Some thoughts on the recently completed World Junior Championships: 1) Attendance- There were numerous reasons for poor attendance, all mentioned in previous posts -- students on break, games not in central locations, lack of marquee names, etc. I don't think marketing was a major factor; I'm not sure how much more the organizers could have done to get the word out. They used T.V. ads with NHL tie-ins, posters at college rinks, newspaper ads, etc. -- judging from the people in attendance, the organizers had no problem attracting Boston-area hockey folks. If you can't sell out a Team USA game at Matthews Arena, you probably don't deserve to host the tournament again. 2) Jason Botterill and Mike Watt - Like most of the Canadian players, they accepted the role they were given (largely defensive) and worked their tails off to help Canada win the gold medal. Botterill received more ice- time because of his experience in the tournament and was a media favorite. 3) European hockey - One of the most interesting aspects to me was the way the European teams played a different game against Canada and the U.S. compared to games against each other. The bronze medal game between Czech Republic and Russia, for example, was a "no-hitter" with more weave and flow in the attack than dump and chase. The teams were much more patient, usually to their detriment (IMO). The general consensus among the media was that the all-European games were a bit dull. The Canada-Russia game, by contrast, was much more physical and intense. Russia attacked more aggressively and generated many more shots as a result. The European teams have also adapted the North American strategic devise of interference -- Sweden and Finland, in particular, built their breakouts around picks and screens. The international referees never called it, probably because they weren't looking for it. It was also interesting to see the lengths of the European shifts; Sweden was taking 2 to 2.5 minute shifts in the semifinal game against the Czech Republic, but dropped to 1.5 minutes per shift against Canada. 4) Team USA - Minnesota-bound Ben Clymer was the player of the tourney for Team USA, IMO. He didn't play a flashy game on defense, but he generally played mistake-free hockey and showed great poise with and without the puck. No other defenseman, except maybe Mike McBain, came close to matching Clymer's consistency. Up front, Mike Sylvia (one of three USA players of the tournament, along with Bryan Berard and Marty Reasoner) was one of the few players to provide consistent offense. Almost evey forward had his moment of brilliance - maybe Reasoner and Chris Drury more than most others, but they all struggled defensively. Way too many breakdowns in the neutral zone leading to odd-man rushes, particulary in the first three games of the tourney. 5) Composition of Team USA - For all the anti-major junior complaints against Parker, I haven't heard of any player he "overlooked" EXCEPT for Sean Haggerty. Were there others? If not, it just sounds like a problem between Haggerty and Parker. As between the two, I'd tend to believe Parker based on his track record for saying what he thinks. On the other hand, I didn't think Team USA showed anywhere near the cohesiveness of Canada, Sweden, Finland, or Russia. Team USA was often disorganized and flat, but had enough talent to finish 5th - even beating Finland, a very good team, twice. We'll have to see if next year's squad can build on the 3-1 run to end the tournament. Youth and inexperience, as much as anything, hurt the US -- no other top 5 team had as few players born in 1976 (US 11, Czech R. 16, Sweden 16, Russia 15, Canada 15). At least compared to the Canadians, the US also had far less game experience when you consider a Major Junior schedule in contrast to a collegiate schedule. Of course, Berard was the most experienced US player and he was also the least disciplined... Team USA stats (goals-assists-points/PM/plus-minus): Mike Sylvia (2-5-7/39/even); Marty Reasoner (3-2-5/10/-3); Bryan Berard (1-4-5/20/-3); Matt Cullen (3-1-4/0/+1); Chris Drury (2-2-4/2/-1); Mark Parrish (1-3-4/2/-6); Ben Clymer (0-4-4/14/-3); Jeremiah McCarthy (2-1-3/2/+2); Brian Swanson (2-1-3/29/+5); Reg Berg (2-1-3/33/-6); Tom Poti (0-3-3/0/+1); Jeff Farkas (1-1-2/6/-1); Michael McBain (0-2-2/2/even); Matt Herr (1-0-1/0/-6); Mike York (1-0-1/0/-2); Brian Boucher (0-1-1/0/3.55 ga, 88.9%), Wyatt Smith (0-1-1/2/even); Jeff Kealty (0-1-1/6/-5); Erik Rasmussen (0-1-1/16/-4); Marc Magliarditi (0-0-0/0/5.45 ga, 78.3%); Chris Bogas (0-0-0/25/-4); Casey Hankinson (0-0-0/25/-2). All-Tournament Team: Goalie - Jose Theodore (Can) Defense - Nolan Baumgartner (Can), Mattias Ohlund (Swe) Forward - Johan Davidsson (Swe), Alexei Morozov (Rus), Jarome Iginla (Can) Directorate Awards Best Goalie - Theodore Best Defenseman - Ohlund Best Forward - Iginla Team Canada Top Three Players (selected by team officials) Baumgartner, Theodore, Iginla Team USA Top Three Players (selected by team officials) Reasoner, Berard, Sylvia Tournament leading scorers (goals-assists-points) Jarome Iginla, Can (5-7-12) Florian Keller, Ger (4-8-12) Marco Sturm, Ger (4-6-10) Miika Elomo, Fin (4-5-9) Johan Davidsson, Swe (3-6-9) Ruslan Shafikov, Rus (1-8-9) Alexei Morozov, Rus (5-3-8) Dimitri Nabokov, Rus (3-5-8) Markus Nilsson, Swe (3-5-8) Juho Jokinen, Fin (3-5-8) Final Team Rankings 1) Canada 2) Sweden 3) Russia 4) Czech Republic 5) USA 6) Finland 7) Slovakia 8) Germany 9) Switzerland 10) Ukraine (relegated to B-Pool for 1997) Geoff Howell Drop the Puck Magazine HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey; send information to [log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.