Gill replaces Schneider on Team USA - TSN

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- USA Hockey today announced that Boston Bruins defenceman Hal Gill (http://www.tsn.ca/NHL/player_bio.asp?player_id=517) will replace Detroit Red Wings blueliner Mathieu Schneider (http://www.tsn.ca/NHL/player_bio.asp?player_id=990) on Team USA's roster for the World Cup of Hockey. Click link for full article

TSN Link (http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=94460)

The announcement was made by Team USA General Manager Larry Pleau. "Mathieu has informed us that, due to his unsettled contract situation, he has regretfully withdrawn from competing in the World Cup of Hockey," said Pleau. "We are disappointed that he will be unable to participate, but at the same time excited to add Hal's unique skills, physical presence on defense and recent international experience to our lineup."

Not exactly like Blake withdrawing from Canada, but close. Hal Gill? Yikes. I would have rather had Paul Mara. Stupid contract situations!!!!

Money over country. :cry:

Oh me Hall Gill on the US World Cup roster. I really hope not many more drop out. I hope Hal is in the press box and nothing more.

Keith Carney would have been a better choice.

Money over country. :cry:

Is he allowed to play without a contract though? I'm just curious.

Weak excuse, Schneids...

Team USA's blueline was questionable enough, it gets a little dicier.

Oh me Hall Gill on the US World Cup roster. I really hope not many more drop out. I hope Hal is in the press box and nothing more.


Gill gets a bad name on these boards, but he seems to be pretty highly regarded in NHL circles, and he did play well at the World Championships, so it's not really a surprise he was named. Pleau et al did say players that played at the Worlds would get serious consideration for the World Cup team, so at least they're sticking to their word.

Big blow. Sign back with Detroit already Schneider. Damn. We need him. :cry:

Gill gets a bad name on these boards, but he seems to pretty highly regarded in NHL circles, and he did play well at the World Championships, so it's not really a surprise he was named. Pleau et al did say players that played at the Worlds would get serious consideration for the World Cup team, so at least they're sticking to their word.
Fair point there as well, nothing wrong with rewarding those who go to the World's. Gill was not very good against Montreal in the playoffs so i think its a bit of a stretch for him to handle some of the quickest , smartest players in the World. He'll need to be quicker in all aspects of his game.

Hal Gil? Ouch. That's gotta hurt for team USA. If he wasnt 6'7" I'm not sure he'd even be considered. USA and Russia seem to looking worse and worse all the time. Now I'm starting to think that Slovakia might be the next best team after Canada in that pool. Its not a stretch anymore. USA is hurting a lot as it is, and to throw Hal Gil in there makes it worse, no offence to him. Guys like Martin St. Louis will just fly by him on the wing.

Hal Gil? Ouch. That's gotta hurt for team USA. If he wasnt 6'7" I'm not sure he'd even be considered. USA and Russia seem to looking worse and worse all the time. Now I'm starting to think that Slovakia might be the next best team after Canada in that pool. Its not a stretch anymore. USA is hurting a lot as it is, and to throw Hal Gil in there makes it worse, no offence to him. Guys like Martin St. Louis will just fly by him on the wing.



It's a good thing your opinion carries no weight with those that count where the World Cup is concerned. We get it, you're a fan of Canada, and every other team pales in comparison. The U.S. is not "hurting as is", and will be just fine.

Fair point there as well, nothing wrong with rewarding those who go to the World's. Gill was not very good against Montreal in the playoffs so i think its a bit of a stretch for him to handle some of the quickest , smartest players in the World. He'll need to be quicker in all aspects of his game.


Boston as a whole wasn't very good against Montreal. As for Gill, he won't be paired up against the small quick players, he'll be matched up against the bigger, stronger types where he's more effective.

Keith Carney would've been a much better choice, but I suspect he declined any invitation, or just wasn't invited so he could rest.

Paul Mara would also have been a better choice IMO.

Money over country. :cry:

Actually, it all has to do with insurance. If they're UFA, they don't have the insurance they need/want.

Money is linked, but it's not that they just want a contract in place.

wow.. the USA deserves to lose 16-0 every night.

that's horrible

I dont mean to sound like a vagina, but I honostly haven't heard of this Hal Gill guy. Name sounds slightly familiar, probably because I may have heard it once or......yeah, once.

YIPPE!!! I mean damn, no competion for Team Canada :joker:

YIPPE!!! I mean damn, no competion for Team Canada :joker:

There's still Sweden man.

I dont mean to sound like a vagina, but I honostly haven't heard of this Hal Gill guy. Name sounds slightly familiar, probably because I may have heard it once or......yeah, once.
:lol

best post ever

:lol

best post ever

thats ago, i thought they were talking about Todd Gill until i read this thread.

lol

wow.. the USA deserves to lose 16-0 every night.

that's horrible

:amazed: I hope you are joking...

Money over country. :cry:

That's part of it. Another part might be that Schnieder might be making a statement that getting a CBA done might be a little more important than the World Cup. I bet if a CBA were done, some other players would not have pulled out.


That and maybe his family unsettled situation about where they're going to be next year might be a little more important.

:amazed: I hope you are joking...
i'm really not. hal gill is the worst thing that could have happened to the US's chances. it's like conceding defeat

i don't get it :dunno: :banghead:

Laugh, if Russia weren't in the same pool the US team would be a shoo-in for last. :joker:

i'm really not. hal gill is the worst thing that could have happened to the US's chances. it's like conceding defeat

i don't get it :dunno: :banghead:


Yeah, he was so horrible he was able to earn a bronze medal with the U.S. team at the World Championships..... :shakehead Somehow I put a little more creedence in the decision making process of a NHL general manager than some "fan" on the internet.

