Czechoslovakia had an enormous Goalie issue that was going to kill them no matter what. As great as the USSR was they went with a shockingly young D Core in 1980. Kasatonov was 20 Fetisov was 21 Starikov was 21 Those 3 were younger than Morrow, Baker, O'Callahan and Suter!!!l Baker and Morrow were were 3 years older than Kasatonov and 2 years older than Starikov. At those ages that a lot development wise. Makes you wonder what happened to the Soviet Dman pipeline for guys born from 1950-55? Honestly I think the D Core pool of US Dmen born 1956 and 1957 was way better than USSR pool. 1956 Reed Larson, Ken Morrow 1957 Rod Langway, Gord Roberts Jack of Callahan Pervukhin looks like the only '56 or '57 of consequence for the USSR. What a bad couple of years and going back to '55 only Zenatula Bileyaletinov was on the USSR Team. I would say Mike O'Connell was almost as good. The USSR relied on a great top 7 Fetisov, Vasiliev and Tretiak. Honestly if you got housed a Team Canada for a full year I doubt they lose to the USSR.
In fact if you put together the best US players both NCAA\NHL thus team IMO would have been capable of winning 2 games in a 7 game series against the USSR. They wouldn't beat them more than twice but I could see twice. Biggest deficiency would be goal, then forward but the US D Core I would take by a little bit. Forward core definitely goes to the USSR. Team USA G - Steve Baker - Craig D - Langway - O'Connell Roberts - Morrow Ramsey - Larson Milbury C - Howe - Ftorek - Pavelich - Broten LW - Jensen - Fidler - Johnson - B Miller RW - Holmgren - Talafous - Rowe Mullen Gorence Mark Howe was a fantastic hockey player. IMO after a half year playing center would have been a legit 1C in the NHL but was so good on D. Howe played a lot of LW in '79-80 for Hartford and there is history for great skating Dmen playing a bit of center as Bobby Orr and Phil Housley did. That US Team had 3 HOF with Langway (he broke out in the 1970-80 season), Howe and Mullen.
US and Sweden benefited big time from the sieve that was the
Czechoslovakia goalie. Guy was barely AHL starter level.
was pretty bad!
Czechoslovakia had an enormous
Goalie issue that was going to kill them no matter what.
As great as the USSR was they went with a shockingly young D Core in 1980.
Kasatonov was 20
Fetisov was 21
Starikov was 21
Those 3 were younger than Morrow, Baker, O'Callahan and Suter!!!l Baker and Morrow were
were 3 years older than Kasatonov
and 2 years older than Starikov.
At those ages that a lot development wise.
Makes you wonder what happened to the Soviet Dman
pipeline for guys born from
1950-55?
Honestly I think the D Core pool of
US Dmen born 1956 and 1957 was
way better than USSR pool.
1956 Reed Larson, Ken Morrow
1957 Rod Langway, Gord Roberts
Jack of Callahan
Pervukhin looks like the only '56 or '57 of consequence for the USSR. What a bad couple of years
and going back to '55 only
Zenatula Bileyaletinov was on the USSR Team. I would say
Mike O'Connell was almost as good.
The USSR relied on a great top 7
Fetisov, Vasiliev and Tretiak. Honestly if you got housed a
Team Canada for a full year I doubt they lose to the USSR.
In fact if you put together the best
US players both NCAA\NHL thus team IMO would have been capable of winning 2 games in a 7
game series against the USSR. They wouldn't beat them more than twice but I could see twice.
Biggest deficiency would be goal,
then forward but the US D Core I would take by a little bit. Forward
core definitely goes to the USSR.
Team USA
G - Steve Baker - Craig
D - Langway - O'Connell
Roberts - Morrow
Ramsey - Larson
Milbury
C - Howe - Ftorek - Pavelich - Broten
LW - Jensen - Fidler - Johnson - B Miller
RW - Holmgren - Talafous - Rowe
Mullen
Gorence
Mark Howe was a fantastic hockey player. IMO after a half year playing center would have been a legit 1C in the NHL but was so good on D. Howe played a lot of LW in '79-80 for Hartford and there is history for great skating Dmen playing a bit of center
as Bobby Orr and Phil Housley
did.
That US Team had 3 HOF with
Langway (he broke out in the 1970-80 season), Howe and
Mullen.
it was the Iron Range line that destroyed the Czechs, they were laughably superior to everyone else...
do you have cbc coverage of usa-ussr?
Did you grow up in Mass Collazzo?
@@KMK7355 ny
yep, I watched it live