10 years ago – at the 2002 draft, the Flames took forward Eric Nystrom 10th overall.  Not the worst pick, but far from the impact player the team had hoped to attain.

A decade later – this is how the first round SHOULD have went down, in my opinion, if we could do it all over again… 

1. Columbus - Duncan Keith (2nd round, 54th overall) (Rick Nash) – The first big change comes right at the top, as I opt for future Cup/Norris/Olympic Gold winning blueliner Duncan Keith over Nash at number one.  Tough to pick one or the other, but the Blue Jackets couldn’t have had less success with Nash.

2. Atlanta – Rick Nash (1st round, 2nd overall) (Kari Lehtonen)
 - Lehtonen never quite worked out in Atlanta as the franchise goaltender, and the Thrashers would be more than happy to take future Rocket Richard winning Nash.  

3. Florida – Cam Ward (1st round, 25th overall) -  (Jay Bouwmeester) – While JBO played well over parts over 7 seasons in Florida, again, it yielded ZERO playoff games.  Cam Ward has over 200 career wins, a Cup, and a Conn Smythe.

4. Philadelphia – Alex Semin (1st round, 13th overall) - (Joni Pitkanen) – Yes, Semin can be a tease, but has still has more goals than everyone but Nash in this draft. He’s put up 40, and that skill is one that you’ll always take a chance on.

5. Pittsburgh – Jay Bouwmeester (1st rnd, 3rd overall) -(Ryan Whitney) -I don’t like Jbo, BUT, if you take away the cap hit, he should be a very solid 2-3 blueliner that can log shutdown minutes.  you can’t count on him, and he doesn’t elevate his game, but you’d probably take him over some other D in this draft.  He wouldn’t keep the Pens out of the postseason

6. Nashville – Valtteri Filppula (3rd rnd – 95th overall) -(Scotty Upshall)
-Filpulla is a monster value for, of course, the Red Wings, moving way up in the re-do draft.  A career high 66 points this season at the age of 27, and all of this after being in a secondary role for years.  Great playoff guy, plays in all three zones.

7. Anaheim -  (Joffrey Lupul) – the Ducks are the first team to stand pat at 7th overall, sticking with Joffrey Lupul.  A bit of a mystery over his career, Lupul never quite blossomed in Anaheim but really broke out in a big time way this season.

8. Minnesota- (Kari Lehtonen) 1st round, 2nd overall (PM Bouchard) -Lehtonen was injury plagued in Atlanta, but has flourished in Dallas, and looks to be a legit number one netminder, which the Wild could use.

9. Florida- (James Wisniewski) – 5th round, 156th overall -(Petr Taticek)
Another big value pick in the 5th round, the Wiz, now with Columbus on a monster deal, jumps up to 9th overall.  A late bloomer, but plays hard and can put up points.

10.CALGARY -Tomas Fleischmann- 2nd rd, 63rd overall – (Eric Nystrom)
Another highly-skilled forward who took a little time to find his groove, “Flash” had been money the last season and half, playing a large role in getting the Panthers back into the playoffs this season. A top line LW

