GDT: World Junior Championships

[dudacek]

2 minutes ago, French Collection said:

My heart is obviously with Canada, I need to find reasons for my brain to back it up.

Goaltending is a wash, Knight is top notch but Levi has been rock solid.

Defense is very close.

Forward lines are in Canada’s favour. I see more scoring depth and they can roll all 4 lines.

Canada needs to stay out of the box because the USA has a deadly PP. They scare me. Discipline will be key.

I think Canada is also hungrier, these guys have been locked in their bubbles since late November. They will come out of the gate hard and the first 10 minutes may set the table. As Bryzgalov said back in the day, they were like gorillas released from the cage.

 

Good take, but the bold is where I differ.

Thrun, Lacombe and, to a lesser extent, Helleson are a step below anyone on Canada.

Byrum and Drysdale (my god, do I love his game) are a step above anyone on the US.

[Brawndo]

The Sabres might be flying Quinn and Cozens in Private  Charter after the game tonight

There’s a flight scheduled  to leave shortly after the game is directly into Buffalo

 

[Brawndo]

 

[dudacek]

48 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

The Sabres might be flying Quinn and Cozens in Private  Charter after the game tonight

There’s a flight scheduled  to leave shortly after the game is directly into Buffalo

 

Marty was hinting this on the Instigators this morning.

Idea being that both are clean, so wouldn’t a clean private jet mean there would be no need to quarantine in Buffalo.

[Eleven]

10 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Marty was hinting this on the Instigators this morning.

Idea being that both are clean, so wouldn’t a clean private jet mean there would be no need to quarantine in Buffalo.

Plus, if they put the two of them in a thermal shipping container at -60C they should be fine.

[Brawndo]

 

Confirmed 

[DarthEbriate]

26 minutes ago, Eleven said:

Plus, if they put the two of them in a thermal shipping container at -60C they should be fine.

It's called carbonite.

[DarthEbriate]

7 hours ago, dudacek said:

Quinn really seems to evolved into the Jochen Hecht of Team Canada: a middle six winger who is trusted in all situations, but is the go-to guy for none: regular shift, 2nd PP, 2nd PK.

I have been disappointed with his offence. He passes the puck surprisingly well and usually makes good decisions with it and supports his linemates positionally; he's earned his assists. But he's just OK carrying it. And he rarely looks like a threat to score. He's only had maybe three good chances in the tourney. We haven't seen his deadly shot at all, and we haven't seen that scorers mindset, where he is driving the net and demanding the puck.

His defence has been outstanding. He is always on the right side of the puck, always covering for the pinching defenceman, always coming back hard and disrupting the rush. He's got an active stick and creates turnovers in both zones. He battles hard always, sometimes with mixed results — stronger defencemen have shut him down in this area. He never cheats — scratch that, he never cheats offensively, but he will peel back and cheat defensively at times where maybe he should have gambled. He goes hard and he gets off the ice.

I'm really left with the impression that he entered the camp with the mindset of a guy on the outside looking in; his coach told him that if he wanted to make the team he was going to have to be as a checker, and he took that to heart.

I love the coachability that shows, if in fact that's what is going on; It makes me think there's an NHL player there. But it does leave open the question of whether he can bring legitimate top-6 offence to the next level.

I have no question that he will put in the work.

I like this read on Quinn.

Would we prefer to have a top-ten pick be an all-world player each and All Star every year? Sure.

But what if instead, he's just a glue guy who makes everything go --- and then throughout the course of the playoffs you look up and... oh, Quinn was on the ice for that game-winning goal, he scored that empty-netter, he wore an A, and at the end of a career you're like --- whoa.... sure, he won't be in the NHL HOF, but he's got his number retired as a Sabre. Those guys are pretty fun, too.

[Taro T]

18 hours ago, Curt said:

That’s a list of good hockey players!  If Cozens can be the type of player who fits in among the rest on that list, I’ll be very pleased.

Hopefully with less similarities to McCourt & post-injury Hodgson than the others.  😉

[Taro T]

9 hours ago, French Collection said:

Gretzky was only 16. He played in the WHA at 17.

Yep.  For about another 15 days.

Must've been more tired last night than realized.  Was convinced last night his B-day was 1/6/60 rather than 1/26/61.  (Where's the friggin' d'oh smiley when you really need it.)

[Taro T]

17 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Zegras is very offensively gifted, but Cozens is a more complete player. Either could star in the final (or both) but I'm happier we have Cozens coming to the Sabres. I've seen every game Canada played and I absolutely love this guy. Can't wait for the day he wears the C in Buffalo, which he will. 

Final will be fast, that's all I can predict. Both teams very skilled and very fast. It's strange to an old timer like me that the North American teams were faster than the European ones. Always used to be the other way around. I think Canada is the better team, and will win, but a hot goalie or a little luck could turn it either way. Should be fun. 

For my tastes, can definitely wait for that day (which will come soon enough if he continues on the current trajectory & Dahlin ends up a quiet leader) because that'll be the day Eichel no longer wears the C.

The journey to get him & the team to just this point was too arduous & painful to wish it being in the rear view window sooner than it has to be.  My 2 cents.

[Eleven]

15 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Yep.  For about another 15 days.

Must've been more tired last night than realized.  Was convinced last night his B-day was 1/6/60 rather than 1/26/61.  (Where's the friggin' d'oh smiley when you really need it.)

The section of your brain that you use for this stuff, can I have it to use for real stuff?

[bunomatic]

Wait wut ? 😳Did I hear play by play say Jackov ? It could be the tinitus .

[DarthEbriate]

Nicely closing it out there, Finland.

Fun factoid just mentioned on the broadcast: Finland and Russia are flying home on the same space transport tomorrow morning.

Edited January 6, 2021 by DarthEbriate

[Ducky]

2 hours ago, DarthEbriate said:

Nicely closing it out there, Finland.

Fun factoid just mentioned on the broadcast: Finland and Russia are flying home on the same space transport tomorrow morning.

Should be some booze consumed on that trip!

[LGR4GM]

Cozens and Johnson both noticeable in this game so far

[Pimlach]

Canada trailing for the first time this tournament.  1-0 USA 

Edited January 6, 2021 by Pimlach

[bunomatic]

Real nice hustle by the U.S. leading up to that goal.

[LGR4GM]

US with tons of pressure while Canada seems to be flat footed.

Results in a goal for USA

[DarthEbriate]

Quinn was pressured into a turnover instead of getting it deep, followed by an amazing US shift... and that's the first 5-on-5 goal surrendered by Canada... in the entire tournament?

[LGR4GM]

US winning just about every puck race currently. 

[DarthEbriate]

It's something like 10-1 in shots US in the last five-six minutes or so.

[LGR4GM]

I don't care for Byfield's game. He just doesn't seem to see the ice well. 

Also do not like Perfetti. Plays soft. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

USA outplayed Canada most of the first, but fun period of hockey.  Zegras 1 Cozens 0

[Eleven]

Normally, if there are that many whistles in the last minute of a period, I think the teams are tired.  But these are kids who probably are hopped up on orange slices and Capri Sun, and it's only the end of the first, so what gives?