[cbuscru77]

Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock probably will receive some heartfelt congratulations today in Nationwide Arena after coaching Team Canada to a second-place finish in the world championships.

A runner-up showing is worth more than a "Whoopee," the mocking reaction Hitchcock made famous when his Blue Jackets surpassed their modest franchise point total this season. Still, the coach and his native country were hoping for more.
"The silver medal doesn't interest us at all," Hitchcock said last night. "Team Canada doesn't go to tournaments for silver medals."
But gold proved as elusive as the two-goal lead Canada let slip through its clutches against Russia in the championship game Sunday in Quebec City. The Russians rallied from a 4-2 third-period deficit to stun the Canadians with a 5-4 overtime victory.
Ilya Kovalchuk scored the winner with Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash in the penalty box for delay of game. Nash's defensive-zone clearing attempt sailed into the stands, giving the Russians a four-on-three advantage. (Under international rules, teams play four-on-four in overtime.)
"It was a tough break," Hitchcock said. "The puck was rolling as Rick went to clear it."
Hitchcock said Canada's defensive struggles hurt its efforts in the knockout round. Team Canada yielded a combined nine goals in its semifinal and final games.
"We had a difficult time defensively," Hitchcock said. "We couldn't shut games down sometimes. Some of that is the skill level of the opponent and some of it was our own responsibility."
Against Russia, Hitchcock said Team Canada lost a lot of faceoffs and became tentative with the puck as the game wore on.
"I thought maybe we were trying to protect the lead a little too much," tournament MVP Dany Heatley told The Hockey News. "Our game is forecheck hard and be on their "D" and work the puck in their end. … We gave them too much room."
Although defense is Hitchcock's forte, he conceded that it's difficult to establish continuity in nine games, playing a different opponent each night.
Hitchcock said after the initial shock subsided the players were proud of their efforts. Nobody pinned the loss on Nash's penalty. A year after being named tournament MVP, Nash was again voted to the all-tournament team.
In three world championships, Nash has collected 21 goals in 27 games and earned a gold and two silver medals. Hitchcock hopes Nash's world championship heroics are at an end.
"We want to start playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs at this time of year," he said.

[blueandwhite]

Originally Posted by cbuscru77

Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock probably will receive some heartfelt congratulations today in Nationwide Arena after coaching Team Canada to a second-place finish in the world championships.

A runner-up showing is worth more than a "Whoopee," the mocking reaction Hitchcock made famous when his Blue Jackets surpassed their modest franchise point total this season. Still, the coach and his native country were hoping for more.
"The silver medal doesn't interest us at all," Hitchcock said last night. "Team Canada doesn't go to tournaments for silver medals."
But gold proved as elusive as the two-goal lead Canada let slip through its clutches against Russia in the championship game Sunday in Quebec City. The Russians rallied from a 4-2 third-period deficit to stun the Canadians with a 5-4 overtime victory.
Ilya Kovalchuk scored the winner with Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash in the penalty box for delay of game. Nash's defensive-zone clearing attempt sailed into the stands, giving the Russians a four-on-three advantage. (Under international rules, teams play four-on-four in overtime.)
"It was a tough break," Hitchcock said. "The puck was rolling as Rick went to clear it."
Hitchcock said Canada's defensive struggles hurt its efforts in the knockout round. Team Canada yielded a combined nine goals in its semifinal and final games.
"We had a difficult time defensively," Hitchcock said. "We couldn't shut games down sometimes. Some of that is the skill level of the opponent and some of it was our own responsibility."
Against Russia, Hitchcock said Team Canada lost a lot of faceoffs and became tentative with the puck as the game wore on.
"I thought maybe we were trying to protect the lead a little too much," tournament MVP Dany Heatley told The Hockey News. "Our game is forecheck hard and be on their "D" and work the puck in their end. … We gave them too much room."
Although defense is Hitchcock's forte, he conceded that it's difficult to establish continuity in nine games, playing a different opponent each night.
Hitchcock said after the initial shock subsided the players were proud of their efforts. Nobody pinned the loss on Nash's penalty. A year after being named tournament MVP, Nash was again voted to the all-tournament team.
In three world championships, Nash has collected 21 goals in 27 games and earned a gold and two silver medals. Hitchcock hopes Nash's world championship heroics are at an end.
"We want to start playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs at this time of year," he said.

This is what amazes me most - yeah it sucks not to win the gold but what a team and how they figured out how to work so well together and what a precursor to the Olympics in Vancouver 2010.