stay on their feet, and seemed to be outmuscled by the Swedish forwards.
Kevin Kleinn was Canada's best defenseman IMO. He was physical and he played a solid game overall.
The Swedish netminder Lundstrom was very solid today. He didn't really make any "flashy" saves but he made the necessary ones. Something that didn't happen last year for Sweden.
Henrik Bloomqvist was very good for Sweden, their top defenseman IMO.
Alexander Steen and Loui Eriksson were Sweden's offense essentially. Both showed why they were top picks in their respective entry drafts. Aside from one nice rush, Robert Nilsson didn't really impress me at all.
Salomonsson (spelling?), who's available for 2004 draft, was very impressive IMO. He seems like a very good all around forward, strong on the puck, got good speed. I think he could be a first rounder this year for sure.
Aside from that, I was pretty unimpressed by Canada's performance today. But hey it's only an exhibition game, the first one. Hopefully everything can be ironed out.
I'm sure others have comments....
For a team that is very big and seems to be chosen for that purpose and to supposedly intimidate the opposition, that was an extremely weak effort by Canada physically. That was probably one of the least physical games I've ever seen a Canadian WJC team play before. I'm not necessarily saying this is a bad thing or whether it could be a good thing. I'm just stating I was a bit suprised that this team just wasn't very physical out there at all.
The offense seemed totally out of whack, although maybe thats due to the fact that the lines haven't developed much chemistry yet (although it's not exactly like they have much time). Most of the scoring chances were just off lose pucks infront of the net and broken plays that happened to bounce our way. The offensive lines just didn't seem to be clicking very well, it was kind of ugly.
A few player thoughts...
Brent Burns was Canada's best player IMO. He was all over the ice, was one of Canada's only physical players and the time he spent in the NHL seems to have really elevated his game.
The only line for Canada that actually did show a bit of chemistry was the Richards, Dawes and Stewart line which was solid.
Josh Gorges and Derek Meech were brutal today. Lots of giveaways, failures to clear the zone and neither of them could stay on their feet, and seemed to be outmuscled by the Swedish forwards.
Kevin Kleinn was Canada's best defenseman IMO. He was physical and he played a solid game overall.
The Swedish netminder Lundstrom was very solid today. He didn't really make any "flashy" saves but he made the necessary ones. Something that didn't happen last year for Sweden.
Henrik Bloomqvist was very good for Sweden, their top defenseman IMO.
Alexander Steen and Loui Eriksson were Sweden's offense essentially. Both showed why they were top picks in their respective entry drafts. Aside from one nice rush, Robert Nilsson didn't really impress me at all.
Salomonsson (spelling?), who's available for 2004 draft, was very impressive IMO. He seems like a very good all around forward, strong on the puck, got good speed. I think he could be a first rounder this year for sure.
Aside from that, I was pretty unimpressed by Canada's performance today. But hey it's only an exhibition game, the first one. Hopefully everything can be ironed out.
I'm sure others have comments....
