Olympic Hockey.. best series ever?

jutus · February 15, 2002 4:23PM

I'm pretty pumped these Olympics. All the major contenders (Russia, Sweden, Canada, USA, Finland, the Czecks) are brimming with talent. Bigger ice makes for a nice change from clutch-and-grab NHL style play.

As always, may the best team win!

And now a personal statement: GO CANADA!

applenut · February 15, 2002 4:25PM

Yea, I have been watching bits and pieces of all the games. very good so far.

But what is with the lack of contact? Is checking not allowed? It's strange watching a game and not seeing one board check.

BTW, can anyone list the main differences in International rules compared to NHL?

ghost_user_name · February 15, 2002 4:32PM

For those who don't know CNBC has been covering many of the games. They have odd coverage of the hockey where they show the game and then they show more of the game. They also show more than the USA games. They don't even break away for lame rock video montages of the quadriplegic player who just made the team...

matsu · February 15, 2002 4:35PM

[quote]Originally posted by applenut:



But what is with the lack of contact? Is checking not allowed? It's strange watching a game and not seeing one board check.

<hr></blockquote>

Uhhh, this ain't pairs figure skating ya know.

buonrotto · February 15, 2002 6:04PM

International rinks are about 100' x 200', 15 feet wider than the NHL's 85' x 200' rinks. Much harder to do a lot of checking when you can't force the player to the boards -- too much open ice to close down like that.. Open ice hits hurt both parties equally, so there's not much of that going around unless you're Scott Stevens.

jutus · February 15, 2002 10:34PM

Ouch.. to quote Don Cherry:

"We got our asses kicked in this one."

Sweden 5, Canada 2

Tonight: US vs Finland

timo · February 15, 2002 11:00PM

Ach, a pretty even match but USA just opened it up here in the second period.

Some pretty hockey.

moogs · February 16, 2002 12:01AM

Team Finland TROUNCED 6-0 by Team USA...yyyyyyyeahhh Baby! Big John LeClair with the mad hatter. Other notable goals coming from Tkachuk and Guerin (both of whom should benefit from the confidence boost, being emotional players). Team USA is looking solid. They played good D, made smart (long!) passes (something Canada couldn't do tonight), and most importantly they skated hard for 60 minutes without wearing down - and against a fast skating team.

If they continue to play like this, they will likely win the group and possibly make the Gold Medal Game. I think Canada will bounce back; they have a sickening amount of talent on their team and on both sides of the blue line - they're too good not to bounce back at least a little. I just wish certain people weren't out there to be honest - they detract from the team's image IMO.

Mario, for all his belated lip service about "focusing" on the Olympics (and by extension not the Pens) skated like he was on tranquilizers. Unimpressive. Fluery is a bitch; broke his stick over Tommy Salo's back at one point. He's a psych ward case. Were it not for those two clowns, I'd have a hard time rooting against team Canada. Oh and Pat Quinn; he's a dope too. I would've chosen Bob Hartley to coach team Canada in a second over Quinn. Much better attitude, has more respect from the players.

Anyway, I think the best round-robin game coming up other than the obvious (Russia USA) will be Sweden and the Czech Republic. They both have a lot of speed and offensive talent, with Sweden having the better defensive skill (by far) and Czech Rep. having the better goalie (by far, depending on who you ask - Oilers fans might disagree).

This tournament is going to kick ass. I LOVE IT!!!

[ 02-16-2002: Message edited by: Moogs ? ]

moogs · February 16, 2002 12:08AM

damnit...I'm tired.

[ 02-16-2002: Message edited by: Moogs ? ]

falcon · February 16, 2002 3:02PM

Anyone been following the US Womens Hockey? Holy carp they are whooping ass. 10-0 Against Germany, and like 12-1 against China. Both games they had more goals, then their opponents had shots.

moogs · February 16, 2002 3:11PM

They are damn good. It's a pleasure to watch them play - the quintessential team game.

matsu · February 16, 2002 4:49PM

Canada has no team. Lots of good players, but they haven't put anything together and it shows. Quinn is probably not the best choice unless he gets a lot of help from his coaches. He needs time to figure th best combinations, and is a little slower and methodical in figuring out his pairings. Bowman would have been the best choice, why wasn't he asked? Oh well.

