When thinking of the Men’s Hockey portion of the XXI Winter Olympics, the gold medal game would pit the host country, Canada, renewing a rivalry with a long history versus the Russians, with the United States maybe vying for a bronze medal if even that much. Realistically, outside of the most passionate fans bursting with national pride and those filled with limitless optimism, the USA hockey team probably wouldn’t factor in the gold medal.
But when the Canadians fell to the USA in the group stage, it set up the Russia-Canada matchup to determine who COULD vie for a medal and who’s Olympic dream would end in utter and complete disappointment.
What, then, could be the second best-case scenario? A USA team that over achieved to meet Canada in the final, creating one of the most intense atmospheres in history.
On Sunday night, after both endured interesting pathways, that secondary matchup is exactly what hockey fans received.
Round one of this rivalry went to the Americans in was dubbed one of the most exciting hockey games ever played in the Olympics.
Round 2 did not fail to live up to game 1’s high level.
The atmosphere was exactly what this type of game would draw: loud, excited, almost rabid.
It started with a United States team going all out to try and put themselves ahead with an early lead, but the first period ended up just the opposite.
Jonathan Toews scored off a Mike Richards rebound after stealing a blown pass from Erik Johnson intended for Brian Rafalski. It was a bad play that every single pee-wee hockey player learns early on: never EVER try to clear a puck from behind your net to the front of it. Johnson probably got caught up in the moment, and maybe even panicked a little when Toews pressured him from his left side. Either way, the pass was picked off, Richards shot low right on Miller, and no one was near Toews who fired the puck off his forehand into the net behind the sprawled Miller.
Corey Perry’s goal on 3 on 2, eventually a 3 on 3, put Canada up 2-0. Nifty passing taking advantage of 3 former Penguins set Perry up for a nice, screened shot which Miller had little to no shot at stopping.
5 minutes later, however, the USA broke through with their first of the game. Patrick Kane took a shot from the right wing boards which Ryan Kesler deflected between Roberto Luongo’s legs.
Moments later, Ryan Suter took a rebound shot through Luongo’s legs again, only this time the keeper was able to get just enough to force the puck just wide of the post. From the overhead replay, the puck danced tantalizingly close to the open net but ever so depressingly wide. This was the American’s second best chance, and final one of the period.
At this point, the US had some significant momentum building, but these efforts were put on hold with the sounding of the intermission horn. Coach Ron Wilson undoubtedly went into the locker room knowing that not only could his team get the equalizer, but also knew exactly how to break through Luongo, who was beginning to show signs of weakness. Low shots forcing rebounds would leave open looks at the high part of the net.
Out of the gate in the 3rd, Canada looked for the KO punch, but Miller was equal to the task. The USA pressed as hard as they could, but at the halfway mark of the period, it was clear that Canada was content with simply meeting the Americans at the blue line, and almost trapping any offensive attempts.
The time kept ticking off the clock, and as 2nd period power plays showed, shots, let alone goals, were at a premium. Under 90 seconds to go, Miller headed to the bench for the extra attacker, and even then, the US struggled penetrate the Canadian defense.
Under thirty seconds to go, the US dumpped a puck in on goal which Luongo gloved but could not control. This allowed the US to maintain possession in the zone, and eventually, Kane fired a shot on goal and Devils’ teammates Jamie Langenbrunner and Zach Parise scrambled to beat Luongo to the loose puck, and Parise won the footrace and tied up the game with a mere 24 seconds left.
Confidence soaring, momentum on their side, the US went into the end of regulation riding high. The problem was, Canada wasn’t deflated.
Coming out in the overtime, the Americans seemed to hold the momentum as they seemingly controlled the puck well. However, one miscue on defense allowed Sidney Crosby to take a Jarome Iginla pass to the low slot wide open and beat Miller low for the gold-clinching goal.
It was a majorly disappointed ending for the squad, and it showed on their faces, but in the end, they had nothing to be ashamed of and everything to be proud of.
What they can take away from these games is that they have nowhere to go but up as nearly the entire team were first timers in the Olympics, and the average age was 27. They also skated with the best in the world and took one from them. And they will be holding the title of second best in the world. Next time, they wont have to face Martin Brodeur, Chris Pronger and a handful of others, and while Sidney Crosby will be around, as will Jonathan Toews, the talent emerging from the Juniors circuit are promising.
Monday marks the resumption of the NHL regular season and Wednesday is the trading deadline, so do not fear, hockey is not over for the season, still plenty more to come.
