And when I said, clearly, "It's not entirely their fault," that's what I meant. But to completely absolve the players who are given the most opportunities to make a difference is to ignore what sports is all about.

"Unfairness" is a part of sports. It's not fair that Hall of Famer Charles Barkley has to listen to Kenny Smith talk about championship rings. It's not fair that Alexander Ovechkin scoring 60-plus goals isn't enough for Jeremy Roenick and Mike Milbury to get off his back.

It's not fair that Peyton Manning gets criticized for "only" winning one Super Bowl. It's not fair that Donovan McNabb gets blamed for the Eagles not winning a Super Bowl.

Nobody on the ice today had a ton of room. But at the end of the day, if you're out there on the power play and getting the most ice time, you are being counted on to find a way to work through that.

When Giroux wasn't scoring earlier this season, of course it wasn't fair. But you know what? He will be making $8 million-plus next year. Unfairness is part of that deal. Nobody expects Adam Hall to put up 80-plus points. Nobody expects Adam Hall to score when he's up against a No. 1 defense pairing.

I wasn't "essentially" blaming anyone. I was stating, to the best of my ability, that it was unfair to expect Dustin Brown and Ryan Callahan to be the best players on this edition of Team USA and that the players who are in their primes -- the JVRs and Patrick Kanes of the world, the players who are on the PP and the Top 2 lines and receive the most ice time -- needed to be the USA's best players against a team like Canada if they were going to win this game.

I didn't say a single thing that isn't true. Sweden's not going to beat Canada if Erik Karlsson isn't one of their top players. They're not sitting there expecting 37-year-old Daniel Alfredsson to find a way, no more so than Team Finland is going to be expecting Lasse Kukkonen to be their best defenseman against Team USA.

If your best players aren't your best players, then you lose. Picking an argument about that doesn't change that fact.
- AllInForFlyers

Lots of offensive firepower on that team. I don't see why it's just about 2 players. They call it a team for a reason.

Mark Edwards ‏@MarkEdwardsHP
Anthony Stolarz was back on the ice today. Probably back in games in a week or two according to Dylan Hunter #ohl

Kunitz drags them down
- PhillySportsGuy

he came close a bunch of times today and was hitting well

Lots of offensive firepower on that team. I don't see why it's just about 2 players. They call it a team for a reason.
- MJL

This board is funny at the various contortions people take in order to make sure some people always have something to disagree about.

The U.S. got shutout today. But I guarantee if I said, "JVR and Patrick Kane were dominant on CorsiFor today, can't believe they didn't score" the same people arguing right now would find some way to back-flip and say "well, they didn't score and that stuff doesn't mean anything."

Well, I did "watch the game" today. JVR and Patrick Kane were invisible. But evidently, you can't say that either. Because somebody's always gotta stick their hand in the air and tell you what you didn't see.

he came close a bunch of times today and was hitting well
- stayinthefnnet

The much-maligned Chris Kunitz was far more noticeable than many Team USA forwards today, unfortunately.

This board is funny at the various contortions people take in order to make sure some people always have something to disagree about.

The U.S. got shutout today. But I guarantee if I said, "JVR and Patrick Kane were dominant on CorsiFor today, can't believe they didn't score" the same people arguing right now would find some way to back-flip and say "well, they didn't score and that stuff doesn't mean anything."

Well, I did "watch the game" today. JVR and Patrick Kane were invisible. But evidently, you can't say that either.
- AllInForFlyers

I did not see the game, so I don't know who played well and who didn't. But what I do know is that one player out of how many scored a goal today? There's a lot of good players out there, including Ryan Callahan and Dustin Brown. To let them off the hook because they're not "supposed" to score or carry a team, is denying that Hockey is a team game. Every player on Team USA and Team Canada is a top player.

Canada totally dominated that game from top to bottom. Quick played very well though.

Olympics are dumb. Who gives a poop?

NEXT

The much-maligned Chris Kunitz was far more noticeable than many Team USA forwards today, unfortunately.
- AllInForFlyers

the line of him crosby and bergeron was a force. they managed to have the puck in the offensive zone the entire time. quick stoned them of at least 3 or 4 really good chances.

i dont even think USA forwards were that awful though. canadas defensive group is just that ridiculous. when you have that top four and then throw a guy like toews up top, its pure suffocation. kessel had some good rushes. parise left a little to be desired. canada just seemed to dominate possession and the defenders kept USA way too much to the perimeter.

Olympics are dumb. Who gives a poop?

