Connect the Polka-dots: U. S. Ice Dancers

[semogal]

Now that we have seen the programs for most of the US Ice Dancing teams, I am curious as to people's thoughts on them.

D/W: Love, love, love their SD. The FD has not thrilled me but I know it is early days yet.

Shibs: I felt so sorry for them at COR. I think their FD could be fabulous but that SD? I know it is a new program and will improve but I was looking forward to Mary Poppins! And Alex needs to lose that headband.

H/D: I love this team. They are not as technically proficient as other teams but to me they have an "it" factor about them. I enjoy both of their programs this year.

C/B: This team is great technically but they leave me cold. I really don't think Laura in DR Z would have hearts on her skates ( I find her skates so distracting). But mainly my problem is every time I see Evan, I want to slap him because we no longer get to watch the beautiful Emily! I know that is not logical but it is how I feel.

K/G-S: They are easy on the eye and have some beautiful moments in their programs. But neither of their programs this year are what they need to move up in the rankings.

[DORISPULASKI]

Welll...going on this year's scores only, the group behind Davis & White are scoring pretty much the same so far:

K/G-S won the bronze at SLC with a score of 140.86, ) & finished fourth at SKAM with 141.41 ( SD 53.89, FD 87.92) & just won Ice Challenge of Graz They scored 89.24 in the FD there.

C/B bombed at SLC in the FD to finish fourth, but bounced back to win Nebelhorn with a score of 147.79, and finish fourth at CoC with a total score of 149.54 (SD 59.26 FD 90.28)

Hubbell & Donohue, last year's USA bronze medallists, had a promising start at Finlandia, finishing third with 150.30, but they could only manage fifth and a total of 135.16 at Skate Canada ( SD 54.84 FD 80.32) They have a hard road to placing even 4th at TEB, as P&B, C&L, Gilles & Poirier, and Riazanova & Tkachenko will all be there.

And the Shibutanis only scored 140.91 to finish fourth at CoR ( SD 58.26 FD 82.65), having competed in no other competitions this season. However, at NHK, they will not be facing any team of substance, other than D&W and I&K. They should finish at least 3rd there, even if they skate no better than they did at CoR.

If anything, I'd say C&B have the inside track for the 3rd slot at this point.

[pinky166]

I think C/B could potentially finish 2nd at Nats. I don't think USFS will let the Shibs be lower than 3rd, but C/B are quite a bit ahead of the Shibs and the others in terms of international scores so far this season.

It will be interesting to see how much higher the Shibs can score if they get the levels in their SD and skate the FD without interruption. I don't like the SD, but think the FD is pretty good. If they score a lot better at NHK then they should probably be good for 2nd at Nats, but it seems like the judges have spoken with their marks, bit of a dumping, or at least, no longer a top 5 team and clearly below the likes of W/P, B/S, I/K, and C/L who used to be their prime competition. Now they are in that next tier with the other American teams, the Germans, etc.

[semogal]

Video of H/D's SD at TEB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnDkrlBNKow

[semogal]

Also Icenetwork had a nice article about H/D this week: http://web.icenetwork.com/news/artic...&vkey=ice_news

[TwizzlerS]

Scores this season:

D/W: 176.28 SA
C/S: 149.54 CoC
H/D: 145.23 TEB
K/G-S: 141.41 SA
Shibs: 140.91 CoR

So yes, Chock and Bates have the slight advantage for 2nd place at Nationals and Hubbell and Donohue have an edge for 3rd place.

[aftershocks]

...

D/W: Love, love, love their SD. The FD has not thrilled me but I know it is early days yet.

Shibs: I felt so sorry for them at COR. I think their FD could be fabulous but that SD? I know it is a new program and will improve but I was looking forward to Mary Poppins! And Alex needs to lose that headband.

H/D: I love this team. They are not as technically proficient as other teams but to me they have an "it" factor about them. I enjoy both of their programs this year.

C/B: This team is great technically but they leave me cold. I really don't think Laura in DR Z would have hearts on her skates ( I find her skates so distracting). But mainly my problem is every time I see Evan, I want to slap him because we no longer get to watch the beautiful Emily! I know that is not logical but it is how I feel. ...

[~tapdancer~]

Commenting on the rest of the field (since of course I love both of D/W's programs this season!)...H/D just have me hook, line, and sinker with both their programs. I think their SD is lovely and I love how it flows from the beautiful waltz to the fun polka, it's definitely one of the best structured SDs this year, imo. I really love their FD, they look amazing together on the ice and I loved their passion...I can't help but root for them to be second this year. Which brings me to the Shibs...now I really love this team as well and I want them to do well but something's not right with them yet this year. Their FD has potential and the music is beautiful, I wasn't as taken with their SD but I still think it will work for them with more mileage. I hope they find their center. I admire both Evan Bates and Madison Chock but not as a team so much. I don't know why they haven't clicked for me because I did like them both with their previous partners. I like their FD better than their SD. K-G/S are wonderful people and a great team. I really admire their efforts but I agree that while they have beautiful moments on the ice, overall their programs lack something to help them in moving up in the rankings.

ETA: I know this thread is about US ice dance programs but I just have to give a shout-out to Cap/Lan's SD...it's so fun and completely captivating! Some really nice choreography, too. I could watch D/W's Giselle and Cap/Lan's Seven Brides over and over just to put a great big smile on my face!

