Fashion Show

ANA- Everyone seemed to think the Ducks simply had to revamp themselves awhile back, but I didn't even find the purple/green jerseys so terrible. In any case their overhaul was understandable but they pretty much failed. I am never a fan of this shade of gold, and the name and number font is way too big and blocky. The only good thing they had here was a very nice new D logo, which they had eschewed in favor of a lame wordmark. That is, until their current third, which is an absolute disaster. Instead of leaving the random orange (county?) stripe as a unique design element that would ostensibly grow on people, their thirds make me think they actually want their colors to be white, black, gold, red, and orange. Not gonna work guys. Easily the worst jersey to ever win a stanley cup.

DAL- Eh. One would think that simple and basic would easily win high marks, but this jersey doesn't do much for me at all. 1) I’ve yet to see a non-NCAA jersey where front numbers don't look extremely forced. 2) The removal of any “Stars” wording, design or motif (put the fucking stars back on the pants) is odd. 3) They seem to have made a conscious decision to become a black with a hint of gold and green team instead of green and black. Forget for a moment that they never should have been black to begin with, but the contrast on these jerseys just doesn't pop enough to seem like anything other than boring black and white.

PHO- I will again state for the record that I was a-ok with the original (not third) Yotes sweaters. But I can certainly see why they felt the need to change. The new ones are a total smash. One of the first teams to swing back towards the “less is more” motif with colors and design- but they did it smartly. They've made that odd sandish color their own, and it works with the shade of red (which is also unique enough to be “theirs”). The logo is on its way to being instantly recognizable. The font is classy and has been copied often. These would be perfect if they just got the lower horizontal stripe back. Oh, and yes, we will not speak of the thirds.

LA- In my mind they just cant get it right. Again- are you purple and black? black and white? yellow and purple? purple and yellow? As much as I dislike many things about their primary look: awful font, absurd glitter, even more absurd ‘Los Angeles’ wordmark on the hem- they should probably just stick with it and trot out the retros once in awhile. The current third is another instance where I wonder how much money the design company made to produce that outcome.

SJ- One of the more appalling jersey changes in recent memory, but like others I am grudgingly coming around to it. The current jerseys are nicely done, all of the colors are sharp, and the logo remains one of the better in the league. The black thirds, seemingly boring, look super bold on the ice. And looking back the ones they changed from weren't that great. But their original jersey is an outstanding and bold look that could easily have never been touched. Adding orange, a year after your rival just did it, and for no seeming reason, is still a head-scratcher.

MIN- I prefer the two jerseys they wore from the very beginning to any of the tweaks or thirds they have done since. None of these have ever been bad though, and MIN knows they have a color scheme that defines them and looks sharp. The name font is way too thin and compressed, which is actually a legit flaw. The cartoonish flair on the numbers is obviously lame, but again, after 10 years, it eases the shock.

EDM- These are practice jerseys, and I won’t waste my time detailing what I don't like about one of the more tradition-based teams in the league trotting out there in something less inspired than I probably wore in tryouts 15 years ago.

VAN- Gorgeous. The only thing separating them from perfection is the font, which Id say falls somewhere on my taste spectrum between “eh” and “aggressively hate”. Everyone knows about the absurd uniform/color history of this franchise. Strangely, I don't think they’ve ever had a jersey I didn’t like. But this is the best of the bunch, and the colors/logos are awesomely tied to the region, the city, and its hockey history. Stick with it forever, vancity.


COL- This would be my lesson to a newer team. I hate the avs jerseys. I always have. I hate the colors- blue and burgundy go well everywhere else but here for some reason, perhaps because it is way too dark to contrast nicely (which they address on the new thirds). I hate the completely inappropriate use of plain black pants, helmets, and gloves, when this isn't one of your teams colors. This isn't a rec league where you get bulk discount for boring black stock gloves. I hate the absurd striping patterns (ooh, its a mountain? whatever). I hate the comical sasquatch foot secondary mark. I hate the number font worse than any in history. I hate the compressed, arched names. And I hate the logo, which looks less like an avalanche than (forgot who said this first) someone smearing a booger on a giant A. And yet....this is the Avalanche. They can tinker with traditional looking retro 3rds, or go baby blue with a third (even though they have yet to incorporate this nicer blue into any of their other jerseys) because over 15+ years they have established themselves as a brand. I dislike it, but its stuck, and I now when I watch the avs, I don't really notice how much I hate the unis. They’ve won the war of attrition.

CAL- Pick your poison for worst design element: the stupid side stripes that perhaps are supposed to line up but don’t? the laughably bad shoulder flag patches? Turning the ‘C of Red’ into a burned black thing? Black numbers on a red jersey? Whichever you choose works for me. WRETCHED. Something about the new retro 3rd seems slightly off to me. Maybe the red is too light? Clearly an upgrade on the existing monstrosity, but a little less wow than I’d imagine.

DET- Can’t mess with perfection. Unchanged in a long time. The vertically arched names are one of the cooler touches in the league. Terrific logo. I like the white much more than the red, which while great is slightly plain.

CBJ- I think enough has been said here.

STL- Sigh. It should be pretty difficult to mess up this jersey. STL suffered one of the worst RBK transitions in the league, losing any stripes and way too much yellow. From the upper deck the blues white jerseys are indistinguishable from ATL, FLA, etc. The third is nice but as a whole they seem to have gone to blue/dark blue/darker blue and abandoned everything else.

NAS- EP take note, as my thoughts on the Preds may conflict with my thoughts stated above for other teams. Even though until their recent thirds, Nash has had an extremely consistent color and jersey scheme, I don't think it ever gave them much of an identity. The older style ones had the gross silvery reflective fabric popular in 90s bubble jackets. The new whites look like practice jerseys and exactly like many other teams. The closest thing they’ve probably ever had to an enduring look was the mustard jersey. Apparently they are going to go with the new 3rds and the checkerboard pattern as their full-time look. Meh.

BOS- A few tweaks from what they've has in the past, but still a pretty sharp jersey and iconic look with the yellow socks. Probably my least favorite original 6 (current) jersey. The black alternate is unspectacular and needless.

TOR- The addition of silver to the Leafs’ wardrobe is thankfully gone. The current model is as good as it gets- stripes are back, the font is normal, and the 2 tone scheme has never looked crisper.

MTL- No one will ever say anything bad about these. The red with the center stripe is absolutely iconic, and the thin stripes of the white are awesome as well.

OTT- Yikes. Why those jagged red lines near the bottom? Why no horizontal stripe at the bottom? Why does the Senator look so brutal? The third jersey is actually quite bold color-wise, but no one is going to take “SENS” seriously, ever.

ATL- Possibly the oddest 3 jersey set in the league. I don't really mind that all of them are so unique, but i don't like any of them. In fact, I rotate which I like the least all the time. I have no idea what the deal with this font or the design element on the bottom stripe were, but these were ok. This is not.

FLA- Lost in the wilderness, just like on the ice. It sounds lame repeating it, but there was nothing wrong with their jerseys at all pre-lockout. Great contrasting colors. Now they are cookie-cutter RBK scraps. The thirds are odd, but nice looking, and have spawned some imitators.

CAR- I’ve liked these from the beginning. The angled name and number font is cool, red/black is hard to mess up, and the logo and striping are both great. The only complaint would be the glitter in the silver, but an all-around solid uniform.

WAS- These have grown on me. They aren't perfect, but they are probably the best jersey the team has ever worn. As is common now, the blue is quite dark and the pants are boring, two missed opportunities. But I don't think anyone in DC is complaining.

TB- Apparently ditching the black next year. Bold. The bolts have always done it their way, and their current set is actually OK, even with the usual gross RBK touches. The third looks great if you an avert your eyes from the chest. I will miss the bolt pants.

NJ- For such a classic, long lasting and traditional color scheme, I don't fawn over these, but they certainly don’t do anything wrong, and they have a superior logo.

NYR- Don’t ever change. And stop with the thirds. Great pants.

PHI- Lots of tweaks to this set over the years have finally left them with a pretty unique template- which has of course, begun to be copied. I like the nameplates quite a bit, and the return to predominantly orange is good. The whites look slightly blah on TV, as the orange kindve becomes a bit pink to my eyes. And anything looks like shit on Mike Richards.

PIT- I really dislike these. I’ve just never warmed up to this totally muted shade of gold/yellow, and the striping patterns and name font annoy me just enough that I notice them.

NYI- Never did I think I would say this. The NYI have the nicest white jerseys in the league. I think this is absolutely perfect. Bold contrast, perfect fonts, and the whole set is tied together with banging pants stripes. The blue is terrific too, but there’s too much competition for dark jersey crown.

Rink Ranks

An update for the most inconsistent blog out there. So, the two other dudes on this blog and I set out five years ago to visit all thirty NHL arenas by the time we all turned thirty. Well, I turned thirty last month and I'm the youngest of the group so we failed miserably on the timeline. The dream lives on though. We've not all been to the same places. I'm missing the Northwest division, Phoenix, San Jose, and the new Pittsburgh building. Justin is missing the same plus LA. Eric needs Ottawa, Phoenix, the Northwest minus Colorado, and the Consol Energy Center.

Anyway, here is a rough ranking of the 22 current NHL buildings that I've been to. There is little science to this, just based on what I remember to be the best and worst of each arena. Fans and any atmosphere they may or may not create in a given place are not factored in here.

1)

Prudential Center

New Jersey Devils

Newark, NJ

visits: 7

last: 1/4/11 vs. Minnesota

The Rock is tough to beat. It has it all. Pretty outside. It's in a good location and is easy to get to. Awesome inner (Devil logos on urinals) and outer aesthetics. They've even added more food options. The tables overlooking the ice are sweet. The team's color scheme used throughout is unmatched by any other building except maybe Detroit.

2)

Wells Fargo Center

Philadelphia Flyers

Philadelphia, PA

visits: 5

last: 10/30/10 vs. Islanders

I don't love the location of the sports facilities in Philly, but they aren't hard to get to. The SEPTA goes right to the oft-renamed arena. The exterior leaves something to be desired but the rest of the building is excellent. Nice, simple layout. A good lobby, nicely sized hallways. Excellent banners. Good sight lines.

3)

Air Canada Center

Toronto Maples Leafs

Toronto, ON

visits: 1

last: 3/27/10 vs. Rangers

An underrated building. It could be in a slightly better location, but it is in downtown Toronto, right next to the city's main rail station, so can't I kill them for it. The outside is decent enough looking. The inner seating look is excellent, deadly quiet patrons aside. Plentiful food options, well represented team history, and open viewing areas in the corridors abound.

4)

TD Garden

Boston Bruins

Boston, MA

visits: 2

last: 3/7/09 vs. Chicago

A disappointing exterior is the Garden's worst feature. The compact seating bowl of yellow seats is awesome and very Bruins. It lacks a discernable lobby but sits in an excellent location, right above North Station. The banners of both home clubs are displayed in intimidating fashion. The Bruins may have the coolest retired number banners in the league.

5)

Bridgestone Arena

Nashville Predators

Nashville,TN

visits: 1

last: 11/17/07 vs. St. Louis

Great downtown location. One of the coolest looking exteriors. Great inner look incorporating team colors. Probably the most intimate feel of the newer buildings (which is basically all of them now).

6)

Centre Bell

Montreal Canadiens

Montreal, QC

visits: 2

last: 10/16/10 vs. Ottawa

The Centre Bell has risen on my list due to major additions in recent years. Whereas there was little on display of the Habs' storied history before, there is now a slew of it. A pavilion featuring statues of Montreal greats is particularly awesome. Very big bathrooms are a plus. Cramped hallways are a minus, especially in the highest capacity arena in the league. A really blah exterior, almost as if no thought went into it. It's a box with a small logo on it. Steep, intimidating seating layout is fantastic.

7)

Nationwide Arena

Columbus Blue Jackets

Columbus, OHvisits: 1

last: 12/11/05 vs. New Jersey

It's been a while but Nationwide is a great all around building. Nice brick exterior. Nice lobby. I seem to remember they had better than average food options. (Columbus gets no picture because my browser keeps freezing when I look at my CBJ pics.)

8)

United Center

Chicago Blackhawks

Chicago, IL

visits: 1

last: 1/28/07 vs. Calgary

Possibly the nicest exterior in the NHL, mimicking the Chicago Stadium look. Everything else seemed above average.

9)

American Airlines Center

Dallas Stars

Dallas, TX
visits: 2

last: 2/11/07 vs. Colorado

Absolutely awesome brick facade. Different hallway look as some parts resemble a hotel. I don't love the gray seats but the super high ceiling is very cool.

10)

Verizon Center

Washington Capitals

Washington, D.C.

visits: 3

last: 1/31/10 vs. Tampa Bay

Possibly my least favorite inner look of any building. Luxury boxes are laid out in a very cluttered fashion. The Verizon Center is in a great location though and easily accessible by train. A conservative, but classy exterior. Hallways are above average size.

11)

Staples Center

Los Angeles Kings

Los Angeles, CA

visits: 1

last: 1/15/11 vs. Edmonton

The "house that Shaq built" has an absurd amount of luxury boxes and a very small upper level. The boxes aren't cluttered in a DC fashion. There are just so many of them. The Staples is in downtown LA, not buried in an outlying area, so that's good. A very cool exterior greets LA fans. $25 player shirts gets Tinseltown some points. Different look with team banners on a wall rather than hanging from the rafters.

12)

Honda Center

Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim, CA

visits: 1

last: 1/16/11 vs. Edmonton

Tickets seem reasonable enough but the once inside the Ducks go after your wallet big time. There were hardly any fans wearing player name and number shirts. That could be due to the Ducks selling them for $35. Very distinct marble floor look in the corridors. Simple, compact seating arrangement. The Wild Wing statue? Lame.

13)

Scotiabank Place

Ottawa Senators

Kanata, ON

visits: 1

last: 1/21/06 vs. Toronto

Horrendous location in the middle of nowhere outside of Canada's capital. Excellent exterior and a nice interior. One of the few places to have an upper walkway above the upper level. I remember their burger being pretty good for an arena burger.

14)

HSBC Arena

Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo, NY

visits: 4

last: 4/27/07 vs. Rangers

Nice exterior, expansive lobby, and the best and biggest team store you'll find. Not a huge fan of the heavens scraping ceiling, but it is distinctive. The ice feels a mile away from the upper level.

15)

Joe Louis Arena

Detroit Red Wings

Detroit, MI

visits: 1

last: 5/1/09 vs. Anaheim

Charming old building sits in what's left of downtown Detroit. Can't fault it for being surrounded by nothing in this case. Red and gray seats look stellar. The hallways are wallpapered in the club's history. Biggest issue is a lack of bathrooms.

16)

Scottrade Center

St. Louis Blues

St. Louis, MO

visits: 2

last: 1/27/07 vs. Nashville

Not a bad place but somewhat boring. Probably the most glassy exterior (besides maybe Minnesota but I haven't been there yet). Nice use of team colors inside.

17)

RBC Center

Carolina Hurricanes

Raleigh, NC

visits: 1

last: 3/25/06 vs. Washington

Love the red seats repping both the Canes and the NC State Wolfpack. Sort of a Nassau Coliseum setting. As in it's in a parking lot in the middle of nothing. Not really sure if there is any happening area in Raleigh that would be a better setting though.

18)

St. Pete Times Forum

Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa, FL

visits: 2

last: 1/24/08 vs. Ottawa

Good at everything, great at nothing. Nice setting. Nice pavilion near the entrance. Nice seating bowl. Love the blue seats.

19)

Philips Arena

Atlanta ThrashersAtlanta, GA

visits: 1

last: 3/18/06 vs. Philadelphia

Awesome exterior featuring a massive "ATLANTA" sign. For some reason the main hallway is a U shape. You can't walk all the way around the building. All of the boxes are on one side of the rink. Weird, different. Not sure that it works very well aesthetically. The upper level is very high up.

20)

BankAtlantic Center

Florida Panthers

Sunrise, FL

visits: 1

last: 12/29/06 vs. Montreal

The carpeted corridors are different and get a plus. The setting seems pretty, surrounded by palm trees and a pond, but why the hell is this rink 40 minutes or so northof Miami? This team needs all the help it can get and being out of the way of the major metro area isn't helping.

21)

Madison Square Garden

New York Rangers

New York, NY

visits: 88 (since 1992-93)

last: 1/13/11 vs. Vancouver

My home rink. Despite the unique round shape of MSG, the magnificent ceiling, the unbeatable location, and the general cool feeling, I've come to realize just how bad the "World's Most Famous Arena" is aesthetically as I've visited more places. Rare is the seat that offers views of all four corners. MSG offers the worst sight lines in the NHL, regardless of the price on your ducat. The hallways are cramped, the bathrooms are few, the food options suck, the booze is pricy. The ceiling is magnificent. The league's oldest building might have a cool, old timey feel if it weren't for the purple and teal seats.

22)

Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum

New York Islanders

Uniondale, NY

visits: 52

last: 12/12/09 vs. Boston

The saving grace of this decrepit structure is that every seat, save for the top few rows, offer excellent sight lines. When this place is rocking, which it rarely is, it's a special place. The second oldest rink in the league has numerous issues. It's not uncommon for the bathrooms to be backed up a quarter of the way around the building on a night when a third of the seats are empty. Amenities don't exist. This place needs to be reachable by train. It isn't. It's amazing the Coliseum's single concourse isn't considered a fire hazard. Sure, the Isles play in a suburban setting, but there is next to nothing as far as drinking and dining options within walking distance.

Pittsburgh, we're coming for you (again) in March.

Team USA Preliminary WJC Roster Reaction

USA Hockey just announced the preliminary roster for the upcoming WJC in Buffalo. Here it is:

forwards

Nick Bjugstad, 18, Minnesota

Ryan Bourque, 19, Quebec

Connor Brickley, 18, Vermont

Chris Brown, 19, Michigan

Mitchell Callahan, 19, Kelowna

Charlie Coyle, 18, BU

Jerry D'Amigo, 19, Toronto Marlies

Emerson Etem, 18, Medicine Hat

Rocco Grimaldi, 17, US Under-18 Team

Chris Kreider, 19, BC

Jeremy Morin, 19, Rockford/Chicago

Brock Nelson, 19, North Dakota

Matt Nieto, 18, BU

Kyle Palmieri, 19, Syracuse, Anaheim

Brandon Saad, 18, Saginaw

Drew Shore, 19, Denver

Jason Zucker, 18, Denver

dmen

Adam Clendening, 18, BU

Brian Dumoulin, 19, BC

Justin Faulk, 18, Minnesota-Duluth

Derek Forbort, 18, North Dakota

Nick Leddy, 19, Rockford/Chicago

Jon Merrill, 18, Michigan

Jamie Oleksiak, 18, Northeastern

John Ramage, 19, Wisconsin

Philip Samuelsson, 19, BC

Patrick Wey, 19, BC

goalies

Jack Campbell, 18, Windsor

Andy Iles, 18, Cornell

Right off the bat, I have to point out the annual absurd snub, which of course is always a CHL player. Shane Prince, who admittedly I hadn't heard of until I began my WJC prep a month or two ago, is a kid who just turned 18 and is leading the OHL in scoring playing for Ottawa. He's in his third year in the league and is rated to be a top two round pick this year. Now, I didn't even put Prince on my team a month ago, but a kid leading the OHL in scoring has to be at this camp. I can't say I'm surprised though. I'm assuming they pretty much know who they want for the top two, maybe even three lines and want players who will provide certain elements for the smaller roles. And that is fine, but just for appearances, how can a such an obviously talented player not even get a token invite over, say, Connor Brickley?

Austin Watson was another CHL snub but he has had a slow start this year.

I'm thrilled that D'Amigo, Palmieri, Morin, and Leddy are there. Just the fact that they're on this roster tells me they all have the blessing from their NHL teams to play in the tournament. So, basically I expect them to all be on the team, which I was not expecting to happen. This is awesome news.

As for the blueline, the biggest omission in London's Jarred Tinordi. I'm very surprised by this omission. That said, I have no idea how he's played this year and we have plenty of other talent.

I'm pretty sure we do this every year, but I'm still a little surprised that we only invited two goalies. Way to ramp up the competition. I don't think I would have gone with Iles as the backup but hopefully it doesn't even matter.

Of the players I thought should be on this team, only three were left off. They are Watson, Tinordi, Cam Fowler (not really an omission as he's playing 20 minutes a night in the NHL), and Michael Houser, who I selected as the backup goalie. So, all in all, it's not as bad as it's been in the past and we do have a lot of talent.

Hopefully, I'm taking off of work on January the 5th to drive up to Buffalo for the gold medal game. Back to back.

Team USA 2011 WJC Preview

I've been bitching and moaning for years about how USA Hockey constructs their WJC entries and last year was no exception. I was particularly upset that Emerson Etem wasn't on the team. Then John Carlson happened and all was right with the world.

Here's a look at the talent available to the red, white, and navy blue this year as they defend their title on home ice. Players with an asterisk were on last year's squad. Listed are age, team, and draft status.

forwards

*Chris Kreider, 19, Boston College, 1st round (19th overall) by NY Rangers in 2009

*Kyle Palmieri, 19, Syracuse Crunch, 1st round (26th overall) by Anaheim in 2009

Chris Brown, 19, U. of Michigan, 2nd round (36th overall) by Phoenix in 2009

Zach Budish, 19, U. of Minnesota, 2nd round (41st overall) by Nashville in 2009

Drew Shore, 19, U. of Denver, 2nd round (44th overall) by Florida in 2009

*Jeremy Morin, 19, Rockford IceHogs, 2nd round (45th overall) by Atlanta in 2009

Kenny Ryan, 19, Windsor Spitfires, 2nd round (50th overall) by Toronto in 2009

*Ryan Bourque, 19, Quebec Remparts, 3rd round (80th overall) by NY Rangers in 2009

Marcus Foligno, 19, Sudbury Wolves, 4th round (104th overall) by Buffalo in 2009

*Jerry D'Amigo, 19, Toronto Marlies, 6th round (158th overall) by Toronto in 2009

Mitchell Callahan, 19, Kelowna Rockets, 6th round (180th overall) by Detroit in 2009

Jonathan Parker, 19, Prince Albert Raiders, undrafted

Tyler Maxwell, 19, Everett Silvertips, undrafted

Austin Watson, 18, Peterborough Petes, 1st round (18th overall) by Nashville in 2010

Nick Bjugstad, 18, U. of Minnesota, 1st round (19th overall) by Florida in 2010

Beau Bennett, 19, U. of Denver, 1st round (20th overall) by Pittsburgh in 2010

Kevin Hayes, 18, Boston College, 1st round (24th overall) by Chicago in 2010

Charlie Coyle, 18, Boston U., 1st round (28th overall) by San Jose in 2010

Emerston Etem, 18, Medicine Hat Tigers, 1st round (29th overall) by Anaheim in 2010

Brock Nelson, 19, U. of North Dakota, 1st round (30th overall) by NY Islanders in 2010

Tyler Pitlick, 19, Medicine Hat Tigers, 2nd round (31st overall) by Edmonton in 2010

Jared Knight, 19, London Knights, 2nd round (32nd overall) by Boston in 2010

Connor Brickley, 18, U. of Vermont, 2nd round (50th overall) by Florida in 2010

Phil Lane, 18, Brampton Battalion, 2nd round (52nd overall) by Phoenix in 2010

*Jason Zucker, 18, U. of Denver, 3rd round (59th overall) by Minnesota in 2010

Bryan Rust, 18, U. of Notre Dame, 3rd round (80th overall) by Pittsburgh in 2010

Max Gaede, 18, Sioux City Musketeers, 3rd round (88th overall) by San Jose in 2010

Andrew Yogan, 19, Erie Otters, 4th round (100th overall) by NY Rangers in 2010

Chris Wagner, 19, Colgate U., 5th round (122nd overall) by Anaheim in 2010

Kenny Agostino, 18, Yale U., 5th round (140th overall) by Pittsburgh in 2010

Shane McColgan, 17, Kelowna Rockets, 2011 eligible

Rocco Grimaldi, 17, USA Under-18 Team, 2011 eligible

Shane Prince, 18, Ottawa 67's, 2011 eligible

Brandon Saad, 18, Saginaw Spirit, 2011 eligible

Stefan Noesen, 17, Plymouth Whalers, 2011 eligible

Vincent Trocheck, 17, Saginaw Spirit, 2011 eligible

Nick Shore, 18, U. of Denver, 2011 eligible

Matt Nieto, 18, Boston U., 2011 eligible

Seth Ambroz, 17, Omaha Lancers, 2011 eligible

defensemen

Nick Leddy, 19, Rockford IceHogs, 1st round (16th overall) by Minnesota in 2009

William Wrenn, 19, U. of Denver, 2nd round (43rd overall) by San Jose in 2009

Brian Dumoulin, 19, Boston College, 2nd round (51st overall) by Carolina in 2009

Philip Samuelsson, 19, Boston College, 2nd round (61st overall) by Pittsburgh in 2009

Patrick Wey, 19, Boston College, 4th round (115th overall) by Washington in 2009

*Cam Fowler, 18, Anaheim Ducks, 1st round (12th overall) by Anaheim in 2010

Derek Forbort, 18, U. of North Dakota, 1st round (15th overall) by Los Angeles in 2010

Jarred Tinordi, 18, London Knights, 1st round (22nd overall) by Montreal in 2010

Justin Faulk, 18, U. of Minnesota-Duluth, 2nd round (37th overall) by Carolina in 2010

Jon Merrill, 18, U. of Michigan, 2nd round (38th overall) by New Jersey in 2010

Mark Alt, 19, U. of Minnesota, 2nd round (53rd overall) by Carolina in 2010

Justin Holl, 18, U. of Minnesota, 2nd round (54th overall) by Chicago in 2010

Stephen Johns, 18, U. of Notre Dame, 2nd round (60th overall) by Chicago in 2010

Taylor Aronson, 19, Portland Winterhawks, 3rd round (78th overall) by Nashville in 2010

Austin Levi, 18, Plymouth Whalers, 3rd round (85th overall) by Chicago in 2010

Brandon Archibald, 18, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, 4th round (94th overall) by Columbus in 2010

*John Ramage, 19, U. of Wisonsin, 4th round (103rd overall) by Calgary in 2010

Kevin Gravel, 18, St. Cloud State, 5th round (148th overall) by Los Angeles in 2010

Joe Rogalski, 19, Sarnia Sting, 6th round (152nd overall) by Pittsburgh in 2010

Kevin Lind, 18, U. of Notre Dame, 6th round (177th overall) by Anaheim in 2010

Adam Clendening, 18, Boston U., 2011 eligible

goalies

Brandon Maxwell, 19, Kitchener Rangers, 6th round (154th overall) by Colorado in 2009

*Jack Campbell, 18, Windsor Spitfires, 1st round (11th overall) by Dallas in 2010

Mac Carruth, 18, Portland Winterhawks, 7th round (191st overall) by Chicago in 2010

Michael Houser, 18, London Knights, 2011 eligible

I have to say that I'm thrilled with the depth of talent available. A hell of a lot of Americans have been drafted in the last few years. Cam Fowler will probably not be available for the tournament and we can't complain about that. Canada is without five or more guys every year that make the NHL as teenagers. What would suck would be to lose Kyle Palmieri, Jerry D'Amigo, Jeremy Morin, and Nick Leddy to the AHL. All but the latter were on last year's winner. Hopefully at least one or two of them will be made available by their clubs. Maybe we'll even get lucky and have Fowler. We'll see.

