Pairs Free

[flyingnun]

I don't understand why Vise and Trent's components were so much lower at this sc than last year at the same event?? I think that their program was better this time around. I suspect the components were lower because they didn't try the quad this time.

 

[netnuts]

Agree with you mostly but K/S L/H comment. The reason K/S ahead is the content, even sloppily executed they are all moslty level 4 and innovative. Problem is that they are not capable of executing them cleanly and that's reflected in the scores. L/H are lovely pair and definitely not worse than D/D content wise but still needs to up difficulty. When I watch them I feel like I am in 90s.

I think K/S can crank up big technical points, but they really can't contend on PCS. They are very slow, and do not have the flow. Speed & Flow are critical to separate top teams from second/third tiers.

Maybe L/H are too slow? can't really tell from TV screen.

D&D are just blah... I'm afraid we have to endure them over the next few years as Canadian federation is promoting them. They will likely leave a bad taste to many fans just as S&P did. They really don't stand out technically, don't even have a 3twist... Artistically, they are also very generic, nothing exciting about them. Their programs also do not have transitions...

 

[slutskayafan21]

I actually couldnt stand Sale/Pelletier and I love Dube/Davison so it is kind of funny to see so many other people matching them together.

 

[Sackie]

I think what we are seeing is that although on paper having the skaters skate in reverse order looks good it is not working out quite as well as expected. It seems to me the judges are marking the PCS marks by the order of skate. So the highest PCS marks are being saved for the last. Last week D/D were last to skate and thus received higher PCS this week they were second last to skate and thus the PCS marks were lower leaving room for the top team to make mistakes and still win.
Also think this is what happened with L/H cause to me they were way above the Rus - even in PCS! The commentator even commented on how slow some of the Rus moves were and I always thought that slowness meant lower PCS. Or at least that's what everyone is always saying on here! And Anabel had much nicer positions that the Rus lady IMHO.

 

[rain]

I actually couldnt stand Sale/Pelletier and I love Dube/Davison so it is kind of funny to see so many other people matching them together.

I love both pairs, but don't find them very similar. D/D are much more like classical Russian pairs. Not everyone is going to like them of course, but I think it's simply inaccurate to say they do not have difficulty and consistency. Just because you're not always perfect, does not equal no consistency. If they did not have the technical they would not get the points they do. It's find to say you don't like them, you find them generic etc. but please, be realistic.

 

[astimegoesby]

I actually couldnt stand Sale/Pelletier and I love Dube/Davison so it is kind of funny to see so many other people matching them together.

D&D actually worked a bit with S&P in Edmonton this summer, and I can definitely see the influence, but since I'm a fan of both teams, that's only a good thing, IMO!

This is also the first time D&D have been injury-free for four seasons, so this is also the first year they've really been able to work more on expressing themselves on the ice rather than just trying to get through their program, and I've already noticed a big difference in that department this year.

Did anyone get to see the end of Duhamel and Buntin's LP? I'm watching the main CBC network broadcast now, and they cut the end of their LP to show a lovely shot of the Zamboni for some reason. :banging: I hope the CBC Country Canada/online broadcast didn't do the same thing!

 

[netnuts]

I actually couldnt stand Sale/Pelletier and I love Dube/Davison so it is kind of funny to see so many other people matching them together.

I actually liked S&P and can never understand the near violent reaction to them by many fans...

D&D to me are just blah... They have not made any progress year over year. They are still fairly young, but have they upgraded jump content? Have they pushed for a 3twist? ... Nothing... Their sbs spins have actually degenerated quite a bit from last season(i uderstand the accident), they are much slower, sync is also not as good as in the past... I think the only bright spot of their elements is lift..

Artistically, they are trying the same, old, same old generic stuff... Nothing really stands out.

 

[Tinymavy15]

YESSSSS! DUBE AND DAVISON INTO THE LEAD!!

They really are the judges darlings this year, and with good reason. When they skate you can forget about the elements and enjoy. You are not holding your breath.. are they gonna land it? It dosen't seem to matter.

1 Aliona SAVCHENKO / Robin SZOLKOWY GER 119.19 61.19 58.00 7.50 7.05 7.20 7.30 7.20 0.00 #6
2 Jessica DUBE / Bryce DAVISON CAN 111.08 59.92 52.16 6.75 6.25 6.70 6.45 6.45 1.00 #5
3 Yuko KAWAGUCHI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 105.19 58.11 48.08 6.30 5.85 5.90 6.10 5.90 1.00 #4
4 Anabelle LANGLOIS / Cody HAY CAN 102.69 57.97 44.72 5.90 5.25 5.60 5.75 5.45 0.00 #3
5 Tiffany VISE / Derek TRENT USA 96.26 55.62 40.64 5.35 4.85 5.10 5.30 4.80 0.00 #1
6 Meagan DUHAMEL / Craig BUNTIN CAN 91.38 50.22 42.16 5.60 5.00 5.25 5.35 5.15 1.00 #2

Final standings:

Aliona SAVCHENKO / Robin SZOLKOWY GER 188.63 1 1
2 Jessica DUBE / Bryce DAVISON CAN 174.20 2 2
3 Yuko KAWAGUCHI / Alexander SMIRNOV RUS 165.19 3 3
4 Anabelle LANGLOIS / Cody HAY CAN 156.67 4 4
5 Tiffany VISE / Derek TRENT USA 147.52 6 5
6 Meagan DUHAMEL / Craig BUNTIN CAN 144.16 5 6

 

[rain]

No way should K/S have beaten L/H in this portion of the competition. K/S were slow as molasses, Kawaguchi has ugly, ugly lift positions in the air, a fall, and a bobble on the throw. Plus, the unison was very off, almost throughout.