Enjoy!
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Showing posts with label Gold Medal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gold Medal. Show all posts
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Canada vs USA - Round 2, This Time for Gold
Here we are, a week later, in a very an identical situation. The only difference is, and it’s a major, MAJOR difference, this one is for it all.
Neither the United States nor Canada haven’t been to a Gold Medal game since 2002 when the two, obviously, paired up for a clash at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Canada took that contest, and the gold home with them by a count of 5-2. The men were not alone in taking gold from the host country, as the women also defeated the American women’s team by a count of 2-1
On Thursday, the Canadian women made history repeat itself, this time besting the United States 2-0.
Tonight, however, the USA hockey team comes in with a slight edge.
They controlled their previous game against Canada, even after Sidney Crosby pulled the Canadians within a goal with under 5 minutes to go, the USA held on and added a tally of their own off the stick, and one heck of an effort, from Ryan Kesler.
Sure, the Canadians will have home ice advantage, even if they’re supposed to be the “away” team tonight, and they will have revenge on their side, the Americans have been playing more consistent hockey.
Coming off an undefeated group stage, the Americans opened the elimination round with a matchup against the Swiss.
Giving them as many problems as they did during group play, the Swiss proved to be a formidable opponent, keeping the game close throughout. Zach Parise broke the scoreless tie midway through the 3rd period but the Swiss stayed tough, meeting the USA with an equally persistent offensive attack. It was not until Parsie tallied another goal, this time an empty netter, could the United States exhale collectively, and Ryan Miller toss his first Olympic Shutout onto his resume.
Up next would be Finland, who had a very daunting line-up headlined by Olli Jokinen and the Ruutu brothers, and anchored in net by Miikka Kiprusoff.
But the US would not be intimidated by the names on paper, and brought the play directly to the Fins.
An early blunder by the usually solid Kiprusoff set the tone for what would prove to be a long afternoon. Ryan Malone would kickoff the scoring by capitalizing on Kippers gaffe as he came way too far out of the crease to play a loose puck, but when his poke check failed, Malone had a wide open net to shoot for.
Pat Kane would net a pair, Zach Parise, Erik Johnson and Paul Stastny each added another in one of the most offensively prolific first periods of the Olympics.
After the first, the USA took a noticeably defensive stance and pull back the reins on an offense which was firing on all cylinders.
Miller would be spelled midway through the third as a precaution to avoid any unforeseen injuries in a game that the end result was little in doubt. Tim Thomas was his relief and surrendered the first goal against the Americans since Crosby’s goal in the Canada game.
While the Americans in the stadium were chanting for their country, the Canadian contingent decided to boo the Americans, thus prompting a “we want Canada” chant in response.
The Canadians path seemed to be a much more difficult one, but it proved to be much easier. Germany proved to be little competition as Canada ran up the score by count of 8-2. Russia was next, and should have been one of the marquee games of the tournament, but after a few bumps early on, the Canadians seemed to back the Russians into a corner and beat them down, punch after punch.
The hapless Russians made mistake after mistake on the ice. Defensive lapses, goaltending blunders, and a major coaching error, failing to pull Evgeni Nabokov after a 4 goal first period and allowing him two more goals in the second before mercifully giving him the hook in favor of Ilya Bryzgalov all contributed to the horrors which fueled the Canadian domination.
The surprise Slovakians were the only thing standing between the Canadians and the gold medal game. Many Canadian fans and writers were already counting on the gold medal game, and even when the team had a 3-0 lead late in the third, chants of “we want USA!” rained down from the stands. The problem was, someone forgot to tell the Slovakian team it was over.
With under 10 minutes to go, a fluke goal got behind Roberto Luongo to pull the Slovaks within two. A few minutes later, another goal gave the underdogs a massive breath of hope, and sucked the life and arrogance from the Canadian crowd, whose visions of a gold medal game were hardly guaranteed. Even as the final minute counted down, the Slovaks did not give up. With seven seconds to go, they had their best chance to tie the game, but Pavol Demitra’s shot clanged off the crossbar and away from the front of the net.
The Canadians survived a major scare, which could have been one of the most devastating losses ever for their country, but they now come up against a USA team who not only has beaten them before, but is playing their best hockey of the Olympics. The Canadians, who had a major air of confidence after a dominating performance against the Russians, now have had that goof feeling ereased by the late never-quit attitude of the Slovakians.
The first five minutes will prove, again, to be the setting point for the game.
