Which men will be in the finals?

[Mathman]

Joubert (30) and Lysacek (28) are in.

Oda (15 so far) and Lambiel (15 so far) need only a fourth place in NHK to make the finals.

Takahashi is in if he gets first or second. If he gets third, he will be tied with Preaubert and Weir (all three will have a second and a first). Preaubert has huge CoP points, and Takahashi is on a pace to beat Weir in total points.

The only possible spoiler is van der Perren. If he wins the gold, he'll do a Sarah Meier and leap into the finals ahead of all the guys with a 2nd and a 3rd. Anything less and he's out of the picture.

There is extra $ incentive this year not only to make the GP finals but also to skate in Four Continents. The overall winner in the ISU ranking system (which greatly rewards both Four Continents and Europeans) gets an extra $50,000 -- on top of whatever they won at individual GP events, the GP finals, 4C's or Europeans and Worlds.

 

[AliasJohnDoe]

mens predictions:
1.Joubert-15+15=30
2.Oda-15+15=30
3.Lysacek-15+13=28
4.Lambiel-15+13=28
5.Preaubert-13+11=24
6.Takahashi-13+11=24
7.Weir-13+11=24 (1st alternate)

Then they find a mistake in the computer calculations, and it turns out Van Der Perren actually gets NHK bronze and Takahashi is only 4th. Weir then grabs the 6th spot in the GPF. (I wanted to give Weir fans hope)

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

Where is Li in all this? He is such a wonderfully improved skater but the branding that he has no presentation lingers. He has very good presentation, imo. Undermarked constantly.

Joe

 

[Mathman]

That's a good point. Li could very well make the podium at NHK and upset someone's apple cart.

He is not in the running for the GP Final himself because he had to withdraw from his first event, Cup of China, because of asthma. This is a chronic condition, so I hope everything goes well for him in Japan.

 

[Spun Silver]

Lambiel's out of NHK, as another poster reported. What does this mean for the GPF?

http://www.isu.org/vsite/vcontent/c...1-3787-4771-layout46-129898-news-item,00.html

 

[Mathman]

Most likely guess, just move everyone up one on the list that AliasJohnDoe posted above.

 

[Spun Silver]

Gosh, what a shame about Lambiel!

Well, if you're right about that, MM, let's hope Johnny can make the most of this windfall with a brilliant skate. I love him, but so far I'm not happy with his new programs and style. They don't yet seem to be a good fit. Maybe in December....

 

[hockeyfan228]

There is extra $ incentive this year not only to make the GP finals but also to skate in Four Continents. The overall winner in the ISU ranking system (which greatly rewards both Four Continents and Europeans) gets an extra $50,000 -- on top of whatever they won at individual GP events, the GP finals, 4C's or Europeans and Worlds.

Hmmm. Does that mean that Plushenko could come back and win Euros and Worlds and be at the top of the rankings, without having stepped foot on GP ice or Worlds last year?

 

[Joesitz (RIP)]

I think Plush has made his bundle. It's a question of how he invests it. I don't think he will want to ruin his reputation by skating without some sort of preparation. Joubert is much improved, and he seems to want it all, imo. "Today the Euros, tomorrow the Worlds".

Joe

 

[Mathman]

Hmmm. Does that mean that Plushenko could come back and win Euros and Worlds and be at the top of the rankings, without having stepped foot on GP ice or Worlds last year?

No, I don't think so. The point increments only go down by 50 points per placement. So if Plushenko came back and won Europeans and Worlds he would still be quite a bit behind someone who got, say, 4th and 6th in those events but also a 2nd in a GP event.

 

[tae04]

LOL those world standings mean nothing

 

[layman]

Johnny

Gosh, what a shame about Lambiel!

Well, if you're right about that, MM, let's hope Johnny can make the most of this windfall with a brilliant skate. I love him, but so far I'm not happy with his new programs and style. They don't yet seem to be a good fit. Maybe in December....

Is it definate that Johnny will be in the final?

I was secretly hoping that he would not make the final and be able to focus his training on Nationals.

I like his new programs and the judges seem to as well because he's getting high PCS scores. He just needs more technical content in the Long Program...4-toe/3-toe/2-loop, 3-axel/3-toe, 4-toe, 3-loop, 3-lutz, 3-flip/2-toe/2-loop, 3-salchow, 2-axel. Johnny could challenge anyone with that kind of technical content. When he does quads he makes them look so easy, so I hope he puts them back into his program.

Johnny's quad:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUldWQuk0TE

With that said, he's going to need at least a month of runthroughs to get the jumps consistent. So, I think the GPF is out.

 

[Spun Silver]

Mmmm, very nice! Do you know when he did that? Did he do that combo in performance or just practice?

What's especially nice about it is the quality of the triple and double. Often those just look like awkward little hops.

Definitely an image to remember as we wait for Johnny to pull it all out again. Thanks!

 

[layman]

Johnny

He does the quads consistently in the practices and warm-ups but he has not been putting them in the competitions. Maybe Cup of Russia will be a wake-up (Brian beat him by 50 points). Johnny needs the quads in the competition where they count.

 

[antmanb]

Mmmm, very nice! Do you know when he did that? Did he do that combo in performance or just practice?

What's especially nice about it is the quality of the triple and double. Often those just look like awkward little hops.

Definitely an image to remember as we wait for Johnny to pull it all out again. Thanks!

Well he's in the Otonal Costume and i remember reading reports that he was landing 4/3/2s and 4/3/3s consistently in practice at botht eh Olympics and Worlds so i'd guess it was one of those.

Ant

 

[Spun Silver]

(Brian beat him by 50 points).

Um, let's not make it more humiliating than it actually was. It was just over 40.
(237.83 vs. 196.28.)

 

[Mathman]

LOL those world standings mean nothing.

Except that this year they mean $50,000.

By the way, the points leader so far this year is .. Julia Sebestyen, with 925 points!

 

[childfreegirl]

Well he's in the Otonal Costume and i remember reading reports that he was landing 4/3/2s and 4/3/3s consistently in practice at botht eh Olympics and Worlds so i'd guess it was one of those.

Ant

Didn't he land a quad at Worlds last year at the same time Evan did?

 

[janka]

Didn't he land a quad at Worlds last year at the same time Evan did?

Two footed it.

 

[tae04]

Shows you how flawed the world standing system is. Julia scores aren't even top 6 scores.