The game we have all been waiting for. Canada versus USA. For most of the players in the game, they haven’t had a chance to play best-on-best hockey in their careers, and this was set to be one of the biggest games of their lives. From an entertainment standpoint, especially for a neutral fan, this was an all-timer. For Canadian watchers, there was quite a bit of frustration with the game.
Canada Is No Match for USA’s Physicality
Yes, there are some physical players on Canada. Colton Parayko, Sam Bennett, Brandon Hagel, and Drew Doughty can all throw their weight around, but on a team level, they were no match for the wave after wave of physicality the Americans threw their way.
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Obviously the biggest story out of the game was the three fights in the first nine seconds of the game, and Hagel, Parayko, and Bennett held their own in those fights and were part of a good show. But during the actual game, throwing hits wasn’t as effective. Bennett, Hagel, Anthony Cirelli, and Seth Jarvis all recorded three or more hits, which are good numbers, and the total hits were pretty close, but it was the effectiveness of the hits that weren’t there.
Big hits from Charlie McAvoy, Brady Tkachuk, Noah Hanifin, and J.T. Miller came at just the right time and were often momentum-changing hits.
Hockey isn’t just about hits. As fun as they are, just the numbers don’t tell the story. If you check the box score after that game, and Canada had three times as many hits, it doesn’t mean much unless they were used effectively at the right time. In that regard, USA dominated, and Canada didn’t have much to push back with.
Individual Efforts Missing from Canada’s Game
The undisputed top two players in the league with Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, as well as others who are certainly in the conversation for the top players in the league, really struggled to be effective in their own right. Yes, McDavid’s goal where he flew my McAvoy was a great solo effort, but outside of that, Canada had nothing.
There was some criticism after the first game against Sweden that those players were being too selfish, including comments about MacKinnon in overtime. It seems that they took it too personally and were trying to play too selflessly. Even with a good shooting opportunity, they would always look for the pass first. In theory, it is a very kind thing to do. How Canadian of them. But in practice, someone has to shoot the puck.
There is more than enough skill at the top of the lineup to make magic happen. We see it every night in the NHL, and while yes, their opponent is much better than a typical NHL team, there is no reason for them not to be showcasing their skills in the same way.
On top of that, beating Connor Hellebuyck is no easy task, either. Canada struggled to get pucks to the net in general, and when they did, there wasn’t enough traffic in front of the net. Hellebuyck is going to save nearly every shot he has a clear path to, and that was most of them during that game. Getting into the dirty spots is something this roster is constructed to be well at, but they didn’t have any of that on display.
Binnington Needs to be Better
In the game against Sweden, Jordan Binnington let in some soft goals, but was there to make the big saves when he was needed. Against a team like USA, you can’t have that. While only letting in two goals against a team like that is a feat worth celebrating in a vacuum, the two he let in are unacceptable from a goalie in a game with stakes this high. The first one was a fairly easy shot through the five-hole (credit to Jake Guentzel for finding that opening, though), and the second was a clear shot from the top of the circle.
Fans are, again, pointing toward Logan Thompson, who is not on the roster but is having himself an unreal season. Having him on the sidelines while they are having Binnington starting for them is frustrating. Canada needs a win against Finland, and all signs point toward Binnington getting the start again, in complete fairness, his stats aren’t terrible. The issue is that he just isn’t making the saves the team needs him to be making.
There is still a pretty good path to the championship game for Canada. They are playing fine, but they just need to tighten up a few things. This is an incredible team with extremely high aspirations.