 

[oxade21]

I think K/S can crank up big technical points, but they really can't contend on PCS. They are very slow, and do not have the flow. Speed & Flow are critical to separate top teams from second/third tiers.

Well, in recent interview, Moskvina stated that their goal this season is to work on securing all the tricks first and work on presentation along the way. Her strategy is to up the technical aspects and make the skaters to adjust speed and flow to that. I am not sure if that's right strategy though.
BUT remember that all of her pairs had rocky starts and were rough around the edges, look where they ended up.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

The reason K/S ahead is the content, even sloppily executed they are all moslty level 4 and innovative. Problem is that they are not capable of executing them cleanly and that's reflected in the scores.

Moskvina used the same strategy with O/S. Didn't work too well for their confidence when they frequently flubbed elements and programs that were too difficult for them. Maybe she'll have to realize that not every pair will be as talented as B/S. She'll have to adjust her expectations if she wants her pairs to grow.

 

[oxade21]

Moskvina used the same strategy with O/S. Didn't work too well for their confidence when they frequently flubbed elements and programs that were too difficult for them. Maybe she'll have to realize that not every pair will be as talented as B/S. She'll have to adjust her expectations if she wants her pairs to grow.

I also do agree that Yuko is no Berezhnaja or Mushkutenok, but look at the protocols, K/S had the highest Base Value of all the teams with huge gap, ironically only Langlois and Hay came somewhat close. Imagine them to execute all the elements cleanly???? Something they are certainly capable of.

P.S: Also, Yuko is not Obertas, she is much more mentally stable and hard working. So I hope they can handle it.

 

[netnuts]

I also do agree that Yuko is no Berezhnaja or Mushkutenok, but look at the protocols, K/S had the highest Base Value of all the teams with huge gap, ironically only Langlois and Hay came somewhat close. Imagine them to execute all the elements cleanly???? Something they are certainly capable of.

P.S: Also, Yuko is not Obertas, she is much more mentally stable and hard working. So I hope they can handle it.

I don't think their technical points will improve much even if they skate 'clean'. GoE is going to kill them. They don't get many positive GoE on almost any element. throws, jumps, spins, spirals are mediocre. Lifts are innovative, but positions are suspicious... Also they have to reply on throw4s, which really can't be done 'cleanly' on a regular basis.

 

[oxade21]

I don't think their technical points will improve much even if they skate 'clean'. GoE is going to kill them. They don't get many positive GoE on almost any element. throws, jumps, spins, spirals are mediocre. Lifts are innovative, but positions are suspicious... Also they have to reply on throw4s, which really can't be done 'cleanly' on a regular basis.

Well, That's why it is called GoE that it all depends on the day. And the fact that they did not get positive GoE today does not mean that they do not get them always, there were days when they did. Suspicious position, to whom??? For me it was messy for the reason of difficulty at this point for them, but nothing that they can not do. I think the biggest probelm is their stamina, by the end they are walking not skating.
I am not a psychic and can not predict how they progress but at least they have something to improve. Whereas most of the pairs we saw today, do not have those elements to work on.

 

[rain]

Was impressed that D/D improved quite a bit over Skate America in just one week. I think this team needs to work on speed, and getting a triple twist now. Very impressive young pair.

S/S liked them quite a bit. Hated the dirge they skated to. Liked the different lift positions. They weren't just different for the sake of being different, they were actually beautiful at the same time — not something you always see these days in the quest for points. Their death spiral, on the other hand, may have been difficult, but looked awful. Hope they got negative GOE on the element.

 

[Saundy]

D&D to me are just blah...

Why don't you say this a few more times...I don't think everyone saw it the first 3 times...

You're entitled to your opinion of course.
I, however, happen to like them and like someone said, they have been injured the past 4 years so I think if they're given a chance they will excell.

I also agree that L&H were undermarked. I think this team has some potential.

 

[slutskayafan21]

Was impressed that D/D improved quite a bit over Skate America in just one week. I think this team needs to work on speed, and getting a triple twist now. Very impressive young pair.

S/S liked them quite a bit. Hated the dirge they skated to. Liked the different lift positions. They weren't just different for the sake of being different, they were actually beautiful at the same time — not something you always see these days in the quest for points. Their death spiral, on the other hand, may have been difficult, but looked awful. Hope they got negative GOE on the element.

I feel Savchenko/Szowkoly need some work on their free program to be World Champions this year, as many expect them to be. Their short program here was easily World Championship winning calibre, their free program probably was not. Still lots of time to make it better though.

I agree Dube/Davison have improved even more from Skate America. I really want to see a triple twist from them though. I am dissapointed their PCS came down so much in the free skate compared to Skate America, I knew they might drop a bit since Skate America were so high compared to usual for them, but they dropped quite a bit in the free skate.

 

[Mathman]

Nothing against Dube and Davison, but I thought Savchenko and Szowkoly were in a whole different league in the free skate. What S&S need, though, is better music. To me, that dreary droning dragged down the whole program.

D&D: The prettiest move of the day, their double Axel-Mazurka-double Axel.

I agree with eveyone who liked Langois/Hay over Kowaguchi/Smirnof.

 

[Buzzz]

I think I may have been out of fs way too long to judge who was better than who but I enjoyed all the pairs FS. The only thing I did not like that much was Smirnov's costume. Saw it all on the French station. Congrats to the medalists.

 

[Hsuhs]

Congrets to Aliona & Robin and Yuko & Alexander. You rock guys! (although I hope there will be more MORE love in the "Love story" by the end of the season ;-)