NDFlyer

Going into the tournament I thought USA was extremely weak in the net. The last two games, however, have shown that creating offense and scoring goals is a much bigger concern than defense or goaltending. I have always thought that the rink size is irrelevant when there is this much talent on the ice. Talent is going to win on any size sheet of ice. Blake and Cullen? The team needs a hell of a lot more than these two guys up front. In the large scheme of things Blake and Cullen are very average players. On the other hand, it would difficult to imagine any team which has the scoring depth and talent as the Canucks and they have been shut out in two straight games. Who knows the answer? The most impressive thing thus far in the tournament, to me, has been the penalty killing abilities of most teams. Even on the "big ice" the defensive players get to the puck in a nano second.

I'm with redwing77 on this one in all aspects. Enough of the "no practice" crap. These guys have been playing hockey since September and have 55 NHL games under their belts. This is freekin LATVIA, fellas. LATVIA!! Not a world power in hockey. How many practices do you need before you can beat them? If you simply go through the motions you are going to lose especially in this type of tournament. There is no excuse for that tie and there is no excuse for not having Ryan Miller on the team. Grahame, DiPietro and Robert "Red Light" Esche ain't gonna cut it.

Lotysz could not have been more accurate. Radke kicked that guy's a$$. Twice his size and got totally bitch slapped. Near the end the big pu$$ even had his jersey and pads off and was in a great position to really throw 'em instead he skated away from a guy half his size. What a wuss. Dude should quit the game. The most important thing about the way this weekend ended is not only the 4 points. They stood up for one another and fought -- literally. Things such as this works wonders for chemistry regardless of what the deluded anti-fighting crowd may believe.

Ovechkin is better than Crosby in every aspect of the game. The only things he doesn't seem to do as well as Sindee are (1) pass the puck and (2) cry. But with a shot like his he has no need to ever pass the puck. His shot is as deadly as any set up.

Yeah, you're right. It's those French goalers with wierd first names which always gets me.

Besides the play of the Penguins defense this year this incident is the funniest of the season. Apparently Jocelyn Thibeault said to the guy, "Take your best shot." The only way it would have gotten funnier is if Souray or someone like that had taken a run at him.

The very same Bob MacKenzie who proclaimed the US were "overwhelming favorites" to win the gold this year. Two years in row without a medal. Everyone is looking for an excuse. Perhaps the teams were simply not good enough to win a medal.

Yes. Those names are easy to forget. Fortunately, we have the second coming of Pelle in Antero Nittymaki.

Bernie Parent, Pelle Lindbergh and Ron Hextall. The three greatest of all Flyers backstoppers. Awesome!

Kessel really does remind me of Jagirl. He doesn't backcheck and waits outside the blueline for the rest of the team to do the dirty work.

TSiouxnami, Funny you raise the subject. In Philly, Jagr is known as Jagirl. While in Pitts he had a reputation of quitting in games against the Flyers and never really seemed to hurt the Flyers as much as some other players. For some reason, the most worthless piece of crap defenseman to ever play the game, Chris Therien, has always been able to shut down Jagirl in Philly. Makes no sense but it is true. For the record, Jagr is just slightly behind Darcy Tucker and Martin Havlat in the category of most despised opponent in Flyerland.

This sums it up. Good post. I laughed when Bob MacKenzie said USA were "overwheming favorites." LOL! For a team with supposed offensive talent they scored 5 goals in the final three games; the games in which goal scoring was truly needed.

We follow Steve Downie closely on the Flyers message boards since he was our first overall pick in 05. No doubt he is one of the chippier/dirtier players in major junior hockey but it does not seem as if Johnson's elbow was justified after having exchanged a couple of little slashes. Hard to believe he wasn't suspended. Downie is no stranger to cheap shots. Before he was traded he cross checked a teammate in practice for, he claimed, not properly running a drill, although there is some speculation the incident was related to some off ice hazing. Dude lost some teeth over that one. Frankly, Johnson's move was gutless. If you don't like the slash then drop the gloves. Settle it like men. In sum, Downie is no stranger to cheap shots, but he probably didn't deserve that one. He claims he is ok and has been hit harder. lol!

LOL. I can tell you why Borque did not do that last year: they did not play freekin NORWAY! Who is next on the chopping block? Western Walsh County Outdoor Bantam League champs?

True dat. I am a pi$$ poor hockey fan and am the first to admit it. I enjoy a loss by the rangers, devils or leafs more than a Flyers win. I understand that it is a psychological problem or even perhaps, pathological, but I cannot control it.

I agree with everything you have said; except for th respecting NJD part.

Call it whatever you want to call it, Rat. It's all true.

I don't mind that you hate disagreeing with me but please find another reason! Not sure why a redwings fan would care that I hate the debbies. To me it is perfectly natural. Re: debbies news. In addition to some scoring depth it also appears they are in need of a head coach. Word around the campfire is that Robinson has decided to hang it up in NJ.

Redwing, Something is wrong with the entire debby roster. They have no legit first line players. Mogilny is clearly on the downside of his career. Gomez is most certainly NOT a first line NHL center. Elias is doubtful for the season and it remains to be seen whether or not he will ever be able to be the player he once was in this league. Gionta is having a decent season considering the debby state of affairs but, still, his numbers do not compare to the big time first line players in the league. Their "dynasty" , if you will, was based upon defense, clutching, grabbing and tackling forwards. Gone are the anchors of their defense. Their blueline now consists of very average players. Unless Blowdeur can conjure up a way to score 3-4 goals per game himself the deborahs are going to miss the playoffs. Frankly, I find it ammusing as hell. Big Lou, in spite of his past alleged moments of genius, has done nothing to make this team a contender.

Take some time and realize the good things that happened. The Sioux played horribly, yet were only 2 blown calls away from getting ties against a team that supposedly played its "best of the year."

I agree with IRanger. Walt Kyle's theory is sound. It is true you need a physical presence and/or a guy who can check and shut down the opponent. You need this type of player on any team regardless of whether it is a short tourney or a long season. The question is, "Why Paukovich?" I just don't see him as being this great physical presence or a grea defensive forward. USA Hockey seems to be somewhat mesmerized just because of his size.

If a player such as Paukovich makes this squad one has to question the depth of the team. If depth is an issue (as well as goaltending as far as I am concerned) then how can Team USA be considered a "heavy" favorite? Do decscirbe them as a "heavy" favorite is totally absurd.

USA are heavy favorites? ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!!! They might actually win a medal this time, but there is no way they win the gold. LOL.

I wouldn't read too much into the whole Tallackson/Parise thing. Except for Gionta nobody on the debbies is having a good season offensively. Rookies are sat every once in a while for a variety of reasons. Some rookies are brought up and given some ice time just to see what they can do while the staff has no immediate plans for them staying up on a permanent basis. It's really nothing more than some experimentation. The debbies have had their 10 year run. They are now a less than mediocre team and I am enjoying every minute of it.