11. Buffalo – Ryan Whitney (1st round, 5th overall)   (Keith Ballard)

12. Washington – Dennis Wideman – (8th round - 241st overall) -  (Steve Eminger)

13. Washington - Alex Steen - (1st round – 24th overall) (Alexander Semin)

14. Montreal - Pierre Marc Bouchard - (1st round,8th overall)  (Chris Higgins)

15. Edmonton - Trevor Daley- (2nd round, 43rd overall)   (Jesse Niiinimaki)

16. Ottawa – Joni Pitkanen (1st round, 4th overall) - (Jakub Klepis)

17. Washington - Frans Nielsen (3rd round – 87th overall)-  (Boyd Gordon)

18. Los Angeles - Tom Gilbert (4th round, 129th overall)  (Denis Grebeshkov)

19. Phoenix - Jarret Stoll (2nd round, 36th overall) (Jakub Koreis)

20. Buffalo - Jiri Hudler (2nd round, 58th overall) (Dan Paille)

21. Chicago -  Johnny Boychuk (2nd round, 61st overall) (Anton Babchuk)

22. NY Islanders - Maxime Talbot (8th round, 234th overall)  (Sean Bergenheim)

23. Phoenix – Ian White (6th round, 191st overall)  (Ben Eager)

24. Toronto - Matthew Lombardi  (3rd round, 90th overall)  (Alex Steen)

25. Carolina - Chris Higgins- (1st round, 14th overall)  (Cam Ward)

26. Dallas – Keith Ballard (1st round, 11th overall)  (Martin Vagnar)

27. San Jose – Scotty Upshall (1st round, 6th overall)   (Mike Morris)

28. Colorado - Matt Greene (2nd round, 44th overall)   (Jonas Johansen)

29. Boston - Sean Bergenheim (1st round, 22nd overall)  (Hannu Toivunen)

30. Atlanta - Josh Harding (2nd round, 38th overall)  (Jim Slater)

I believe in the guy.  I’m impressed by how far he’s come.  I’m impressed by the tools, the production, and more than anything, the consistency.

Am I a huge Curtis Glencross fan?  Not really.  I don’t own a #20 jersey and haven’t always been impressed with his demeanour. But it doesn’t change how valuable he is to this hockey team, and how, in the world of salary caps and multi-million dollar contracts, he’s one of, if not the best value in the league.

Three and a half years ago, Glencross was viewed as a fourth liner with the Oilers, and wasn’t exactly given top priority on July first.

15 months ago, Glencross was a healthy scratch, at odds with  head coach Brent Sutter, and, in a contract year, seemed an inevitable traveller to greener pastures. 

Always a big issue for Glencross, was opportunity. Despite what others thought, he viewed himself as a top-six forward.  Cocky?  maybe.  Unsatisfied? Certainly.  It turns out, he may have been right all along.

When he caught fire last season in the second half, and the Flames were hovering around mediocrity, it seemed to many, a perfect time to deal him at the deadline.  Instead, he re-signed a four year deal worth 2.55 million a season, complete with a no-trade clause.

At the time, given the silliness of the free-agent season, it certainly appeared he left some money on the table after a career high 23 goal, 43-point season.  After July 1st, it was CLEAR he did.  And now?  Curtis Glencross appears to be one of the best bang for the buck players in the entire National Hockey League.

Glencross was Calgary’s leading goal scorer when he went down with a knee injury in San Jose January 17th.  15 games later, he made his return to the lineup, and hasnt missed a beat.  With Tuesday’s one-goal, two-assist performance against the Habs, he stretched his goal scoring streak to five, and has managed seven points in seven games since returning, all this on a team seemingly desperate for depth scoring.

Despite missing 15 games, Glencross is on pace for the first 30-goal, 50-point season of his career, and contrry to the usual itinerary, it comes int he FIRST year of a new contract.

Three more years, at 2.55 million dollars.  That’s nearly a third of Jarome Iginla’s salary, almost a million less than Rene Bourques, and a full million less than Matt Stajans.  In an era where we love to point out managerial flaws, blood thirsty media and fans call every deal an overpayment.  Grabovski in Toronto? Awful.  Hemsky re-signs in Edmonton?  Foolish! Pekka Rinne in Nashville?  Atrocious!

People are idiots.

But  even for idiots – it’s impossible to call into question anything Curtis Glencross does at this pricetag.  Listed below are what I consider to be the best value deals in the NHL today. (7-10 million dollar superstars and ELC’s not included)

To me, there are only two deals that are clearly tough to deny as better bang for the buck than Glencross:

Claude Giroux – Flyers – Two more years at 3.75 mil.
-  The term is less than Glencross, but Giroux is a superstar who should instantly vault into the 7-8million dollar range in 2014-2015.

-Kris Letang – Penguins – Two more years at 3.5 million
He’s battled concussion problems this season, but when healthy, he’s a Norris trophy candidate who will put up 75 points with a healthy Crosby and Malkin.  He should be a 6.5 million dollar blueliner

Here are the other value contracts:

Stephane Robidas – Stars – Two more years at 3 million
-Underrated. Rocky Steady.  Leader.  Throw Daley, Eriksson, and Ryder into the mix, and it’s no wonder Dallas is a big story on a small budget.

