World Cup: Sep 2 GDT - Russia vs. USA

[BruinsGirl]

Wow...just wow! Before the game we (our family) was going to root for US..but young Russian team bought us with their terrific style and skills.

It's a pleasure to watch such a determination and creativity.

Damn Tkachuk!!! How could he run Gonchar like this...I don't know if I want to see him suspended, but it was just wrong.

On the other note...I hope JR will become announcer when he retires. It's fun to hear his remarks.

GO RUSSIA!!! GO USA!!!

P.S. Good job by both goalies. Flyers fans should be proud.

 

[canucks666]

Okay I don't know WHERE This post will apear and on which page, but I actually felt the reffing, while generally good in that they let BOTH teams play, did let the russians get away with some things too much a couple of times.

Like it happened at least 3 times that i was watching and saw something happened and went OH $*** we're gonna get a penalty (i'm russian), but they didn't and i breathed a sigh of relief.


What impressed me about the team was the defense. Forget the individual talent. Russia's always had that and always will. Forget even the TEAM talent. I think they did a great job and much better than in 2002 but that's still not the reason they won.

They won because of their defense. They did a SPECTACULAR job of clearing loose pucks, of tieing up the american players, of winning battles along the boards, and of blocking shots. In 2002 they just relied on khabibulin to be their defense. Not so this year. Granted bryzgalov played really well but it's the defense that was the stars. A while ago I was really scared for the future of the russian defense but now seeing how guys like volchenkov play it's great.



Finally i think it's a GREAT thing that guys like fedorov and mogilny aren't playing. They have nothing to prove and would've been skating around there not caring much. Instead you have guys like frolov and afinogenov who are offensive guys getting extra minutes and they have SUCH jump it's great to see. Meanwhile guys like chubarov are good in a defensive role and wouldn't be on the roster if the bigger stars were there.
Speaking of big stars - i have to give where credit is due to yashin. WHen he was named to the roster I thought it was a bad idea - that he was just a big name and ANYBODY would be better than him - hell - bring tretiak out of retirement and make him play as a forward and it'd be better than yashin. I thought he would be a huge defensive liability and lazy as hell. COuldn't be more wrong. He was hustling HARD, never giving up, trying to steal pucks, everything. But that was a pattern with the whole team - even kovalchuk was playing defense.

I think credit must really go to the coach - offensively and defensively the team played like a unit for 60 minutes.

 

[montreal]

Great game by Russia, who severly outplayed the US, moreso the Canada did imo.

I hate Tkachuk and Gurien for their cheap shots on Gonchar and Andre Markov during the ex. games. what a bunch of pukes.

 

[MisterUnspoken]

Finally a chance for me to see Ovechkin

Finally a chance to see a star goaltender in Bryzgalov, kids got skills....

 

[Fincan]

Finally i think it's a GREAT thing that guys like fedorov and mogilny aren't playing. They have nothing to prove and would've been skating around there not caring much.

I dunno. In the 2002 Olympic semi-final game against the US through the first two periods I thought only 3 players showed up for Russia. I thought these three players were the 3 best players on the ice that night and that they tried extra hard because nobody else was gonna if they didnt step up. (granted Russias last 20 minutes was some of the most dominating hockey played at this level in a game of that importance IMO, too little too late though). Well anyway those three players were Khabibulin, a Dman, Yushkevich I beleive but am not certain (this one is evading my memory), and Sergei Federov who I felt was the best player that night. He has a lot of heart and I cant imagine Feds ever floating around not caring. He is a world class talent, who is only gonna give 100% if he is gonna play.

I didnt see the game so i cannot comment on it. But I surely beleive that Federov would make the Russian even a greater threat and do not see it as a good thing for that team that he is not playing.

 

[Tretiak]

Can anybody please give me a link to a complete box score for this game? I mean something that includes shots per player and plus/minus.

Thanks in advance and good night everyone!