NEXT
- feelingkettle

You know what? You're right. Arguing about this stuff is a waste of time.

Seravalli had a nice piece on Ghost today -- it was interesting. Sounds like he's having fun playing in college, but from how I read it, he kinda knows that turning pro after the season is kinda what is expected.

the line of him crosby and bergeron was a force. they managed to have the puck in the offensive zone the entire time. quick stoned them of at least 3 or 4 really good chances.

i dont even think USA forwards were that awful though. canadas defensive group is just that ridiculous. when you have that top four and then throw a guy like toews up top, its pure suffocation. kessel had some good rushes. parise left a little to be desired. canada just seemed to dominate possession and the defenders kept USA way too much to the perimeter.
- stayinthefnnet

Just excuses, man -- Latvia found a way to score against Canada.

You know what? You're right. Arguing about this stuff is a waste of time.

Seravalli had a nice piece on Ghost today -- it was interesting. Sounds like he's having fun playing in college, but from how I read it, he kinda knows that turning pro after the season is kinda what is expected.
- AllInForFlyers

Yes. I wonder if he will be JVRed if he is not set on turning pro. i.e. get labeled with "lack of commitment" or some other dumb poop.

Just excuses, man -- Latvia found a way to score against Canada.
- AllInForFlyers

i realize its inciting the boo birds, but id rather see crosby captain canada to a gold than the USA win it.

at least now i wont have to hear about hockey from people who have absolutely no idea what theyre talking about because its in vogue.

regardless of the score, USA put up a night and day better fight than latvia. latvia resorted to simply collapsing all 5 guys in front of the net. USA at least attempted to be competitive, and lost 1 0 on a tough deflection goal.

Yes. I wonder if he will be JVRed if he is not set on turning pro. i.e. get labeled with "lack of commitment" or some other dumb poop.
- feelingkettle

That's gotta be the fear -- it was odd. He seemed like he knows what the deal is -- he's aware that spots could be available and he sounds like he is competitive and know what it means to compete for one...but then a quote later, he would talk about how much he enjoys school.

It must be really tough for some of those guys, to leave what they know and go to someplace where you have no clue how it's going to shake out.

i realize its inciting the boo birds, but id rather see crosby captain canada to a gold than the USA win it.

at least now i wont have to hear about hockey from people who have absolutely no idea what theyre talking about because its in vogue.

regardless of the score, USA put up a night and day better fight than latvia. latvia resorted to simply collapsing all 5 guys in front of the net. USA at least attempted to be competitive, and lost 1 0 on a tough deflection goal.
- stayinthefnnet

Bull. You know it was outright 100% pure domination by Canada and that the US was just happy to be there. Like all of the Canadian bloggers on here said, it was a foregone conclusion that Canada would win easily.

It seems to be the nightmare scenario for the brass... one shot away from the goal medal game against their arch-rivals... and they decided to leave the best US goal-scorer at home.

Meanwhile, Blake Wheeler sees less ice than Jay Rosehill (1:35).
- Tomahawk

I know. Ryan deserved to be there. Im not sure how having Wheeler helped the team. I didn't even realize you could play with 13 forwards. They could have benched Ryan when ahead if they hated his defense that much.

Bull. You know it was outright 100% pure domination by Canada and that the US was just happy to be there. Like all of the Canadian bloggers on here said, it was a foregone conclusion that Canada would win easily.
- jmatchett383

this is one of those times when i cant tell if youre being serious or not. im going to travel down the path of no.

This board is funny at the various contortions people take in order to make sure some people always have something to disagree about.

The U.S. got shutout today. But I guarantee if I said, "JVR and Patrick Kane were dominant on CorsiFor today, can't believe they didn't score" the same people arguing right now would find some way to back-flip and say "well, they didn't score and that stuff doesn't mean anything."

Well, I did "watch the game" today. JVR and Patrick Kane were invisible. But evidently, you can't say that either. Because somebody's always gotta stick their hand in the air and tell you what you didn't see.
- AllInForFlyers

Why don't you try finding some middle ground? No one is saying Kane and JVR lit the world on fire today, but it's ridiculous to call them out as the reason they lost.

Sixers starters tonight

MCW
Elliot Williams
Thad Young
James Anderson
Arnett Moultrie

And when I said, clearly, "It's not entirely their fault," that's what I meant. But to completely absolve the players who are given the most opportunities to make a difference is to ignore what sports is all about.