[blancanieves]

Scores this season:

D/W: 176.28 SA
C/S: 149.54 CoC
H/D: 145.23 TEB
K/G-S: 141.41 SA
Shibs: 140.91 CoR

So yes, Chock and Bates have the slight advantage for 2nd place at Nationals and Hubbell and Donohue have an edge for 3rd place.

Scores are important, of course, but the scoring at Nationals doesn't always align with the earlier competitions either. When the race is tight, USFS may look into additional factors that can swing things to one or another team. Last year, I think H/D's programs were considered to be more potentially impactful for international competition than those of K/G-S for example. And they were right.

I expect the Shibs will do much better at NHK, and momentum will seem to swing again, but this year, I think second and third are going to be up for grabs until the very end. No one is going to stop pushing until Nationals.

As far as favorite programs of US teams, I prefer H/D's. I love that they are a complete contrast to last season's, and also the choice to emphasize the dance aspect conceptually and choreographically. I think they were received with particular excitement in the GP and that is always a plus. Among a crowd of talented skaters, you have to make yourself memorable.

[reese]

If this Shibs do better at NHK, I think it'll be close between them and Madison/Evan for 2nd at Nationals. If the Shibs score the same 140ish at NHK, Chock/Bates have a clear path to 2nd with their results this year (setting aside the SLC FD) and with Igor pushing for them.

I love Lynn and Logan, but they are just always going to be that fan favorite, "almost" team (think Navarro/Bommentre).

This is a totally small thing, but that "Heart of the Ocean" necklace Madison Hubbell wears for the SD drives me crazy. It's so literal and corny and they should be above that kind of gimmick.

[blancanieves]

This is a totally small thing, but that "Heart of the Ocean" necklace Madison Hubbell wears for the SD drives me crazy. It's so literal and corny and they should be above that kind of gimmick.

She didn't have it at Finlandia. When I saw it at SC, I had the same reaction as you. Then I realized that unless you read about their program or were extremely familiar with the movie soundtrack, you wouldn't necessarily associate their routine with Titanic. Zach's costume is fairly generic and I don't think most people would look at Madi's dress and say "Rose." But once you see that necklace, everything comes together in a second. Ah, it's Rose and Jack from Titanic, and they're waltzing, and that's the dance scene with the Irish music, etc. The prop actually helps the concept.

[circuscandy]

That's a good point. Neither song is actually part of the Titanic score, merely featured on the soundtrack (well, the Irish polka is on the secondary soundtrack; that Merry Widow Waltz is on another Titanic-inspired soundtrack, and I certainly don't own both...). The Merry Widow Waltz in particular is a standard, and it only plays in the background during the film.

[semogal]

Grand Prix FD:
Meryl and Charlie: Skate America 104.89 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGgH-AvxExw
Madison and Evan: Cup of China 90.28 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fh_kbSBKSI
Madison H and Zachary: TEB 88.69 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VS4KrSVFZls
Lynn and Logan: Skate America 87.52 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzTbcVf6eR4
Maia and Alex: Russia 82.65 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jM-TAIDeZI

I thought it would be easier to compare if the videos were all in one place.

[~tapdancer~]

Just a little quibble but Maddie/Evan were at Cup of China and Maddie/Zach at TEB. All the scores below D/W's are pretty tight, I think it's going to be quite a battle for the second and third slots. I'll be anxious to see how the Shibs do at NHK to see if they will maintain their place as US #2.

[semogal]

Just a little quibble but Maddie/Evan were at Cup of China and Maddie/Zach at TEB. All the scores below D/W's are pretty tight, I think it's going to be quite a battle for the second and third slots. I'll be anxious to see how the Shibs do at NHK to see if they will maintain their place as US #2.

Oops, fixed it.

[hockeyplayer2]

Looking at the line-up for NHK, the Shibs should not have any problems with Bronze. One of the weakest fields of all the GPs. I would imagine D/W will have gold, and they will battle I/K and possible O/W for silver and bronze. Not sure how that would reflect, though, in how US Nationals will turn out. As blancanieves stated, scores aren't always what they look at. Placing 4th in a tough field might mean more than Bronze in a weak field with high score? Who can understand the way these federations think??

[Twizzler]

Video of H/D's SD at TEB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnDkrlBNKow

That was lovely! Thank you for posting. I love this team and the connection they have on the ice. So much improvement since last season.

[lmarie086]

I'm so taken with H/D this season. They caught my eye last year too, but the hard work and dedication is just so apparent. As a team they have a ways to go to becoming more consistent as they continue to add more difficult content, but I am happy to be here to watch them develop. The IN article was a fabulous read-love knowing how interested they are in the art of ice dance.

[shan]

I've really enjoyed Cannuscio/McManus this season. I like both of their programs and love their performance quality. I hope they skate well at Nationals!!

[semogal]

SD Scores:
Meryl DAVIS & Charlie WHITE (Sk AM) - 71.39 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJLXmf7g79c
Madison CHOCK / Evan BATES (COC) - 59.26 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSHLLG5CQHo
Maia SHIBUTANI & Alex SHIBUTANI (Russ.) - 58.26 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOPMSgdyh3s
Madison HUBBELL & Zachary DONOHUE (TEB) 56.54 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnDkrlBNKow
Lynn KRIENGKRAIRUT & Logan GIULIETTI-SCHMITT (Sk Am) - 53.89 NOTE: video is from Graz http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqd5W2DoWqM
Anastasia CANNUSCIO & Colin MCMANUS (Sk AM) - 47.98 (can't find video)