The Men's GP Assignments

[Sylvia]

Speaking of new skaters... according to my online research, there are just five men making their Senior Grand Prix debut this fall. They are:
Stephen Carriere USA - 1st at JGPF & Jr. Worlds [America & NHK]
Kevin Reynolds CAN - 3rd at JGPF, 5th at Jr. Worlds [America & CoR]
Jeremy Abbott USA - 3rd at 4 Continents [Canada & NHK]
Andrei Lutai RUS - 5th at Europeans, 20th at Worlds [America & CoR]
Ming XU CHN - 10th at 4 Continents, 26th at Worlds [CoR]
(Reynolds can go back to Jr. Worlds next year; Carriere is still junior age-eligible but it's not likely he'll go back to defend his title in 2008.)

 

[waxel]

Sylvia, thank you for so frequently sharing interesting facts with the board!

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Speaking of new skaters... according to my online research, there are just five men making their Senior Grand Prix debut this fall. They are:
Stephen Carriere USA - 1st at JGPF & Jr. Worlds [America & NHK]
Kevin Reynolds CAN - 3rd at JGPF, 5th at Jr. Worlds [America & CoR]
Jeremy Abbott USA - 3rd at 4 Continents [Canada & NHK]
Andrei Lutai RUS - 5th at Europeans, 20th at Worlds [America & CoR]
Ming XU CHN - 10th at 4 Continents, 26th at Worlds [CoR]
(Reynolds can go back to Jr. Worlds next year; Carriere is still junior age-eligible but it's not likely he'll go back to defend his title in 2008.)

Your list:

Carriere: Wasn't he in Seniors at Spokane or am I am I thinking of a GP?

Reynolds - I don't think I got to see his skate anywhere. Is he on youtube? I did hear about a 'Joey" from Canada which reminded me that that was what my mother called me..

Abbottt got through at Nats with a pewter giving johnny a scare. I will want to see if he can show he is now senior competitive.

Lutei, imo is a Russian skater who should have a coach guiding him to be a unique skater and not a Plushenko clone. Despite his poor showing in Tokyo, I coudl see potential there

XU is someone I just don/' know.

I'm still hoping for Tommy Steenberg to come into his own.

Joe

.

 

[PolymerBob]

I hate to burst everyone's bubble, but even if Mr. TBA wins the Cup of Russia, he cannot make it to the final with only one event.

 

[Jaana]

Well, I fail to see Lutai as a Plushenko clone, but last season I saw him as a skater who had problems with jumping... Maybe he had grown? Anyway, I sure hope that in coming season his jumping will be okay, so the freeskate will look a lot better.

Skate America and Skate Canada are events early in the season, so there might be some little podium upsets? Anyway, I have hopes for a bronze for Abbot in Skate Canada as I was very impressed by his skating in last year´s Finlandia Trophy.

 

[hockeyfan228]

Lutai was very impressive at Europeans. It was disappointing that he couldn't repeat at Worlds, but he has a lot of charisma when he's on.

 

[Hsuhs]

I, on the contrary, wasn't very impressed, and didn't quite understand his 5th place overall at Euros. I think that the 20th at Worlds reflected Andrei's abilities a lot more accurate. He turns what? 21 this summer? What has he achieved so far? Not much, I'm afraid.

 

[Ximena]

What I'm more concerned about is if now that Plush is, in theory, back if Mishin will pay as much attention to Lutai as he did last season. Tatiana Mishina was interviewed a couple of days ago and she was asked if Mishin will pay attention to Lutai this season, and she said something like "well he will work more on Plushenko of course, but he will work as well on Lutai". I really hope he does, Lutai has a great attitude, I remmeber a interview to him like two years ago and he said something like a checklist he needed to be Oly champion and he is convinced he can do it, and that's cool.

 

[Tinymavy15]

i find myself wondering what exactly to expect from Joubert next season. Becasue if his easy worlds win and no olympics looming in the very near future i think that he will find himself lacking in motivation. the past few years he was trying to prove himself at worlds.... now that he has done so he might not have the same attack and desire and need to try the three quads etc. We have seen it happen many times before with skaters who have just won thier first world title.

 

[Mathman]

That's a good question about Joubert. I don't think he can rest on his laurels. He did a three quad performance only once last year and was not able to duplicate it in the big shows at the end of the season. He finished third in the free skate at Worlds and held on for the title only because Lambiel and Takahashi had subpar short programs.

 

[Ximena]

That's a good question about Joubert. I don't think he can rest on his laurels. He did a three quad performance only once last year and was not able to duplicate it in the big shows at the end of the season. He finished third in the free skate at Worlds and held on for the title only because Lambiel and Takahashi had subpar short programs.

I think what Joubert needs now to prove is that he is consisent, otherwise it would like past years like 2003-2004 when he was raising to fall apart the next to season, and I think the fact that it seems finally his coaching situation is fixed, and hopefully his problems with his fed, he can now focus on just skating.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Joubert broke the curse of skating poorly in his home country so I think he is an easy win in Paris, and unless Buttle rises to the occasion in Quebec City, Joubert could win this also. But he'll be on his way to the Finals.