Stephen Weiss – Panthers – One more year at 3.1 million.
-Two years ago, I thought this contract was the best in the NHL, and with only one year to go, Weiss, a hugely underrated player and leader, will finally be due the big raise he deserves. 

Dustin Brown – Kings – Two more years at 3.175 million.
-It seems silly that Brown’s name was floated around on deadline week.  The Captain of the Kings is built for the postseason and would be a great addition to any of the 30 clubs in the league.

Max Pacioretty – Habs – One more year at 1.625 million.
-”Patches” is one of the lone bright spots on an awful Montreal team.  On pace for 34 goals and 62 points.  Montreal won’t enjoy his affordable price tag for long.  2007 late first-rounders like this are good examples of why I can be critical of Mikael Backlund.  It’s time for him to produce.

Matt Moulson – NYI – Two more years at 3.13 million.
-Moulson has become one of the most consistent scorers in the NHL, and will eclipse the 30 goal mark for a third straight season.  Perfect low budget fit to play alongside John Tavares.

Marc Staal – NYR – Three more years at 3.975 million
-The Rangers have to love the term on this deal.  This is the type of contract that would make Jay Bouwmeester a fan favorite.  Staal has room to grow offensively, and will play for Canada in 2014 in Sochi.  Book it.

Logan Couture – Sharks -Two more years at  2.875 Million
-If Doug Wilson had managed to convince the Couture camp to add another year or two to this deal, it would be the best contract in the league. 

Alex Burrows – Canucks – One more year at two million.
-Even Flames fans know this is serious bang for the buck. 28, 35, and 26 goals in each of the last three seasons.  Will flirt with 30 again this year.  Should be making at least four million

Step 1) A player was drafted, and then instantly overvalued by the organization. 

Step 2) Said player, regardless of projection, was not given a decent chance at the NHL level because of the “win-now” veteran mentalty. 

Step 3) Said prospect turns into a bust – but because of the initial pride, arrogance, and over-valuation, that same player was re-signed or extended, and left to rot on the farm.  What a disaster. 

 Everyone from Boyd to Chucko to Pelech to Prust were either shipped out, not developed properly, or just didn’t have it in the first place.

The good news Flames fans – is this:  Times are changing.

It’s a long road ahead, but the team is drafting better, giving youngsters more of a chance to play with the big club – and that’s something that resonates, especially with undrafted free agents.

A challenge for this team, and with a number of teams in the NHL – is managing the 50-contract limit.  When Darryl Sutter handed out useless extensions to already-failed projects in the past, it meant the ability to infuse new blood, or scour non-traditional venues for talent was almost nil.

Point is: if you’re going to be proactive from a prospect and player development angle, you have to be quicker off the draw to evaluate and make decisions on players.  For example – under the old regime, John Negrin would have been extended, because he was a third-round draft pick, and god-forbid Darryl Sutter would ever admit a mistake.

In this case, under the new regime, Negrin was deemed to not be a prt of the future, and was sent on his way.  A new player, a new challenge, and a new project comes in.

When the evaluation period is expediated – it brings to the forefront the name MIKAEL BACKLUND

Any flames fan would admit – there hasn’t been a long list of prospects-turned NHL’ers to get excited about in a long, long time.  And maybe that’s why there were such high expectations and pressure on Backlund – who like it or not, was heralded as a future STAR on this team.  You always want to show a certain element of patience with youngsters, especially first-rounders, but not to a fault.

The truth is – Mikael Backlund’s career rope is officially getting shorter.  He’s not at the end of it yet, but at this rate, if he hasn’t progressed 365 days from now?  It’s over.

