The preliminary round of the Olympics men’s hockey tournament had nail-bitters and blowouts alike, had some American kid named T.J. Oshie launch himself into household conversation, had the Canadians second-guessed on lineups, had the home Russians fail to get a first-round bye, had Nordic countries wreaking havoc with a defensive style of play on the big ice surface and had Sweden finish atop the standings.
So with elimination games starting on Tuesday morning, one thing has become clear: Whoever is going to win the gold medal is going to have to grind.
At least, that’s the way Canadian coach Mike Babcock is looking at things, as the big ice surface in Sochi has created a tournament with plots and subplots that will tumble through this week and culminate with Sunday’s gold-medal game.
“We came here to be tested, not not to be tested,” Babcock told the media Sunday after his team needed overtime to beat Finland, 2-1. “To win an Olympic gold medal, you should have to battle incredibly hard to make that happen.”
Battle is exactly what the Americans are going to have to do if they want to have a chance at reaching the final. They enter the bracket as the second seed, having won all three games in the toughest group, yet by virtue of needing a shootout to beat Russia – one in which Oshie went 4-for-6, including five turns in a row – they sit behind Sweden (which won all three of its games in regulation).
That means on Wednesday, the US will face the winner of Czech Republic-Slovakia, both dangerous teams, but both of which the US should overpower. Having gotten a terrific showing from Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel, who leads the tournament with seven points (four goals, three assists) in three games, American coach Dan Byslma was able to give starting goalie Jonathan Quick a day off on Sunday and let veteran Ryan Miller get a go in a 5-1 win over Slovenia.
If Byslma’s team can hold on, the semifinal matchup likely will be against Canada, which should be able to handle the winner of Switzerland-Latvia. That means the rematch of the 2010 gold-medal game in Vancouver – which saw Sidney Crosby score the “Golden Goal” in overtime on home (and NHL-sized) ice – will not have the same high stakes.
As could be expected, the Canadians already have dealt with a lot of external strife over how things have worked out, especially after needing overtime to beat the Fins. With a surplus of talent, what Babcock is looking for is a simpler game, one that would have them go hard to the net rather than control the puck on the outside.
“To me,” Babcock said, “you’ve got to put your work in front of your skill.”
The Canadians have gotten just one assist from Crosby through three games, and his buddy from the Penguins, Chris Kunitz, never made it onto his flank and could very well be a healthy scratch for the quarterfinal match. Carey Price hasn’t had a ton of work in nets, but has been good enough to quell any shouting for veteran Roberto Luongo.
One thought coming in was the big ice would be an advantage to for the supremely skilled teams, such as the Canadians. Yet what they have seen is opponents such as Norway and Finland just shut down in front of the net and limit good scoring opportunities. That has led Canada to get four goals from an unlikely source, defenseman Drew Doughty, and besides the team’s six-goal outburst against the Austrians, the favorite coming in hasn’t been overwhelming.
And quietly, somehow, there is the best of those frustrating Nordic teams, top-ranked Sweden, with Rangers cornerstone Henrik Lundqvist in nets. Even though they’re ravaged by injuries, losing center Henrik Zetterberg just one game in to go along with Johan Franzen and Henrik Sedin, the Swedes can still beat anyone, especially if Lundqvist keeps playing supremely well.
They’ll get a quarterfinal matchup with the winner of Slovenia-Austria, which should get Lundqvist and pals into the semifinal without much of a challenge. Yet there is where they’ll find a very hungry team, as the opposing quarterfinal match pits Finland against the winner of Russia-Norway.
Assuming Norway doesn’t shock the world, that Finland-Russia game might be one of the best in the tournament. The host Russians have disappointed, losing that heartbreaker to the US after leading 1-0 and needing a shootout to get past Slovakia after a scoreless 65 minutes in their final preliminary game.
With a ton of top-end skill from the likes of Pavel Datsyuk, Alex Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk, the Russians are only 2-for-13 on the man-advantage. Behind a great top-six, they are young and untested, along with goalies Sergei Bobrovsky and Semyon Varlamov.
Also, the pressure in their home country is starting to loom like an executioner’s ax.
“I am convinced,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said, “that our team is not just one of the best, I think it is the best in the tournament.”
Add it all up and over the next couple days, it might be worth it to set that alarm a little early. There is a ton of good hockey on the way.