Jonathan Quick rips Team USA's effort in loss to Finland

Toronto Sun ^ | Feb. 22, 2014 | QMI Agency

[rickmichaels]

Jonathan Quick will leave Sochi empty handed, but not quietly.

Humiliated after a 5-0 loss to Finland in the Olympic bronze-medal hockey game Saturday, the U.S. goaltender harshly criticized his team’s effort a day after losing to Canada in the semifinals.

“It shouldn’t be too hard,” he told NBC. “We do that all year long. We’re professionals. We play back-to-backs all year long.

“There’s no reason we show up and not piss a drop.”

Quick also took responsibility for his own play.

“My job is to stop the puck, and I didn’t do that very well,” the Los Angeles Kings goalie said. He gave up all five goals Saturday on 29 shots. “Team effort. We weren’t good.”

Quick put in a remarkable performance Friday against the Canadians – he stopped 36 of 37 shots – but received no offensive support as the Americans were shut out in their last two games.

[Bulwyf]

Nah, he’s right, US and Canada was the gold medal game. The only two teams that mattered heh.

[Alberta's Child]

Then why is he complaining when the U.S. didn’t show up to play today in the bronze medal game? LOL.

[Rodamala]

I hope they got their participation awards.

Does the STD they contracted while using a cellphone hookup app count?

[wastedyears]

The US didn’t have Okposo, who as of the Olympic break starting, is 3rd among American players in points.

US Committee sure didn’t pick all the best players.

[Alberta's Child]

I haven't seen Okposo play, so I don't know if he really belonged on this team. I do know that the U.S. team management had taken a lot of grief for leaving a great scorer like Bobby Ryan off the roster, but I can understand why they made a decision like that. Ryan is slow on his skates and is not a very good defensive player, and the fear was that he'd be badly exposed by faster European teams on the larger Olympic ice surface. Could that have been the case with Okposo, too?

US Committee sure didn’t pick all the best players.

If you've ever seen the Disney movie "Miracle" about the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team, that's exactly what assistant coach Craig Patrick told Brooks in one of the early scenes at training camp!

Patrick (looking down at the final roster): "You're missing some of the best players, Herb."

Brooks: "I'm not looking for the best players, Craig. I'm looking for the right ones."

I think this is something Canada has done extremely well since the NHL started allowing players to compete in the Olympics. The leadership of that national team consistently takes a bunch of star players, molds them together into an outstanding team, and somehow gets them to shed any egos they may have.

[wastedyears]

Okposo is a bulldog on the boards, and 9 times out of 10 makes the right play/pass. On the other hand, Tomas Vanek, also on the first line, makes the wrong play/pass 9 times out of 10, and was on Austria’s team. Okposo is also a great skater, and makes some incredible moves when going towards the net.

The next Islander game is on Thursday. If you’re not doing anything, try to find it.

Here’s an okay highlight reel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42and1SAIeE