BTW, is it just me or does a version of Sundin "to the power of x show up for international games, but not for Leaf games?

solishu · February 16, 2002 5:28PM

That US-Finland game was a joy to watch. I can't wait for the US-Russia game tonight. Should be some very nice hockey....

cosmo · February 16, 2002 5:38PM

[quote]Originally posted by Falcon:

Anyone been following the US Womens Hockey? Holy carp they are whooping ass. 10-0 Against Germany, and like 12-1 against China. Both games they had more goals, then their opponents had shots.<hr></blockquote>

The women's hockey tournament is extremely lopsided with the US and Canada being the two most powerful teams (by far). I believe russia also has one of the better teams, but it still doesn't compare to the US or Canada.

It pains me to say it, but the US will most likely win, they have beaten Canada time and again, and as i said the US and Canada are far superior to any of the other teams.

with regard to men's hockey, watching the Canada-Sweden game made me sick. The Canadians played like garbage, i really hope that all that talent can come together as a team.

matsu · February 16, 2002 5:45PM

Canada was the better team about four and a half years ago, and at th last olympics they were pretty even. But Canada went all touch feely, and decided to hire a female coach for the premier female team in Canada. The US got a proper coach. Now there isn't really any contest unless Canada comes up huge against the US Team.

I'm not saying that a woman isn't a proper coach, but with the sport in it's infancy, there is no way you're going to find a woman whose experience and knowledge compares to even the 50th best male coach. Not at this time anyway, maybe in a generation sure, but for now the best hockey coaches are all men, and any team more interested in hockey that politics is going to have a man behind the bench. Sure we ought to promote female coaches, but they have a ways to go, through the regional and college/unversity ranks before they realistically can rise to olympic level. Too bad really, that's a great team that's being let down by 4 years of poor preparation.

[ 02-16-2002: Message edited by: Matsu ]

buonrotto · February 16, 2002 11:26PM

The men's short tournament is more evenly matched and an interesting mix of characters and backgrounds too. The games have been excellent so far, but I shouldn't say too much with USA-Russia going on now. Despite the fact that I pay particular attention to defense and goaltending, I'm liking this no-redline business.

falcon · February 17, 2002 7:51PM

Gaw, what a close US-Russia game. It was a nail-biter, that ended with an wth.

buonrotto · February 17, 2002 10:20PM

These hockey games, with exception to the early touney blowouts, is shaping up nicely. Even Germany is gave Canade a run for its money tonight. I'm getting hooked...

moogs · February 18, 2002 1:31PM

Team USA leading Belarus 3-1 after being down 1-0 after the first period. John LeClaire has two more, Hull had the first. The Hull-Modano-LeClaire line is kicking major ass...not surprising given that Hull and Modano played together in Dallas. Guerrin and Amonte are making some nice plays / moving the puck well also.

As for Team Canada, they have no chemistry. The look a lot like the Americans did in 98. What pisses me off is that Mario Lemiuex, after using "Focus on the Olympics" as his excuse for missing so many games when he was "only 90%" in Pittsburgh...missed last night's game "because he was only 90%." Starting to remind me of the old Lemiuex. Whining, diving, etc. He seemed a lot tougher / more hungry last season. Now you know why I didn't really start cheering for the Pens until after he retired...great that he came back from Hodgkins (really was), but beyond that he seems to lack toughness.

Hockey players are not known for sitting it out because they're only 90%...pain and injuries are part of the game, Le Magnifique or not.

Now a trivia question: what's the only thing better than watching Team USA in an Olympic matchup on a Monday afternoon?

Watching team USA on a Monday afternoon, while breaking in a brand new pair of Bauer skates. Waaa Hooooo! These things are SWEET.

solishu · February 18, 2002 1:44PM

Modano + Hull = goals

moogs · February 18, 2002 2:00PM

Did I say 3-1? I meant 8-1. Final.

5 goals in 3rd period, with the also-smokin line of Guerrin, Deadmarsh and York scoring three of them. Billy G had two, which I think is big - we need him to play well going into the second round.

Team USA wins Group, will face Germany next. Unless of course Russia beats Finland by 11 goals (not).

Olympic Hockey.. best series ever?

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