President`s Corner from the Rock

Today I was astounded to see the level of passion that was displayed by the teams as they prepared for the event with energetic practices. For instance the German National Men`s team coming off a long travel journey of flight delays the night before, working out and looking good with little rest on the first practice Saturday am. This German team looks like it will have possibly one of the best tournaments in its history with a full roster sporting its flashy German swag. This practice was followed by a hungry Canadian team with what looks like a very fast and big team, that was run through a intense practice. The World Champions the Czech Republic followed their arch rivals led by there great Coach Kadlec looked as a group focussed. They have a Czech TV crew in tow beaming reports and games back to Czechia for their proud fans. From all accounts the World Champs look ready to defend Gold folks!! The floor was then engulfed by a sea of red as the Swiss jumped on the floor in Torbay and looked better than I ever remember. Very well coached, and a technically wonderful practice. This team is setting the table for Zug in 2015, and the players looked like they were hungry and technically ready for a good result. The next practice turned Green as the speedsters representing Pakistan started revving there engines. This team is fast, and will challenge teams with its running excellence for sure. It was then time for Hellas, and the Greeks are led by ISBHF Hall of Famer, Coach Gus Kourousis and they have a real look of wanting to be in that final 6 teams vying for Gold. And a challenging opponent for anyone.

 

Canada followed with a well played exhibition game with the local Black Horse team that sported some young stars. These youngsters played hard against the Canadian team, but the home nation showed it has some skill and speed for its visitors to contend with. Finally to end the long day at the rink, we saw the Red, White and Blue of the USA. I was astounded with the skill level of this team and the dynamic offensive force of its players. The team is will coached by coaches Banks, and DeFazio, and its key players look like they are going to be handful. You could make a case that this will be the first USA team to win a medal at our Men`s level. It was not hard to see they are very good from my perspective.

 

My final thought was how hard all these teams were working, and the high level of fitness they all displayed. The high level of coaching all these teams are garnering and the well run practices. All these teams have rosters loaded with 23 to 25 players and know that this A Pool will test the energy levels of these teams throughout the week with tough schedules. In my mind this is the deepest and best collection of A Pool teams I have ever seen. And the players are going to thoroughly enjoy the classic battles that lie ahead. The players and the fans of St. John`s can feel the buzz. It is going to be wonderful event, and tomorrow I look forward to meeting our referee team, having our coaches meeting and watching our B Pool initial games. Until then and as I look across the Atlantic Ocean into the harbour of St. John`s, I see many Golden possibilities at the A Pool.