The USA and Canada are geographical neighbours but after the Olympics group stage in the men’s hockey tournament never have they seemed so close. We look back at the first half of the Olympic tourney.
Group A
This group was always going to be about the final game between the USA and Team Canada and so it came to pass. However, before that game both Norway and Switzerland proved that the hockey universe is very much shrinking. Norway battled gamely against the US but got stuffed against the Canadians and the Swiss scared the US before losing 3-1 and then came close to a historic victory over Team Canada. Only thanks to the shootout (now unpopular in Switzerland as well as the NHL) did Team Canada avoid the embarrassing repeat of 4 years ago. Sidney Crosby’s sudden death SO winner really did spare the home sides’ blushes. Even in the Norway victory there had been grumblings over poor chemistry among the roster and that may have come to a head against the US. America, on the back of strong goaltending (Ryan Miller) and timely scoring, scored major bragging rights by beating the Canadians in their own back yard on Sunday night by the score of 5-3. Miller made 42 saves and Canada never really found its groove during the loss. The game featured Sidney Crosby’s first goal of the tournament and Crosby and the other key players for Team Canada really haven’t hit their straps yet. Thanks to the loss, Canada face Germany in a playoff and assuming they win that they face Team Russia in the quarter finals, 2 rounds earlier than they’ll have anticipated. Team USA on the other hand seem geared for a few more upsets and have performed very well on the whole.
Player of the group: Brian Rafalski. With 4 goals (5 points) already, the veteran US defenceman has proven he still has a lot to offer and has been crucial to the US team. Honourable mention goes to Canada’s Dany Heatley; one of the few Canadians to show up consistently bagging himself 4 goals thus far.
Group B
Group B promised to be the deepest of the three groups with Russia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia all vying for position. Poor Latvia. Russia started the tournament in ominous fashion with an 8-2 thumping of Latvia which included plenty of balanced scoring including goals for the key cogs to the Russian team, Alexander Ovechkin (2) Ilya Kovalchuk and Evgeni Malkin (both 1+1). The first of the closely contested games in the group saw the Czechs overcome Slovakia 3-1 on the back of evergreen star Jaromir Jagr who had 2 points and the game winner. It was the next day however where the group became an open contest. Following their opening win, Russia were expected to beat Slovakia comfortably but it was anything but that. Following a close tussle the first real upset was complete as Slovakia won 2-1 in a shootout to turn the group on its head. The result was made possible thanks to great goaltending by Montreal Canadien Jaroslav Halak with 36 saves. Following Canada’s close encounter with major embarrassment, Russia were the first favourite to truly slip up. The Czechs then dispatched the Latvian minnows 5-2 which featured more key Jaromir Jagr scoring and strong support from New Jersey Devil Patrick Elias. With the Slovaks beating the Latvians 6-0 the next day (on the back of more great goal tending from Jaroslav Halak) a lot was resting on the final match between Jagr and the Czechs and Ovechkin and the Russians. This game was close throughout but the key moment in this game wasn’t a goal. Skating through centre ice Jagr (head up) was absolutely levelled by Ovechkin with a monster hit that really changed the game. Jagr played on and played well but the hit really changed momentum in this game. Ovechkin wasn’t a factor offensively in this one but was still crucial for his team. The Russians played strong enough to win 4-2 in regulation and sneak top spot in this closely fought group and get a bye to the quarter finals.
Player of the Group: There are two for me. Jaromir Jagr proved he can still play at the top with 2 goals and an assist while both goals were game winning goals. He is surely NHL bound after what he’s done so far. The way he responded to the AO hit (clean by the way) was exceptional. He managed to play harder than before. The second is goalie Jaroslav Halak; 1 shutout win, another huge 1 goal win over Russia; Halak has really provided a strong core for the Slovaks and offers them hope for the next round.
Group C
Given the group featured both of the Olympic finalists from Turin 2006 it may be perhaps an insult to call it the weakest group but it was tagged as such nonetheless. The pecking order in this group was clear from the start. Reigning champions Sweden did as much as was necessary beating Germany 2-0 on the back of strong goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist, the hero of 2006, while Finland looked good beating Belarus 5-1 the same day. The Finnish result featured veteran sniper Teemu Selanne breaking the record for most all time points as an Olympian as he gained an assist in the game. Continuing to look very strong, the Fins dismantled the weak Germans 5-0 in their second game with their powerplay looking red hot, converting four times. With Henrik Lundqvist rested, the Swedes then beat Belarus 4-2 without once more getting out of second gear. So far the Swedes were really playing within themselves. Following Belarus’s 5-3 win over Germany (yes, the Germans did finally score) the group lead went down to the final game, a rematch of the 06 final between rivals Sweden and Finland. With Henrik Lundqvist back in goal Sweden looked more composed and defensively strong and skated to an impressive 3-0 victory over the previously offensively hot Fins. Lundqvist was sharp making 20 saves and has yet to concede in the tournament.
Player of the Group: Has to be Swedish MVP Henrik Lundqvist. Unbeaten, perfect, a wall. Pick your own adjectives but his play in net thus far has been spectacular. In this form, defensively, Sweden have a very good chance of progressing far once more.
Overall
When you look at the groups as a whole they offer some intriguing insight. No team has looked completely convincing (even Sweden, at least not offensively) and there have been a few upsets. Huge favourites Russia and Canada have both struggled and thanks to the upsets face each other in a likely quarter final (assuming Germany don’t beat Canada in a playoff). So the predicted final between the two won’t happen. NHL players have predictably been crucial to most team’s success even for teams such as Switzerland (Jonas Hiller) and Belarus (Kostitsyn).
What we can tell above all is this; no longer can the Canada’s and Russia’s turn up and expect to win. Narrow victories and upset losses have proven the hockey world is catching up to the traditional hockey powerhouses… And from an NHL perspective (and a US TV audience perspective) the US’ huge victory over the Canadians can only be a good thing long term.
The Knock out round should prove plenty more excitement.
My main sports interests are ice hockey and American football as well as 'soccer' (football?!).