My initial Finals picks are Joubert, Takahashi, Lambiel (if he skates), Lysacek,

I'm not clear with Buttle, Oda, Verner, Weir, and YKW, and they are all possible.

All of this is subject to change before the Finals.

Joe

 

[Hsuhs]

I like it that Japan sends its best male skater to SA every year, to win it. I also think Evans trip to SA for the 4th(?) time in a row is plain adorable in this regard.

 

[Mathman]

I like it that Japan sends its best male skater to SA every year, to win it. I also think Evans trip to SA for the 4th(?) time in a row is plain adorable in this regard.

I don't think Japan sends anyone. I think Skate America choses who they want. Isn't that how the selection process goes? So Skate America had its choice of Takahashi, Lambiel or Joubert and they chose Takahashi (unless some other event chose Joubert and Lambiel first, and Takahashi fell to Skate America by default).

Lysacek, adorable as he is :yes:, always goes to Skate America because USFS just goes down the list of the top finishers at U.S. Nationals. Weir always declines and Lysacek is next in line (this year he was first in line).

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

There are some mini contests at SA in the Men's:

Chan v. Reynolds

Preaubert v. Berntsson

Dobrin v. Lutai

And there are some questions regarding:

Zelenka - Will they treat him fairly?

Kozuka - Who is he?

Bradley - Can he repeat for a bronze?

Carriere - Will he cause an upset in his debut?

Joe

 

[Sylvia]

And there are some questions regarding:

Kozuka - Who is he?

Bradley - Can he repeat for a bronze?

Repeat? Bradley was 8th at Skate America last year (clean SP but problems in his FS).

Takahiko Kozuka was the 2006 World Junior men's champ whose FS was televised by ESPN at NHK Trophy last year. He won the bronze and showed promise/talent, I thought.

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Repeat? Bradley was 8th at Skate America last year (clean SP but problems in his FS).

Whoops. Thinking about Nats.

 

[Hsuhs]

I don't think Japan sends anyone. I think Skate America choses who they want. Isn't that how the selection process goes? So Skate America had its choice of Takahashi, Lambiel or Joubert and they chose Takahashi (unless some other event chose Joubert and Lambiel first, and Takahashi fell to Skate America by default).

Lysacek, adorable as he is :yes:, always goes to Skate America because USFS just goes down the list of the top finishers at U.S. Nationals. Weir always declines and Lysacek is next in line (this year he was first in line).

But it looks like SA's been wanting a guy from Japan for the last few years. Tamura, Honda, Nakaniwa, Oda, Takahashi. There's (almost) always someone at SA.

Evan wasn't anywhere near the top in 2004. In 2005 he finished 3rd at Nats. The last 2 seasons make more sense.

My theory is they've been trying to turn him into a manly Michelle, an icon of the US FS. But, unlike Mishelle, he never wins SA.

 

[Ximena]

Preaubert v. Berntsson
Dobrin v. Lutai

While I found Berntsson more entertaining than Preaubert, I think Preaubert is more experienced, especially in the GP series. Also doesn't Preabuert has a quad?
Dobrin v. Lutai will be a true battle across the season. The Russian fed never hides the fact that they send to Euros and Worlds who they want and RN results has nothing to do with it. And wether YKW goes or doesn't go to CoR, the RF is sure that he will show up at Euros where there is only one more spot available; so of course it would be him and one more; and unless Griazev finally jumps back from whatever black hole he is being the past two season, it would be between Dobrin and Lutai. IMO Dobrin is better than Lutai, but I insist that Dobrin has got to understand that the FS is not just his 4sal and sometimes when that does not work, he has to focus on doing the rest right. Also Dobrin has the advantage now that he has finally Gromova for himself, unlike Lutai that will have to battle his coach attention again.

 

[Mathman]

Evan wasn't anywhere near the top in 2004. In 2005 he finished 3rd at Nats. The last 2 seasons make more sense.

Still, I think the USFSA has (or had back then) a policy of not playing politics or plotting and scheming in their assignments.

In 2004 the order of finish at U.S. nationals was Weir, Weiss, Savoie , Jahnke and Lysacek (Lysacek was also the reigning junior GP winner and junior world silver medalist). IIRC at 2004 Skate America, Weir declined, favoring a later assignment, and I believe Savoie was injured (he did do Cup of China later in the season). So Weiss, Jahnke and Lysacek went to Skate America. (Jahnke skated great and won second, after Joubert).

Savoie, BTW and IMHO, was the most talented, most undermarked, and least appreciated U.S. men's skater of the past decade.

My theory is they've been trying to turn him into a manly Michelle, an icon of the US FS. But, unlike Mishelle, he never wins SA.

Maybe it has been sneaking up on me and I didn't notice, but it seems to me that the manly real-men-wear-black Evan is a fairly recent creation. Back then he was just another guy trying to land his triple Axel.

I think it's been only in the last year or so that Evan has been marketed as the anti-Johnny.