Hockey

[yellowperil]

I'm proud to be a Canucklehead tonite after such a great Olympic hockey game between two great Countrys. Well done to both teams.

[1990C4S]

The cream rises to the top.

It was close, but the best team won. Without Miller it was a blowout.

[911nut]

Careful there canucks, don't break your own arms patting yourselves on the back too much.
Enjoy this while you can because in 10 years time you will be losing to Mexico. The number of kids playing hockey in Canada is dwindling. With the shrinking talent pool, Canuckastan will cease to be a world hockey power soon.

[billybek]

From the Olympic thread.
"Wow, that was a game that was up for grabs. I am very happy with the result.
Looking back to the round robin game with the USA, our friends to the south may not know that the mood in Canada after that game could be likened to being in mourning. It is that important to us.
To see the players the hockey talent from Canada drained off to support (in my opinion) a watered down National Hockey League that has more teams than can be supported by small market southern teams, it is a burr under our collective saddles that the local teams have difficulty competing due to financial reasons.
That is why we get a bit bent out of shape on this. There was a shot of the Canadians serving in Afghanistan with a sign that said "Brothers in arms, but not on the ice." Pretty much says it all.
To take nothing away from the talent and the drive of the team from the USA, it very well could have gone either way. Congrats too, by the way for winning the total medal count.

Cheers!"
__________________
Bill K.
"I started out with nothin and I still got most of it left...."
83 911 SC Guards Red
04 GMC 3/4 ton Longbox
06 Blurr Lt Full Polish XTR

[rattlsnak]

yeah, it was a great game for sure... i dont mind losing to Canada.. much better than losing to Finland or such.. LOL...

[ZOO]

Originally Posted by 911nut

Careful there canucks, don't break your own arms patting yourselves on the back too much.
Enjoy this while you can because in 10 years time you will be losing to Mexico. The number of kids playing hockey in Canada is dwindling. With the shrinking talent pool, Canuckastan will cease to be a world hockey power soon.

Got any sources for this? Not the back-patting -- that's obvious. But a shrinking talent pool? Not from what I can see. Sweden, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Finland all have far fewer players in their minor systems, due to the size of their populations. The size of their talent pool is small, but it hasn't stopped them from strong hockey performances.

Anyway, you should be aware that sour grapes make poor a poor "whine".

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by 911nut

Careful there canucks, don't break your own arms patting yourselves on the back too much.
Enjoy this while you can because in 10 years time you will be losing to Mexico. The number of kids playing hockey in Canada is dwindling. With the shrinking talent pool, Canuckastan will cease to be a world hockey power soon.

There is nothing wrong with basking in success. We had the best team, America had the best goalie. Of the twenty or so players on the U.S. team five (at most) could have mad Team Canada, Ryan Miller, yes, maybe Patrick Kane (skilled but invisble today), maybe Parise (Cdn offspring) maybe one other. You don't have a Crosby. Or a Nash. Or a Neidermeyer.

The Americans played well, they ran out of horses after riding their top ten players for the entire second half of the game. Canada rode 12 forwards, not six. And six or eight D, not four. No shame in losing in OT. But they did lose.

As for the suggestion that our hockey base is dwindling, I can assure that is so far from reality that it doesn't deserve a reply. Every single municipality has one problem with ice rinks: too much demand, and not enough ice time.

No doubt other countries are catching up, I hope so. It only helps grow the game. Bring it.

[1990C4S]

And if we had the choice of first place in the medal count OR a single gold in hockey, there is no doubt which we would choose. It matters to us, so, sorry if we celebrate too exuberantly.

[BeyGon]

Nothing wrong with basking in success, how many medals did the U.S. win?

[p911dad]

That was one of the better hockey games I've seen, those guys played their hearts out! It was so close that you couldn't really determine which team was the best by play, but the winner is the measure of the best, so congrats to the Canucks!

[ZOO]

Originally Posted by BeyGon

Nothing wrong with basking in success, how many medals did the U.S. win?

37 -- which is laudable, and a huge hats off to our American friends for such incredible success. I don't think anyone predicted the success of Team USA in terms of medal count -- everything I read suggested that it would be Canada and/or Germany leading the medal count.

[911boost]

I don't think Kane was invisible today, unless of course you aren't counting the assist he got on the first goal.