Backlund, despite loads of ice time and opportunity, has 4 goals, 11 points and is a -14.  Backlund is at a point in his career and skill-set where he NEEDS to contribute for his team to be succesful.  At the present time, the Flames are riding the quartet of Iginla – Cammalleri – Tanguay- Jokinen.  There is no reason, ABSOLUTELY NONE, that Backlund shouldn’t be this team’s fifth best forward.  Right now, the tag is bestowed upon Blair Jones.  Backlund can’t let that happen, but he has.

There have been arguments from the “advanced stats” crowd, pursuing the notion that Backlund has been “better than his numbers indicate”. He’s simply “unlucky”.  That’s all well and good, but I’m prone to side with Flames management, namely Craig Conroy, who said in studio with us Tuesday that Backlund quite simply needs to produce – because right now, he looks like a career third liner.

Admittedly, this comes off as very harsh on Mikael Backlund, but up until now, he’s had a lot of rope in my eyes.  Under the new “order” a line has to be drawn in the sand.  The free ride has to end sometime.  Decisions on players need to be made quicker, and as Conroy puts it “with more conviction”.

That time is quickly approaching for Backlund.

Comparisons are a risky game – but being nearly 23 years old, it’s only fair to put Backlund up against his 2007 Draft Class.

Using the first round as an example:

- 12 of the 30 players taken in ’07 have established themselves as “difference makers” at the NHL level.  Backlund  is not in that mix. (Kane, JVR, Turris, Alzner, Gagner, Blum,Voracek, Couture, Sutter, Shattenkirk, Pacioretty, Perron)

The other six are in the “undecided category” (Backlund, Ellerby, McDonagh, Smith, Cole, Eller)  Although to be fair, Eller (MON) and McDonagh (NYR) are closer to the top group.

Another Six of 30 are complete busts – (Hamill, Macmillan, Esposito, Nash, White, Ross)

Five of 30 are “likely busts” or low end NHL’ers who will not reach initial hopes. (Hickey, Plante, Petrecki, Gillies, O’Brien) and of course one - regrettably, is deceased in Alexei Cherepanov.

- Every player is different, and just because  guys like Couture and Sutter are impact players, doesn’t mean Backlund is – but my point is…enough time has passed.  Most of all the full-time NHL guys are in roles of respnsibility, while the ones who aren’t good enough, have already been shuttled off.

Backlund, like it or not – is closer to the Hickey’s of the world than he is to the Perron’s, and continues to be entrenched in a middling situation.  People beleive in his “potential” but he doesn’t produce.  This is a dangerous spot to be in for any team – and the quicker a decision is made on backlund, the better off everyone will be.

It’s not over for him yet, but the clock is ticking.

Ever heard of him?  Yeah.  He plays in Ottawa, our nations capital.  Yes, they have a team.  They’ve actually had some pretty good teams over the years, and some bad ones as well.  This season you ask? Well, believe it or not, they’re in a dogfight for home-ice advantage.

As for this Alfredsson fella,  its probably about time most of us were officially introduced.

To  sum it up – simply put, he’s the face of the Senators franchise.  A novel concept, but certainly nothing that hasn’t been termed before in the NHL.  So, how does he compare to other “faces”

Well for starters – if you can believe it – Daniel Alfredsson has more career points than Jarome Iginla.  In less games.  Let that soak in for a minute.  Once he retires – he’ll surpass players like Darryl Sittler, Theo Fleury, and Keith Tkachuk.

Iginla, here in Calgary, and really nationwide – is viewed as the EPITOME of a franchise player.  500 goals with the same team, good in the community, annually the club’s best player along with the goaltender.  On the back of his hockey card, there are a lot of seasons – all with one team.

This is not meant to be a shot at Iginla – at all – but if you respect what #12 has done – you have to put #11 in the same category.  His career high is 103 points.  He has had 10 seasons of 70 or more points.  Iginla has had seven.  Alfredsson has 45 playoff goals.  Iginla has 28.

Point is.  Iginla is a first ballot – sure-fire Hall of Famer, and even though Alfredsson doesn’t have the all-important 500 goals – for the first time maybe ever – I give full support to the notion that he is as well.

Sakic.  Yzerman. Lemieux. Iginla. And……..Alfredsson.

It’s a shocker – but this weekend watching the All-Star festivities, I think a lot of us quickly, and maybe finally came to realize exactly what the 39 year-old Swede means to that city and the franchise.

Some say no.  I say Yes.  The players say Yes.

For a long time – We’ve been “Gold or bust” as a hockey nation, and rightly so – 10 consecutive appearances in the gold medal game will do that to you.  But this year, it wasn’t to be.  Despite a passionate comeback in the third period Tuesday night, turning a 6-1 deficit into a 6-5 deficit, Canada will not play for gold, instead, they’ll try and secure a third place finish against Team Finland.

In Tuesdays Semifinal – very simply, the better team won.  Canada didn’t have an answer for Kuznetsov and Yakupov, especially with a blueline that just wasn’t good enough.  The margin between winning and losing was thin.  A post by Strome and a few bad deflections off the stick of Ryan Murray.  It’s not ideal, but it is what it is.

This year, A bronze medal would be an accomplishment. our best 18 and 19 year olds are playing in the NHL, although to be fair, a team like Sweden lost a couple of studs in Larsson and Landeskog.

Russia is good.  Sweden is strong.  The Americans were supposed to be good, and they “failed” to an ever greater degree.  There will be more gold medals, there will be more great moments, but for 2012 – a win this afternoon for Team Canada is a big deal.

-Mark Visentin gets the start this afternoon in Calgary.  Scott Wedgewood was entrusted with the big game against Russia, and while you can’t blame the goaltender, he didn’t exactly stand on his head.  For Visentin, its a chance to gain some much needed confidence going forward in his career, and if he can secure a medal for his country, it will help lessen the pain of last years five-goal third period in the final.

-No Scott Harrington today – further evidence that he was playing on one wing against the Russians.  Canada’s blueline is not strong, and Brandon Gormley, who has turned into an absolute superstar, had to play about 40 minutes in the semi.  He’ll play a ton again today.

-Of course, no Devante Smith-Pelly, who Canada really missed on Tuesday, and no Boone Jenner either.  Canada’s most physical forward was given that one game suspension for a spear against Russia.  It’s B.S. in my opinion.

-Does Bronze matter?  I think it does, and while a 3rd place finish isn’t ideal, it sure beats 4th, which in my mind, who be a severe underachievement.

———————–

The short of it:  For the first time in 11 years, Canada won’t play for Gold at the World Junior Hockey Championships.  a 6-5 loss to Russia in Tuesday night’s Semi-Final.

The long of it:  Where can I even begin?

-A 6-1 game turned into a 6-5 game within a seven, SEVEN minute span.  Unreal theater.  I’ll have some thoughts up shortly – doing Overtime on the FAN right now with @fan960steinberg – might be in the morning

—————-
Here we go.  If the rest of the country is anything like me, the butterflies are already starting to flap in the stomach.  It’s semi-final Tuesday here in Calgary at the Scotiabank Saddledome, as Finland takes on Sweden at 3, and then of course, Canada and Russia hitting the ice at 7 p.m. local time.

We’ll have both games all across Canada on the Sportsnet Radio Network, starting with the Fin/Swe pregame show at 2:30.

-Scott Wedgewood will start for Canada tonight, and while anything was possible – it came as no surprise to Sam, Rod and I.  Wedgewood is simply the right choice.  He’s handled things well each and every time he’s been given an opportunity, and I think he’s the more confident of the two right now.  Nothing against Mark Visentin, but Wedgewood gives Canada the best chance to win.

-I think Canada wins tonight.  I really do.  A week ago, I would have said otherwise, but the home side has really become a team over the last few weeks, and I think despite a lack od depth on the blueline, they’ll forecheck the Russians into the ground tonight.  Yakupov, Kuznetsov, Gusev, and Grigorenko are all, in a word, filthy….but I think team play and depth up front wins this one for Canada.  Just a feeling.

