Monday, February 25, 2002
Brooks goes out grumbling
By BRUCE GARRIOCH -- Team Sun
SALT LAKE CITY -- Herb Brooks couldn't take the loss without firing a shot.
The Team USA coach made it abundantly clear he wasn't happy with the way Team Canada was allowed to qualify for yesterday's final and he wants the International Olympic Committee to look at the playoff process.
Trying to say he wasn't spreading sour grapes following a 5-2 loss to Team Canada, Brooks told reporters that one of the reasons USA lost was that his club had no legs because it worked so hard to get to the final.
"I know this is going to sound like I'm complaining and you can cut me apart, but I don't understand the seeding procedure in this tournament. We had to beat tough opponents to get here," Brooks said.
"I thought that Canada was able to just walk right through. I don't know how this is done and I've said this before, but I think there has to be a better system. They've got to come up with a better way."
Still, not everybody on Team USA reacted the way Brooks did. Most of the players believed that in the end the best team won.
"We don't have anything to feel bad about," defenceman Phil Housley said. "It was a great experience for everybody. These memories are something that we will all carry for a long time.
"Canada got that second goal (from Jarome Iginla) and it was a big one. Both teams got themselves in a position to win a gold medal, but it was just one of those games where they got the breaks and the puck went in."
Still, after a disastrous performance in Nagano in 1998, the Americans atoned by winning silver. Before they left the ice, they waved to the fans and thanked them for their support.
"They played their best game and we didn't," goaltender Mike Richter said. "We said the right things and had the right attitude, but this is a tournament with the best players in the world and even the little things make a difference. Especially when you make mistakes."
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2002 Games Men's Hockey Coverage
