Friday, September 10, 2010
   
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The World’s Biggest Stage; it’s not New York!

Written by Rob Cornforth


Is it just me or did the Canada-U.S. game start late? For the Canadians it did. I finally saw a glimmer of the famous Canadian heart at about the ten minute mark of the third period. To be fair, our boys looked awesome from that point on. Even so, the Americans were in control from the opening faceoff. The U.S. played an excellent up-tempo game with some jam and a sense of urgency. They attacked, took risks and played with a kind of “damn your eyes” attitude the rest of the world always attributed to Canadian hockey players.  It is sickening to hear Canadian commentators hide behind the superlative goaltending of Ryan Miller. The U.S. earned this victory and won as a team. Canada did not look like a team. I must admit, I was concerned in the days leading up to the game when Coach Mike Babcock said the Canadians had been playing without passion. Are you kidding me? This is not the NHL All-Star Game. This is the Olympics..., the biggest stage in the world. Show your heart! Rise to the challenge or go home! The simple fact is that Canada looked like it expected the U.S. to roll over. The Canadians did not work hard enough to win. There was no energy. Absent that energy, they manufactured little space. With no space, they created nothing. I had the feeling Pronger and Niedermayer, the two pre-tournament “locks” for Stevie Y., were a half step behind the entire game. And Thornton…could Jumbo Joe be any less visible? Yzerman wanted pIayers who kept cool when the pressure was on. You know…players with ice in their veins. Well, wish granted. These guys have been so cool they collectively could reverse global warming. Trouble is none of these icemen seem capable of generating any heat. Babcock has to quit massaging egos. Shorten the bench. Sit Thornton the tin-man and ride Crosby, Toews, Morrow, Richards and the other boys who at least seem interested. It will be interesting to see if Crosby steps up and makes this team his own a la Gretzky, Lemieux and other past greats. He is the spark. If not Canada will fall short and miss out on the medals again.

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