U.S. names world championship roster

by James Mirtle on Apr 15, 2009 1:41 PM CDT Comment 18 comments

USA Hockey, led by Brian Burke and Ron Wilson of the Maple Leafs, revealed today its early team for the world championships, which begin next Friday in Switzerland:

Goal: Robert Esche, Al Montoya

Defence: Keith Ballard, Zach Bogosian, Ron Hainsey, Jack Johnson, Matt Niskanen, Ryan Suter

Forward: Jason Blake, Dustin Brown, Nick Foligno, Peter Harrold (who's actually a defenceman but is listed up front), Kyle Okposo, Patrick O'Sullivan, Ryan Shannon, Drew Stafford, Lee Stempniak, Colin Stuart, Colin Wilson

The team's assistant GM is David Poile and the assistant coaches are Scott Gordon and Joe Sacco.

Esche has been playing pretty well in Russia, but could be a weak link here, while the team in general has a ton of youth. Blake is the greybeard by a significant margin as only one of two players born prior to 1981.

The team is also not that big, with only one player taller than 6-foot-3 (Hainsey) and only one bigger than 215 pounds (Johnson).

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Uh...

Craig Anderson? Guy had a .924 SV% in 34 games and he’s not on this team? Al Montoya wins 7 AHL games and posts a .885 SV% and gets to go for a 5 game hot streak debut these past two weeks?

What, was Mike Dunham unavailable?

Hockey blogging can't get any flatter.

by saskhab on Apr 15, 2009 2:11 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Anderson said he might skip the Worlds so to not get hurt as he is an UFA coming up

by GoingFiveHole on Apr 15, 2009 3:12 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is that the Colin Wilson that just won a national title at BU? If so, I don’t think he’s ready for this level of competition. He probably will be down the road, but, right now, he has a tendency to puck hog and take stupid penalties.

by J. Michael Neal on Apr 15, 2009 2:18 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

And that makes him less qualified than Jason Blake how?

Hockey blogging can't get any flatter.

by saskhab on Apr 15, 2009 2:30 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

He lacks that veteran savvy.

by J. Michael Neal on Apr 15, 2009 10:17 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The fact that this team is so bad and devoid of names is a testament to the number of good Americans who helped their teams into the playoffs. Although that defense might be good another year or two down the line …

I have a blog too! www.scottyhockey.com
Let's Go Rangers!

by Scotty Hockey on Apr 15, 2009 2:29 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Hey, at least Matt Niskanen is outnumbered by guys whose teams could at least win playoff games in the NCAA.

by J. Michael Neal on Apr 15, 2009 10:20 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Absolutely

on the flip side, its going to be a good experience for the younger guys like Johnson, Wilson, Sutter, Okposo ect.

Look at Al Montoya making the team, watch him end up just being a very late bloomer..

The Manic Ranger

by Ryan McFadden on Apr 16, 2009 11:15 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Let's be honest

This is a try-out for Vancouver. The US never really follows the IIHF Championships at home, so it’s a good opportunity to give as much young talent a taste of international competition as possible.

So sure, they could’ve asked Modano or Craig Anderson to show up. But that might mean that Montoya and Wilson don’t go.

The better question is whether or not Modano and Guerin make the trip to Vancouver or decide to hang it up internationally.

by docciavelli on Apr 15, 2009 2:57 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

Nobody pays attention to the World Championships (unfortunately) so its a good chance for Burke to see what he has in the younger guys.

The Manic Ranger

by Ryan McFadden on Apr 16, 2009 11:16 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The goaltending selection puzzles me. Someone already mentioned Anderson, Quick quickly comes to mind.

If gaining international experience for the Olympics is a targeted outcome, Ryan Miller needs to be in play, unless he is still not fully healthy.

Let’s frame it a little differently,
USA goalies – Esche/Montoya
Finland goalies – Backstrom/Rinne
Does one country have a slight edge here?

As far as the size of the team , is it s key element? Iit’s not like anyone is really going to hit anyone.

by cubanpuckstopper on Apr 15, 2009 3:24 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

The reason Miller isn’t going is that his ankle isn’t really better yet. This Buffalo News article covers Miller, Pominville, and Connolly not taking part. I haven’t seen anything at all about Gaustad even though he was mentioned often enough before the teams were announced.

by PaperBoats on Apr 15, 2009 3:56 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Backstrom’s out with an injury so it’s just Rinne. Besides, Finland’s roster sucks hard enough (it’s increasingly probable that there will be no more than six NHL players) that I doubt that the goalies can save them this time around.

by Malurous on Apr 16, 2009 1:25 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m told that it’s a testament to the number of good Finns who helped their teams into the playoffs.

I've been looking at the sky

by Back In Black on Apr 17, 2009 9:49 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I really only follow the Oilers...

…but are all of those defensemen actually better than Tom Gilbert? Or did Gilbert decline an invitation?

by sarcasticidealist on Apr 15, 2009 5:22 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

wow

count me as surprised at Stepniak being named to the team…. you’d think Wilson and Burke would’ve had enough of his suckiness after his season in Toronto.

by Karina on Apr 15, 2009 5:52 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs