Team USA still doesn't have enough talent, or depth to win on talent alone.
Do you agree or disagree? In my opinion, unless the US starts to improve on the skills of the current players it has, and start using them in a five man unit, and maybe do some other things to make up for the small, and one dimensional talent pool we have, we're a very, very long shot for a medal in the next few Olympic games let alone a third gold medal. The Americans have gained some success on the world stage such as several U18 Championships, three World Juniors. USA Hockey has made some great strides, but it still has a long way to go. The reasons countries like Canada, Russia, and Sweden are better at just about every position of the game, is that most of these players grew up playing hockey together as a five man unit, and they had been at it longer since they were kids. Although we have some great players like Jonathan Quick, Zach Parise, and Patrick Kane just to name a few, we don't have nearly as many star players compared with other national teams. I think America can and will one day win another Olympic gold medal some time in the near future, but it can never be done with talent alone since the aforementioned countries have larger, and more in depth talent pools, and therefore have a greater number of great players to choose from. It will take hard work, great defense, playing as a five man team, goaltending, and most importantly team chemistry. The US came close in Vancouver, and put up quite a fight.
Topics: sports, hockey