Team Canada

[Some_Arrogant_Jerk]

I would love to hear about all these guys left off the team because of politics, even this year.

Dumba was cut because he hasn't been good enough in the last year and a half since the tournament and Canada had better defencemen than him. Brossoit cut for the same reason.

They select guys like Hubredeau over Macneil because he is a much better player than him and will do more to help the team win.

Non-hockey (or any sport) prefer to cheer for teams that win. Teams that are good do a lot better job at scoring than some BS team made up of politics.

OK I will indulge you, even though Im fairly sure you simply disagree with the entire concept, and running my perception by you is going to do as much as trying to walk through a wall.

Ill try and stay fairly recent. For starters, I think Myles bell could lead the league in scoring by 50 points and I doubt he would even get an invite. I also think someone like Jaden Schwartz might get a look at before players with the same talent or even more due to the fact he had his story to tell. A sob story angle to the world juniors and another media segment to run...opposed to a player of equal/better talent and no media appeal. Speaking of segments, you got Dougie and Freddie Hamilton and their TSN brother segments, instead of Rattie and his 57 goals on the team, and Weal and his 300 points not even being invited. Do you think those two being brothers factored in keeping them together on the team? I do. You can also include Gallagher more or less having a spot guarenteed on the team last year because of who the coach was...regardless of selection camp performance.

Here is a scenario. If two of the three CHL leagues have a talent level so much higher than the one(lets say the Q), do you make it an entire OHL-WHL team? Or do you have a couple Q guys to "meet the quota"? Because I think by the way they function, that regardless of talent, they will elect the latter option.....well you dont want Quebec to get mad do you? they might not watch!

What about high pedigree players getting invites despite their lacklustre play level at the time, over players who vastly outperform them(ex. Duncan Siemens, Angelo Esposito)? Same could be said about Mackinnon and Droin(though he got hot), who probably werent as good of choices as some further developed 19 year olds. Within that same vein, you have Subban making the team and getting chance after chance to start despite having the worst selection camp of the goaltenders there...even to the point the pet media commented on it. A clear angle with Subban, and also another brother story. Bet the other brother is already guarenteed a spot if he can skate backwards in a few years.

You are sure to find more if you dig deeper, given an open mind. To just dismiss the ideas and say 'oh they are just better, thats all' is kind of a cop out.

[mjw22]

Well said SAJ They could rename the tournament The Bob McKenzie -TSN WJC .The talking head tsn hype gets more brutal every year.

[Fight Guy]

Thank you for that post SAJ. I'm bad for remembering all the players that were and weren't selected from years past, but I know every year there are some question marks. Lots of good examples there!

[lordstanley]

It happens everywhere even when selecting past olympic mens hockey teams

Picking guys like Rob Zaumner and Kris Draper cause there good checking line forwards is a complete joke pick the best damn offensive threats like other countries already

[Bighat]

A checking line has a purpose on na ice, not European ice. I could have selected a better team from my seat at the Brandt center that would have won the wjhc, and it would have included all leagues.

[moon]

OK I will indulge you, even though Im fairly sure you simply disagree with the entire concept, and running my perception by you is going to do as much as trying to walk through a wall.

Ill try and stay fairly recent. For starters, I think Myles bell could lead the league in scoring by 50 points and I doubt he would even get an invite. I also think someone like Jaden Schwartz might get a look at before players with the same talent or even more due to the fact he had his story to tell. A sob story angle to the world juniors and another media segment to run...opposed to a player of equal/better talent and no media appeal. Speaking of segments, you got Dougie and Freddie Hamilton and their TSN brother segments, instead of Rattie and his 57 goals on the team, and Weal and his 300 points not even being invited. Do you think those two being brothers factored in keeping them together on the team? I do. You can also include Gallagher more or less having a spot guarenteed on the team last year because of who the coach was...regardless of selection camp performance.

Here is a scenario. If two of the three CHL leagues have a talent level so much higher than the one(lets say the Q), do you make it an entire OHL-WHL team? Or do you have a couple Q guys to "meet the quota"? Because I think by the way they function, that regardless of talent, they will elect the latter option.....well you dont want Quebec to get mad do you? they might not watch!