"Unfairness" is a part of sports. It's not fair that Hall of Famer Charles Barkley has to listen to Kenny Smith talk about championship rings. It's not fair that Alexander Ovechkin scoring 60-plus goals isn't enough for Jeremy Roenick and Mike Milbury to get off his back.

It's not fair that Peyton Manning gets criticized for "only" winning one Super Bowl. It's not fair that Donovan McNabb gets blamed for the Eagles not winning a Super Bowl.

Nobody on the ice today had a ton of room. But at the end of the day, if you're out there on the power play and getting the most ice time, you are being counted on to find a way to work through that.

When Giroux wasn't scoring earlier this season, of course it wasn't fair. But you know what? He will be making $8 million-plus next year. Unfairness is part of that deal. Nobody expects Adam Hall to put up 80-plus points. Nobody expects Adam Hall to score when he's up against a No. 1 defense pairing.

I wasn't "essentially" blaming anyone. I was stating, to the best of my ability, that it was unfair to expect Dustin Brown and Ryan Callahan to be the best players on this edition of Team USA and that the players who are in their primes -- the JVRs and Patrick Kanes of the world, the players who are on the PP and the Top 2 lines and receive the most ice time -- needed to be the USA's best players against a team like Canada if they were going to win this game.

I didn't say a single thing that isn't true. Sweden's not going to beat Canada if Erik Karlsson isn't one of their top players. They're not sitting there expecting 37-year-old Daniel Alfredsson to find a way, no more so than Team Finland is going to be expecting Lasse Kukkonen to be their best defenseman against Team USA.

If your best players aren't your best players, then you lose. Picking an argument about that doesn't change that fact.
- AllInForFlyers

How dare you demand the top scoring players for Team USA to step up and score in the biggest game of the tournament.

It's all Wheeler's fault.


Obviously, nobody stepped up and got the job done, except maybe Jonathon Quick. But, the coaching staff relied heavily on JvR, Kane and Kessel to provide offense, and none of them did today, and JvR and Kane arguably had their worst games of the Olympics.

Pointing that out shouldn't be something that should be criticized, but of course, any opinion voiced is a cause for some to start an argument.

How dare you demand the top scoring players for Team USA to step up and score in the biggest game of the tournament.

It's all Wheeler's fault.


Obviously, nobody stepped up and got the job done, except maybe Jonathon Quick. But, the coaching staff relied heavily on JvR, Kane and Kessel to provide offense, and none of them did today, and JvR and Kane arguably had their worst games of the Olympics.

Pointing that out shouldn't be something that should be criticized, but of course, any opinion voiced is a cause for some to start an argument.
- Jsaquella

Because other parts of the team don't matter. When goals aren't scored, its all the goal scorers faults. When goals are scored against, its the defenseman and goalie's fault.

How dare you demand the top scoring players for Team USA to step up and score in the biggest game of the tournament.

It's all Wheeler's fault.


Obviously, nobody stepped up and got the job done, except maybe Jonathon Quick. But, the coaching staff relied heavily on JvR, Kane and Kessel to provide offense, and none of them did today, and JvR and Kane arguably had their worst games of the Olympics.

Pointing that out shouldn't be something that should be criticized, but of course, any opinion voiced is a cause for some to start an argument.
- Jsaquella

yeah. winnipeg should totally dump him off to the pens for their next two available second rounders

Because other parts of the team don't matter. When goals aren't scored, its all the goal scorers faults. When goals are scored against, its the defenseman and goalie's fault.
- PhillySportsGuy

i dont know if its because im going on an hours sleep or what. but i literally cant tell when you guys are being legitimate or snarky now.

Because other parts of the team don't matter. When goals aren't scored, its all the goal scorers faults. When goals are scored against, its the defenseman and goalie's fault.
- PhillySportsGuy

Every player on team USA shares equal responsibility for not getting it done. The entire team on the ice failed to score a goal. Not just Kane, JVR, and Kessel. It's a team game. Not absolving those 3 players, they share equal blame. Singling out one or two players is scapegoating, in my opinion.

i dont know if its because im going on an hours sleep or what. but i literally cant tell when you guys are being legitimate or snarky now.
- stayinthefnnet

That was snark.

I just hate when people blame the top scorers if goals aren't scored. It is a team game. The forwards rely heavily on the defense for scoring. Its difficult to get offense going when the team's breakouts are terrible.

Everyone was mad at Kane for being 'selfish' and 'trying to do too much' and now they're upset for the opposite.