I also don't think there needs to be any bashing going on, both were great teams, and in case the Canadians forgot, the US beat them 5-3 a week ago. A difference bounce of the puck at just about any point in that game could have resulted in a different outcome. That's why the Stanley Cup, World Series, etc, are all more than one game. Typically the better team can prove it during a series. Utilizing that logic, we are heading into game 3 all tied up! God, how awesome would that be, to see more hockey like we say throughout the tourney! I also enjoyed watching guys that are bitter rivals, play on the same team.

Luongo didn't have a very good game tonight, and really should be thanking Sid the Kid for ending that game when he did.

I'm off to my adult league hockey game right now, and will be lacing em up and enjoying a sport I love.

Bill

[Christien]

What a phenomenal game! Wow, I haven't enjoyed a game that much in a long time. The 2nd US goal was just heart-wrenching! But Crosby's goal made everything better. That's what hockey should be like all the time! Nothing left on the table.

[911Rob]

You know in Speed Skating the difference between gold and 5th place is less than 1/10th of a second..... wow. Today, we saw the exact same thing happen in hockey. Excellent game by both teams; that's how hockey should be played.

And yes, I am a proud Canadian!

As for our talent.... oh please!!! There are "3" outdoor hockey rinks within 2 blocks of my home and it's a BIG Country. Ha, Ha. There won't be any end to our hockey playing production to Mehico. Ha!

Congrats USA, you should be proud of your Teams!

[CurtEgerer]

Originally Posted by 911Rob

As for our talent.... oh please!!! There are "3" outdoor hockey rinks within 2 blocks of my home and it's a BIG Country. Ha, Ha. There won't be any end to our hockey playing production to Mehico. Ha!

And look what was going on here in Michigan yesterday. Chris Osgood coaching the American neighborhood kids on his backyard rink. I wonder if he'll lose his Canadian citizenship for this treasonous act?

[911nut]

Originally Posted by ZOOMiata

Anyway, you should be aware that sour grapes make poor a poor "whine".

Sour grapes?
I've been a lifelong hockey player and coach. Got schooled many times by Canadian teams, even had one game I was winning stolen by the officials.
Let's face it: Canada doesn't like to lose to any other country and will do almost anything to prevent the "erosion" of their supremacy on the ice. Comments like the best team won, well, the team finally showed up in the nick of time and barely won. I guess that stings just a little.
As for my source about the shrinking hockey demographics, it's none other than cbc.ca/hockey. Do a search of the site and you will find it, around 3-4 years ago. Makes sense due to Canada's recent immigrant population.

[911nut]

I just want to add my observation on the game:
It was obvious that Canada had better skill players and this was very apparent during the overtime, where skill will win out in a 4 on 4 format. My feeling was that if the U.S. were to win, it would have to be in regulation and it turns out I was right.
Luongo looked nervous (his glove not being precise was a good indication) but the team was able to cover that up.
My comment about Mexico was no smart-a$$ crack: hockey is the fastest growing sport there, believe it or not. The Mexican national team plays all the minor pro and Major junior teams in Texas every year in an effort to improve.
Canada will need to bring a younger team to the next Olympics so it will be interesting to see how they fare. I think it will be increasingly difficult for one country to dominate the Olympics as the talent pool is now worldwide.
Anyway, congratulations to Canada on the gold and see you in 4 years.

[flatbutt]

Congratulations to Canada for the win. Congratulations to the USA for showing what grit and determination look like in winning silver. I'm sure Ovie would have liked the chance to go for gold/silver.

Interesting that the gold/silver/bronze went to Canada/USA/Finland in both men and women.

Ever since I was playing as a boy and then as a collegiate, the US/Canada hockey connection has been celebrated as one of the best rivalries ever. As the the sign said" brothers in arms but not on the ice". Thats awesome!

Let the pinheads bring up politics and economics. Leave the glory of true sportsmanship to the athletes and their supporters.

Only gold is gold but silver ain't no consolation prize.

[HarryD]

I have not watched hockey for a long time, but the US/Canada game reminded me why I really enjoy the game and need to go more often.

Congrats to the Canadians for winning at home. And congrats to the US for making the show was worth the watch.

[creaturecat]

Originally Posted by BeyGon

Nothing wrong with basking in success, how many medals did the U.S. win?

You seem to be the one Asshat in all the Olympic threads.
Go away. Bash something else.
Please.