Laugh, if Russia weren't in the same pool the US team would be a shoo-in for last. :joker:

Why? I doubt you'll be able to come up with an intelligent answer, but I'm willing to wait.

Why? I doubt you'll be able to come up with an intelligent answer, but I'm willing to wait.

:joker: It's like clockwork.

this is not good for the US...not good at all. they need all the defense they can get to help out that shaky goaltending

adam
http://www.sportslizard.com

It's a good thing your opinion carries no weight with those that count where the World Cup is concerned. We get it, you're a fan of Canada, and every other team pales in comparison. The U.S. is not "hurting as is", and will be just fine.

That;s not necessarily true. I think he just feels that Carney, or even Mara for that matter would have been smarter choices given the skill level at this tournament.

Hal Gill is an average NHL dman in my mind. He does his job get a few point by getting the puck on net, and he fights pretty well. For his size his mobility is alright, but not up there with the other dmen who will be patrolling the bluelines for most of the other countries.

I don;t think it's a comment like " Canada's the best none of your D would make our team" , I think it's more like " Hal Gill sucks (which is his personal opinion)".

I think Carney should be there personally, but hey what would I know I'm only a Canadian hockey fan! :yo:

Hal Gill? For Christ Sakes man, thank God i'm Canadian, never have to worry about depth!

That;s not necessarily true. I think he just feels that Carney, or even Mara for that matter would have been smarter choices given the skill level at this tournament.

Hal Gill is an average NHL dman in my mind. He does his job get a few point by getting the puck on net, and he fights pretty well. For his size his mobility is alright, but not up there with the other dmen who will be patrolling the bluelines for most of the other countries.

I don;t think it's a comment like " Canada's the best none of your D would make our team" , I think it's more like " Hal Gill sucks (which is his personal opinion)".

I think Carney should be there personally, but hey what would I know I'm only a Canadian hockey fan! :yo:
it's a combination of my understanding that Paul Mara and Keith Carney are superior to Hal Gill and the fact that I think (and have thought for many years) that Hal Gill sucks.

it's a combination of my understanding that Paul Mara and Keith Carney are superior to Hal Gill and the fact that I think (and have thought for many years) that Hal Gill sucks.

Paul Mara was very impressive at the World Championships, and he would suit team usa better.

It's a good thing your opinion carries no weight with those that count where the World Cup is concerned. We get it, you're a fan of Canada, and every other team pales in comparison. The U.S. is not "hurting as is", and will be just fine.

Are you sure about that? Yes its true that I'm a Canadian but I'll admit that in '96 and '98 USA had a better core of defense than Canada's team. But I'm only stating the facts man! Our weak link on defense might be Regehr or Brewer. And neither of them may play a lot.

After Leetch USA is looking pretty cold I'd say. Chelios is 42 and Hatcher isnt what he was once either. Every other d man on that team is weak in some area. Hey the game is played on the ice I'll admit, but with that defence Esche might be seeing 40 shots from Canada or Sweden even. Let's just say he wont stop nearly all of them.

Are you sure about that? Yes its true that I'm a Canadian but I'll admit that in '96 and '98 USA had a better core of defense than Canada's team. But I'm only stating the facts man! Our weak link on defense might be Regehr or Brewer. And neither of them may play a lot.

After Leetch USA is looking pretty cold I'd say. Chelios is 42 and Hatcher isnt what he was once either. Every other d man on that team is weak in some area. Hey the game is played on the ice I'll admit, but with that defence Esche might be seeing 40 shots from Canada or Sweden even. Let's just say he wont stop nearly all of them.


I'm done with this thread. If you think the U.S. defense is horrible, so be it. IMO, the blueline assembled will be able to manage quite well on the NHL sized ice surface. Cheers! :banana:

GIlls whole defensive side was slow as mollasses, Julien realized it, and prayed on the Bruins' weekness...If the other pairings were'nt the same, it would'nt have looked so bad. it's okay to get beat sometimes along the boards but when you got him, odonell, and mcgillis all on the same side and put have your fastest forwards on their side of the ice-well, you saw the results. What was exposed was a fundemental flaw in Bostons defense that wasnt rectified by rookie coach sullivan...neither did he get koivu away from thornton, and played Joe WAAAYYY too much for a guy with that serious of a injury. So Gill was one of three broken teeth on a gear...but with proper linemates and expectations-when he's allowed to simplify and not expected to be the 'go-to' guy he excels pretty damn well IMO.

Hal Gill is an average NHL dman in my mind. He does his job get a few point by getting the puck on net, and he fights pretty well.

last fight i saw gill in, chara turned him into a flailing sissy. i like gill, and i think he gets a bad rep b/c of guys like st.louis making him look silly, but he's definitely not a good fighter. he protects his teammates, and will drop em, but he's one of the worst fighters in the league IMO. that said, i'm glad he's getting a chance to play with the best of the best.

As was mentioned before, it's quite possibly Carney declined the invitation in order to rest. The former NHL Ironman seemed to have something nagging him all year long (and not just the wife and kids)

last fight i saw gill in, chara turned him into a flailing sissy. i like gill, and i think he gets a bad rep b/c of guys like st.louis making him look silly, but he's definitely not a good fighter. he protects his teammates, and will drop em, but he's one of the worst fighters in the league IMO. that said, i'm glad he's getting a chance to play with the best of the best.

I think Chara could pretty much turn most people into flailing sissies. ;)

I think people shouldnt count the USA out so much they are going to have games in there own backyard and they have alot of experience. There are more proven playoff battled vets on USA then any other team they will get the job done.

I do have to second alot of people around here the addition of Hal Gill is very confusing considering the speed and explosiveness of Russia, Canada and Slovakia. They might be the three fastest teams in the tournament I hope we dont see Gill in the top 6.

Carney must have declined there is no other explanation.

There's still Sweden man.

Goaltending will make the difference.