-Key players for Canada tonight?  The ones relied on defensively.  Murray-Harrington-Gormley-Hamilton-Howden, to name a few

-As I talked about with Quinton Howden this morning, there’s something special, and a bit eerie, about the rivalry with Russia.  Canada-U.S.  may be THIS generations rivalry…but Canada/Russia is our grandparents/parents rivalry.  That gives me goosebumps.

-By all accounts, although it was a big topic of discussion, the flu bug doesn’t seem to be hammering on Team Canada right now as we feared. We’ll probably find out more after this game, or maybe after the tournament.

-Russia/Czech Quarterfinal was the best hockey game I’ve watched in a long-long time.  Petr Mrazek of the Czechs and Andrei Vasilevski of Russia put on a clinic in between the pipes.  After a while, a I couldn’t believe what I was watching.  Mrazek has without question been the most captivating figure in this tourney, and despite a 2-1 OT loss, almost single-handedly willed his club to a victory.

-The Russians strength, along with Vasilevski, lies with the tremendous skill of their top end forwards.  Watching Nail Yakupov and Yevgeni Kuznetsov is absolute magic.  I can’t even begin to describe how highly I think of Yakupov especially, He’ll go number one overall this summer……with a bullet.  Not to mention, Gusev, Telegin, Grigorenko, although the later two are banged up right now.

-Where Canada can take advantage tonight, is Russia’s “so-so” D. Viktor Antipin is the best of the bunch, while Artyom Sergeyev is ok, but other wise, Canada should be able to dominate down low – and that’s how they’ll win this game.

-Talk about riding a wave of confidence.  Mark Stone has scored in every one of Canada’s pre-tourney and WJC games.  you KNOW he’ll throw one in tonight.
-
The early game this afternoon is Sweden-Finland, another age old rivalry that should be a great matchup.  Since losing 8-1 to Canada in their opener, the Finns have been dynamite, and haven’t lost since, knocking off the U.S., Czech, Denmark, and Slovakia in yesterday’s Quarter Final.

-The top six forwards of Finland are extremely dangerous, and the line of Granlund-Granlund-Pulkkinen has been one of the best in the tourney.  Joel Armia is up and down in his competition level,but the big rangy Finn has great puck skills and finds a way to get points.  He frustrates you, like a Viktor Kozlov did in his hey-day, but you can still see why Buffalo took him in the first round.

-I really think this is a game that turns out to be a classic.  Can’t wait to get on the air from high above the Dome in Calgary.

-23 markets are picking up our coverage, although if you listen in Calgary, Sportsnet960 the FAN will join The Canada game in progress after the Flames game.  If you would like to listen to the first Semifinal, or Canada’s game in it’s entirety, you can log on to fan590.com

It’s all over, a perfect 4-0 record for Canada, as they dominate Pool B in the round robin, and will head into Tuesdays semifinal unbeaten after a 3-2 win over the U.S. at a raucous Rexall Place in Edmonton.  The theater so far in the world juniors hasn’t really come from Canada’s games, but nevertheless, it was an awesome week in the city of champions.  Next up – the semi final  – we’ll be on the air with the pregame show at 6:30 all across Canada on the Sportsnet Radio Network..

-Canada breathed a sign of relief after this one, as Scott Harrington appears to be ok after leaving the game and not returning with an upper body (prob shoulder) injury…. Hay says he expects him to be ready to go in the semi.

-Canada lost another blueliner with eight minutes to go in the third, when Nathan Beaulieu took a shot off the face.  He’s fine, and chatted with the media afterwards. (Ice bag in hand)

-Scott Wedgewood stopped 30 of 32, and for the time being, appears to be the best option going forward.  But…would a start of Mark Visentin in Tuesdays semifinal completely stun me?  No.  Don’t underestimate Don Hay’s “gut feelings”

-Mark Stone (of course) Schwartz, and Connolly with the goals in this one.  I thought Brendan Gallagher was absolutely phenomenal.  So much heart and passion. that was vintage Gallagher.  He’ll score a big goal before this one is through.

-Team Canada discipline was much better tonight, and the PK remained strong.  I thought Jamie Oleksiak was much better…but the depth D still worries me against the Russians.  When Harrington left, Canada had a tough time matchup up.  The top three are going to be playing plenty of minutes.