Hey Wilka,

Here is the box score from the game:

http://www.canada.com/sports/hockey....html?id=e347f1ab-4704-4998-a10f-387c5a5aba47


Russia at United States Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul

SCORING 1st 2nd 3rd TOTAL

Russia 0 1 2 3
United States 0 1 0 1

First Period Scoring:
None

First Period Penalties:

A Miller, Usa (tripping), 6:59
S Gonchar, Rus (holding), 9:20
B Hull, Usa (high sticking), 13:13.
Second Period Scoring:
1, Russia, Dainius Zubrus 1 (Oleg Kvasha), 12:20
2, United States, Keith Tkachuk 1 (power play) (Mike Modano, Brian Rafalski), 13:44

Second Period Penalties:

A Kovalev, Rus (tripping), 0:14
AKovalenko, Rus (hooking), 13:32
I Bryzgalov, Rus (delay of game served by S Gonchar), 17:43.

Third Period Scoring:

3, Russia, Alexei Kovalev 1 (Alex Khavanov), 5:05
4, Russia, Viktor Kozlov 1 (Sergei Samsonov), 18:02

Third Period Penalties:

THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: 3, Russia, Alexei Kovalev 1 (Alex Khavanov), 5:05. 4, Russia, Viktor Kozlov 1 (Sergei Samsonov), 18:02. Penalties:A Yashin, Rus (holding), 5:36
A Frolov, Rus (holding, major), 7:19
B Guerin, Usa (slashing), 7:19
K Tkachuk, Usa (boarding), 15:14
I Kovalchuk, Rus (cross checking), 16:17
C Chelios, Usa (cross checking), 16:17
K Tkachuk, Usa (major elbowing), 18:59
B Guerin, Usa (roughing), 18:59
D Zubrus, Rus (roughing), 18:59
D Kasparaitis,Rus (roughing), 19:52.

SHOTS 1st 2nd 3rd TOTAL

Russia 16 13 13 42
United States 4 10 7 21

Other Facts

Power-play Conversions: Russia - 0 of 4, United States - 1 of 9

Goalies: Russia, Ilya Bryzgalov (21 shots, 20 saves; record: 1-0-0).

United States, Robert Esche (42 shots, 39 saves; record: 0-2-0).

Attendance: 16,084

Referees: Brad Watson, Greg Devorski

Linesmen: Brian Murphy,Tim Nowak



You can check out the video highlights here:

http://wch2004.com/highlights/index.html


You can find more great stories and summaries here:

www.russianhockey.us


Cheers!

 

[Tretiak]

On the other note...I hope JR will become announcer when he retires. It's fun to hear his remarks.

Hey BriunsGirl!

I agree with you completely! I really enjoyed listening to JR during the game and I thought he did an amazing job. He definitely has potential as a colour commentator. Great game tonight!

Cheers!

 

[GKJ]

I was impressed with the Russians, obviously. They dominated the play, they ran the Americans up and down the ice. The Americans looked really old really fast and were worn out in the 3rd. This is big time trouble against Slovakia.


Americans are going to want to score some goals as well....

 

[deandebean]

The Russians looked better collectively than they should. This russian team is made of very solid individual talents. But Russian hockey has changed a lot over the last 20-25 years. The most important change has been the demise of the team concept, elevated in the 60's and 70's to levels never seen before, where talented individuals accepted specific roles in a symphony of collective play. After the great Red Army era of the late 70's early 80's, this concept died. Russian players, always gifted individually, thought of themselves instead of the team. It has stayed that way since. The financial incentives being part of the equation.

This team is no different. The individual talent is awesome. Just like in Salt Lake or in the World Cup of 96. The collective game is not exactly its forte, though. The US got sloppy in its defensive coverage. You NEVER, EVER can get beat on a one on one, not at this level of competition. Playing the man instead of the puck is taught at the bantam levels... Ken HItchcock said it yesterday, when asked about the Russians: you cannot let them play individually. They can burn you. You have to force them to commit to the team concept. And there, they have a problem. Which is ironic since Russia was practically the inventor of this concept 40-50 years ago. The US let them handle the 1 on 1 like they were walks in the park. I'm pretty sure the Canadian brass knows better.

Russian teams have been known to being enigmatic. Either hot, either cold. But the real reason behind all this is the fact that most international teams at this pro level have learned how to play them over the last 10 years. Force them to make collective plays by playing an intelligent defensive game and you'll see this bunch falter.