Should the Americans grab an early lead again, you could quickly see, feel and hear a panic in the Canadian Pacific Coliseum this afternoon.
Neither the United States nor Canada haven’t been to a Gold Medal game since 2002 when the two, obviously, paired up for a clash at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Canada took that contest, and the gold home with them by a count of 5-2. The men were not alone in taking gold from the host country, as the women also defeated the American women’s team by a count of 2-1
On Thursday, the Canadian women made history repeat itself, this time besting the United States 2-0.
Tonight, however, the USA hockey team comes in with a slight edge.
They controlled their previous game against Canada, even after Sidney Crosby pulled the Canadians within a goal with under 5 minutes to go, the USA held on and added a tally of their own off the stick, and one heck of an effort, from Ryan Kesler.
Sure, the Canadians will have home ice advantage, even if they’re supposed to be the “away” team tonight, and they will have revenge on their side, the Americans have been playing more consistent hockey.
Coming off an undefeated group stage, the Americans opened the elimination round with a matchup against the Swiss.
Giving them as many problems as they did during group play, the Swiss proved to be a formidable opponent, keeping the game close throughout. Zach Parise broke the scoreless tie midway through the 3rd period but the Swiss stayed tough, meeting the USA with an equally persistent offensive attack. It was not until Parsie tallied another goal, this time an empty netter, could the United States exhale collectively, and Ryan Miller toss his first Olympic Shutout onto his resume.
Up next would be Finland, who had a very daunting line-up headlined by Olli Jokinen and the Ruutu brothers, and anchored in net by Miikka Kiprusoff.
But the US would not be intimidated by the names on paper, and brought the play directly to the Fins.
An early blunder by the usually solid Kiprusoff set the tone for what would prove to be a long afternoon. Ryan Malone would kickoff the scoring by capitalizing on Kippers gaffe as he came way too far out of the crease to play a loose puck, but when his poke check failed, Malone had a wide open net to shoot for.
Pat Kane would net a pair, Zach Parise, Erik Johnson and Paul Stastny each added another in one of the most offensively prolific first periods of the Olympics.
After the first, the USA took a noticeably defensive stance and pull back the reins on an offense which was firing on all cylinders.
Miller would be spelled midway through the third as a precaution to avoid any unforeseen injuries in a game that the end result was little in doubt. Tim Thomas was his relief and surrendered the first goal against the Americans since Crosby’s goal in the Canada game.
While the Americans in the stadium were chanting for their country, the Canadian contingent decided to boo the Americans, thus prompting a “we want Canada” chant in response.
The Canadians path seemed to be a much more difficult one, but it proved to be much easier. Germany proved to be little competition as Canada ran up the score by count of 8-2. Russia was next, and should have been one of the marquee games of the tournament, but after a few bumps early on, the Canadians seemed to back the Russians into a corner and beat them down, punch after punch.
The hapless Russians made mistake after mistake on the ice. Defensive lapses, goaltending blunders, and a major coaching error, failing to pull Evgeni Nabokov after a 4 goal first period and allowing him two more goals in the second before mercifully giving him the hook in favor of Ilya Bryzgalov all contributed to the horrors which fueled the Canadian domination.
The surprise Slovakians were the only thing standing between the Canadians and the gold medal game. Many Canadian fans and writers were already counting on the gold medal game, and even when the team had a 3-0 lead late in the third, chants of “we want USA!” rained down from the stands. The problem was, someone forgot to tell the Slovakian team it was over.
With under 10 minutes to go, a fluke goal got behind Roberto Luongo to pull the Slovaks within two. A few minutes later, another goal gave the underdogs a massive breath of hope, and sucked the life and arrogance from the Canadian crowd, whose visions of a gold medal game were hardly guaranteed. Even as the final minute counted down, the Slovaks did not give up. With seven seconds to go, they had their best chance to tie the game, but Pavol Demitra’s shot clanged off the crossbar and away from the front of the net.
The Canadians survived a major scare, which could have been one of the most devastating losses ever for their country, but they now come up against a USA team who not only has beaten them before, but is playing their best hockey of the Olympics. The Canadians, who had a major air of confidence after a dominating performance against the Russians, now have had that goof feeling ereased by the late never-quit attitude of the Slovakians.
The first five minutes will prove, again, to be the setting point for the game.
Should the Americans grab an early lead again, you could quickly see, feel and hear a panic in the Canadian Pacific Coliseum this afternoon.
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