What about high pedigree players getting invites despite their lacklustre play level at the time, over players who vastly outperform them(ex. Duncan Siemens, Angelo Esposito)? Same could be said about Mackinnon and Droin(though he got hot), who probably werent as good of choices as some further developed 19 year olds. Within that same vein, you have Subban making the team and getting chance after chance to start despite having the worst selection camp of the goaltenders there...even to the point the pet media commented on it. A clear angle with Subban, and also another brother story. Bet the other brother is already guarenteed a spot if he can skate backwards in a few years.

You are sure to find more if you dig deeper, given an open mind. To just dismiss the ideas and say 'oh they are just better, thats all' is kind of a cop out.

I certainly disagree with the concept, largely in part because I have seen 0 evidence to make me believe in it. I don't think the process is devoid of politics altogether I just think it has little to no effect on the team overall.

Rattie wasn't chosen last year because a large majority of his goals were due to Sven Baertschi and not him. If you have more talented players and select them that isn't politics it is smart team selection. Rattie showed with his play in this tournament that it was a good choice not to have him on the team last year.

Subban played so much better than the other goalies that it made sense to ignore a 4 day stretch and go with the guy who has been good for the past 365 days.

Mackinnon showed some plays of incredible talent that most 19 year olds wouldn't be capabale of and didn't hurt the team in his limited ice time over there. I can't think of a guy available that didn't go that would have been likely to do more.

Seeing the few number of Q guys that have made the team recently I don't think they have a quota at all. It would have been stupid not to bring Hubredeau and Danault was great on the PK and as a defensive player.


I am not just dismissing it as they are better but if they are better than shouldn't they be on the team? And if they are better is there much reason to dig deeper?

There is a heck of a lot of I think and maybe in the post above and very few this guy made the team because of politics when this other guy should have made it based on skill.

[patsdude114]

A prime example of a player who shouldnt of been on this years team but was is Griffin Reinhart over Matt Dumba. Reinhart struggled with the speed of the game on the big ice surface where Dumba can at least skate & has a much better shot then Reinhart as well.

But oh well just another year of question marks of players who were selected over players that would of been better selections.

[Some_Arrogant_Jerk]

I certainly disagree with the concept

And I think thats what it boils down to. You think Rattie was a byproduct of Bartschi, I think otherwise. I think Subban had the spot before camp started due to his last name, draft position, and maybe skin color(just my opinion) you think otherwise. I think that quotas for each league are set in the interest of ratings and political reasons(didnt have to be the Q, could be either of the other two), and...you get the idea.

And though Mackinnon might end up being the best of all these guys, this year he wasnt better than some guys who were cut. And HC would do a disservice by not putting the best team possible on ice. This tournament is about winning, and Canada doesnt need to 'rebuild'(although maybe they should consider that internally).

[mjw22]

I think the way HC runs its program from u-17 all the way up needs over hauled. Way too many cooks in the kitchen I think. If they are serious about winning then hire ppl outside of the CHL to run the program. Ex NHL coaches may be the way to go. Let them set the program systems hire scouts etc and keep it out of the CHL's hands and all the politics. The best go regardless of age draft position or league. Anything less is bulls**t.

[moon]

And I think thats what it boils down to. You think Rattie was a byproduct of Bartschi, I think otherwise. I think Subban had the spot before camp started due to his last name, draft position, and maybe skin color(just my opinion) you think otherwise. I think that quotas for each league are set in the interest of ratings and political reasons(didnt have to be the Q, could be either of the other two), and...you get the idea.

And though Mackinnon might end up being the best of all these guys, this year he wasnt better than some guys who were cut. And HC would do a disservice by not putting the best team possible on ice. This tournament is about winning, and Canada doesnt need to 'rebuild'(although maybe they should consider that internally).

So the fact that Subban was the best goalie of the 4 four in the past year and a half didn't have anything to do with it?