 

[ceber]

Americans were throwing Beer at the Russian bench....hmmmmm

ONE American, who was quickly pointed out to the bench and arena staff by all the other Americans near him, and that tool was escorted out right away. There's plenty of other, decent, hockey-related reasons for the fans on both sides to enjoy the rivalry, we don't need any pot-stirring.

The Russian fans at the game were great tonight. After watching some of the recording after I got home from the game, I could see that they'd cranked the sound down enough that you could hardly even hear them cheering. There were a couple of groups scattered about the arena, and they were into it the whole time. Not that I blame them, the Russian team looked great against us. The US is in trouble if they can't get out of this funk. They need to show up to play at the start, and actually keep some intensity going throughout.

 

[policegopher]

Just got back from the game. Let me just say that the Russian fans are awesome. 2nd, USA Hockey is going to look back at this world cup two years from now and regret that they didn't pick many young guys on this team. Parise, O'Sullivan, Mara, Parrish, etc, should have been selected to get them some more international experience.

I just think that if Herbie was still alive this team would have looked a little different.

Could be the beer talking also, who knows.

Hey Wilson, put in Langenbrunner and Martin against Slovakia,

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Well that was a fun game to watch. It's been mentioned already, but even as an American, I still find it hard to even like, much less get excited about this team. And this isn't just because they dropped the last two, I didn't like many of the selections when the roster was announced.

Anyway, I think I have a solution to the American team's woes...

http://img17.exs.cx/img17/3766/image1-big.jpg

 

[Papa Smurf]

Where exactly does the USA now stand in hopes of winning the tournament?

 

[Papa Smurf]

dp

 

[jerseydevil]

Is Langenbrunner playing? I haven't heard anything about him?

 

[Shoalzie]

I was very impressed with Esche on Tuesday night but the blue line was shredded by Canada's size and speed. The Russians are just as quick and more creative offensively. If the Americans stay out of the box, they should be able to win but I wouldn't want to give Russia open ice. On the other end, Team USA need to get out to a quick start and feed off the home crowd like Canada has been able to in their two victories. I have faith in the Minnesota fans, they'll rival the Canadian fans' spirit...should be a lot of fun tonight.

USA 3, Russia 2

Looks like we shouldn't be taking Russia lightly. They definitely have the skill to win the entire tournament. Team USA's offense didn't post too much of a thread to Bryzgalov, who did play quite well with how few of shots he faced. Kovalev's goal is the goal of the tournament up to this point. The game against Slovakia on Friday becomes huge for Team USA...I don't think they want to see Canada in the first round of the playoffs in Toronto. A win will likely get them Russia again back in St. Paul. Right now, Team USA needs to prove that they are capable of winning a game...letting alone the entire tournament. Esche has been Richter-esque but the team in front of him isn't performing like the '96 and '02 teams did. This looks more like the '98 Olympic team that just looked flat in every game.

 

[Shack]

Hmm... Russia skated over USA. Great game from Russian players. They had more speed and skill than USA, so a well-earned win.

Goal by Kovalev = beauty.

 

[RangsDave]

This is going to be a great game
I like both of these teams but i want russia to win. I won't be upset if they lose though

I'm thinking 5-5 TIE

RUS: ovechkin, kovalchuk(2), datsyuk, kovalev
USA: tkachuk, hull, guiern, amonte, leetch

 

[nomorekids]

Is Langenbrunner playing? I haven't heard anything about him?

he was a healthy scratch in the Canada game, and invisible in the one game he did play in exhibition.

 

[MrMastodonFarm*]

According to the CBC, Ovechkin will be a healthy scratch tonight.

 

[Shack]

It's 2-2 tie. Hopefully we'll see some good hits.

 

[Moskau]

According to the CBC, Ovechkin will be a healthy scratch tonight.

Confirmed: http://tsn.ca/world_cup_hockey/news_story.asp?id=97250

 

[jstreet]

According to the CBC, Ovechkin will be a healthy scratch tonight.

Boo! I was glad that I would finally get a look at this guy's skills. Guess it wont be tonight.

 

[Legionnaire]

Power-play Conversions: Russia - 0 of 4, United States - 1 of 9

It was 1 of 6 not 1 of 9.

 

[syc]

The only way russia has a chance is if the game goes to shoot outs.

5-2 USA!