-American coach Dean Blais clearly disappointed with three consecutive losses , finishing fourth in Pool B – Says they ran into a couple of hot goaltenders, but just weren’t mentally ready.

-He was no good in this tourney, but Jack Campbell owned it post-game.  Kinda like the kid…..

-Ryan Murray was terrific tonight.

Heading in to the World Juniors, the U.S had as good a chance as anyone to claim Gold, but back to back losses to Finland and the Czech Republic have already secured their place in the relegation round, making this game, at least standings-wise, meaningless.

However, talking to players on both sides today…that hardly seemed like the case.

Canada is already through to the Semi-final after having had an easy time in Pool B, but would still like to stick it to their biggest rivals, and really, get a free tune-up for the medal round.  For the U.S. a win would at least offer something to salvage in what quickly became a disasterous tourney.  Last night, captain Jason Zucker proclaimed that “We will beat Canada”  and while he backed off of the “promise” this morning, he did reiterate his team’s belief that they will come through tonight.

-No Dereck Forbort for the States tonight.  The LA Kings first-rounder was hit from behind by Petr Straka of the Czech Republic yesterday.  Head coach Dean Blais also didn’t reveal who will be starting between the pipes.  Both Campbell and Gibson have both had a fair share of responsibility in the demise of the Americans.

-As expected, Scott Wedgewood goes back between the pipes tonight for Canada.  At this point, I’d say the job is his going forward.

-A big game for Jamie Oleksiak – the hulking Canadian blueliner has dual-citizenship, and decided to become part of Canada’s program instead of the Americans.

-I don’t think anyone anticipated this tourney going as easy as it has for Canada.  If the Americans don’t come to play tonight, it will be an easy romp into the medal round, which has it’s good and bad elements. The Canadians will tell you that losing Devante Smith-Pelly is their version of “adversity”

-Michael Bournival is back in the lineup tonight, after spending a couple of days bed-ridden with the flu.  Hockey Canada immediately put him in isolation.

-Forget the standings in this one – I’m still excited.  Canadian fans want a win.  The Americans want to save face, and the New Years Eve crowd will be electric.  I’m betting the 50/50 will be upwards of 125 grand.

-Already, its advantage Canada, as the States (Who have already lost a game) take on the Czech Republic Friday afternoon at Rexall Place.

-Offensively, Moose Jaw Warriors forward Quinton Howden got the ball rolling with a breakaway goal just 2:36 in.  A few minutes later, Brett Connolly followed suit shorthanded, and when Mark Stone intercepted a pass at the top of the crease and buried his 5th goal of the tourney, the route was on.  It was 4-0 after one, 7-0 after two, and a 10-2 final.

-Stone finished with 2 g and 1a, giving him a team leading 6 markers so far, while Quinton Howden was terrific (1 g, 2a)

-Offense from the blueline was another story – Scott Harrington…yes, the shutdown blueliner, picked up a goal and three assists, while Brandon Gormley continued his all-star calibre tourney with a two-goal one-assist performance.

-Michael Bournival was a late scratch with the flu, and Don Hay says he’s been battling a virus for a couple of days.  He should be good to go for New Years.  With only 11 forwards, Nathan Beaulieu took a regular shift up front with Mark Schiefele and Tanner Pearson.

-Mark Visentin stopped 24 of 26 in the win.  Again,  I would expect Scott Wedgewood to start NYE against the States.  For Visentin, this was hardly a game that he could have used as a way to thrust himself into the starters role.  How Wedgewood plays NYE will dictate the rest of the tourney.

-The biggest point of concern for Canada?  Eight minor penalties  That’s 16 powerplays for the opposition the last two games, which won’t be good enough against the U.S. Russia, or Sweden.  That said, the P.K. was great once again, and Connolly and Gallagher both added shortanded goals as well.
-

I would think Sebastian Feuk uttered a variation his surname at least a few times. 51 shots, 10 goals against, and some nasty deflections.

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Cant WAIT for new years eve