“In worldwide events, they’re the team to beat”, said winger Max Pacioretty.
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Looking slow of foot and thought, Team USA made a dubious entrance into the World Cup of Hockey tournament losing to Team Europe, 3-0, at Air Canada Centre.
You want to add motivational fuel to an already blazing fire?
Canada’s next game will come against the U.S. (0-1) on Tuesday. Sep.
Pundits have seen this one coming for a good long while, ever since John Tortorella was hired as coach a year ago. Tortorella also opted to scratch Dustin Byfuglein, the team’s highest-scoring defenseman, for the opener. And they got one. When player selections started in January, there were eyebrows raised.
Sep 10, 2016; Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Team USA forward T.J.
As it turned out, Kessel couldn’t play anyway after hand surgery. Think about how much extra revenue European soccer leagues or Asian baseball leagues make with ads all across their uniforms, or in certain cases naming teams after sponsors. Jack Eichel, Johnny Gaudreau, Auston Matthews, Dylan Larkin and Seth Jones sure would have looked good in this lineup, wouldn’t they?
In the dying minutes of the first, U.S. finally got some sustained offensive-zone time, but the period would end in their own end, decidedly advantage Europe after one. Lose another and you can forget a spot in the semifinals.
The only thing Team USA should be upset about regarding the Derek Stepan disallowed goal was the way it shifted momentum in their loss to Team Europe.
The Canadians next game comes against the Americans on Tuesday night.
“I think we understand the position we’re in”, Crosby said.
Team USA’s next game is against Canada on September 20th, and is a must win if they hope to remain in the tournament. Its a spot we did not want to be in.
“It’s a spot we didn’t want to be in, it is a very risky spot but we are here”. “We’ve put ourselves in the spot where we’re chasing the tournament”. “Our path is more hard now, but we’ve got a good group and we’ll spend the next couple of days getting ready for our game against Canada”. It played twice more in the second period, including after Draisaitl’s goal, which came on a rare 2-on-0 break with Team USA defenders barely trying to catch up.
Hockey-wise, Team Europe is a group of older strangers at an airport.
Team Europe did an excellent job of stifling USA’s speed and taking advantage of their own, pouncing mercilessly on turnovers throughout. Yes, a 2-on-0. As if it was some rookie tournament in HarborCenter. Draisaitl knew to expect a pass back on an uncontested give and go, making the most of a pro hockey rarity.
“I’ll definitely take the fault on that one”, Kane said. Thats a play (controlling the puck at the blue line) Ive made a million times in my career.
“That line was great, they were buzzing, they were working and you have to do that to be the best in the world and I guess that’s why he is”. “We’ve got to up our level and up our game”. “We’ve got a lot of work to do”.
Kane had four shots on goal in the game but none of them were particularly risky.
There was desperation in the Americans’ game, but only in the third period when the outcome was inevitable.
While Crosby would be denied by Michal Neuvirth that time he would still open the scoring near the midway mark of the first period when he took the puck from behind the net and cleverly flicked it in off the back of the Czech goalie to send the two-time defending Olympic champions on their way.
Tortorella bemoaned his team’s lack of quality scoring chances and he was mostly right.
The Americans like to think that production can be spread around, but theyre looking at Patrick Kane, the 2016 Hart Trophy victor and one of the niftiest players in the sport, to lead the charge.
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US came out flat and miscues buried them with a quickness.