Anyway, here are my picks.

*D'Amigo-*Palmieri-Watson

*Morin-Shore-Brown

*Kreider-Coyle-Saad

Etem-Bjugstad-Grimaldi

*Zucker

*Fowler-Leddy

Forbort-Faulk

Merrill-*Ramage

Tinordi

*Campbell

Houser

If the three AHL forwards are unavailable my next choices would be Shane McColgan, Zach Budish, and Shane Prince. Tyler Maxwell is very interesting too. The only player I cut from last year is Ryan Bourque. He was solid last year but I think there are just too many players who bring more to the equation than he can.

If Fowler and Leddy are out of the mix I'm not sure who I'd go with. Honestly, I don't know enough about our other defensemen to really judge, but I think we'll get by just fine.

Gotta go with Campbell despite his ugly numbers in Windsor this year. He seems like a better-than-his-stats big game goalie anyway. The kid has last year's gold along with golds in the past two Under-18 tournaments. The backup shouldn't be very relevant but I'm going with the highly touted Houser, who is fourth in the O in save percentage.

Coming into this piece my biggest concern was that Shane McColgan would be left off the team after not even being invited to the summer camp in Lake Placid. A kid rated to be a high first round pick who scored a point per game as a true rookie in the WHL absolutely needs to be at that camp. But when writing this post, I had trouble finding a spot for him on the team. There is a lot of talent at USA Hockey's disposal. I'd love to see him in Buffalo but I won't be outraged if he's not there.

Just win.

Jagr still bringing it

At the age of 38, Jaromir Jagr is still bringing it, having scored 2 goals and 3 assists in his first two games for the Czech Republic at this month's World Championships. Jagr has had a long and storied career in hockey. He's a member of the triple gold club, having won a Stanley Cup (two, actually), an Olympic gold medal, and a World Championship. He's won all sorts of NHL records and led the NHL in scoring five times. He won one Hart trophy for MVP of the league. He has 1,599 points in 1,273 regular season NHL games, and 181 points in 169 games. Prolific numbers. He doesn't have to prove anything to anyone.

But Jagr's decision to play for his home country during the World Championships wasn't one that all of his fellow top Czechs emulated. As a result, the Czechs were recently upset by NORWAY. Not exactly an international powerhouse.

Recently Jagr challenged the younger players to start showing up:

"It's the national team. We didn't really have a lot of success lately and a lot of guys said no in our country," he said. "I understand the guys are injured or they feel tired after the season, but look at guys like Ovechkin or Kovalchuk [playing for Team Russia]." He concluded: "I think you've got to be a little more proud of your country."

Jaromir Jagr has demonstrated his national pride time and again, playing internationally more often than not, even after his regular team has been eliminated from the playoffs. If 38-year old Jaromir Jagr can play an extra 5+ games at the end of his regular season, and bring his best game, so can players half his age.

Team USA, clearly, is not alone in having some of its best players decide to stay home. But unlike the Czechs, Team USA may have had more to lose. We saw what they did at the Olympics with a full roster, coming within one overtime goal of defeating Team Canada, the heavily favored host country, in the Gold Medal game. With a full roster Team USA could have used that Olympics momentum to challenge for gold at this year's World Championships. Which would have been nice, because the last time they finished higher than third was in 1960 (!). Now they're in danger of being relegated after only three games.

It's time guys like Zach Parise, Bobby Ryan, Phil Kessel, and Erik Johnson started listening to old Jaromir Jagr. Not that he's slowed down and has an increasingly grey beard, Jagr is becoming something of a soothsayer.