Time for hosts to claim what is rightfully theirs

THE preliminaries have been played.  The seeding has been set.  And wow, what a difference a day can make.  Canada, previously the hands down favorite to win the gold medal is now ranked sixth going into the playoff rounds after being stunned by the Americans in a 5-3 loss.

Touted by basically everyone as the team to beat coming into the tournament, Canada is now not only considered by many as underdogs, but also has to beat Germany on Tuesday to play the Russians in the quarter-finals.  The hosts should mop the floor with the Germans, but there have been some big surprises already in the tournament.

Adding insult to injury is the fact that Canada would have had an easier route if they had beat the Swiss in regulation in Game two.  Hindsight is 20/20 but Canada could have played Latvia and then faced Finland in the quarters had the they beat Switzerland in regulation, assuming they still lost to the US.

But the past is behind us and now Canada must focus on the future.  Personally, I’m rooting for a rematch with the US at some point, just so we can establish dominance in the one sport we’re good at.

However questions are starting to surface behind arguably the best goaltender of this generation.  Martin Brodeur letting in 4 goals on 18 shots on Sunday.  Is it time to start hometown favorite Roberto ‘Bobbie Lou’ Luongo?

Whatever coach Mike Babcock decides, it’s time for Canada to step up and take what every Canadian thinks is rightfully ours, which is the Gold medal and hockey dominance.

Here are the games being played tomorrow; with the winners advancing to the quarter finals to play either USA, Sweden, Russia, or Finland:

- Switzerland vs. Belarus

- Canada vs. Germany

- Czech Republic vs. Latvia

- Slovakia vs. Norway

Swedes should – but may not – edge tight game

A REMATCH of the 2006 Gold Medal game, this one will be high intensity from the start.

This match will likely be to determine ranking coming out of the prelims and with the depth of talent coming out of the rest of the field and the threat of facing Canada or Russia in the quarter finals, the pressure will be heavy on both teams to win.

Both the Swedes and Finns are almost guaranteed a free pass out of the preliminaries given their opposition in group C is comprised of Germany and Belarus.

Sweden is the odds on favorite of the bookmakers at -120 and will be the crowd favorite boasting three current Canucks in Daniel and Henrik Sedin, and Alexander Edler (as well as former Canuck, Matthias Ohlund) compared to the Finn’s lone Canuck Sami Salo. Expect the crowd to play a factor here.

While both teams have a wealth of NHL and international experience, they are two of the oldest in the tournament. The average age on Sweden’s top two lines is almost 35 and Finland isn’t much younger.

The Swede’s offensive firepower is undeniable with fresh young talent in wonder-twin Sedins, and Nicklas Backstrom of the Washington Capitals as well as old guard stalwarts like Zetterberg, Naslund, Alfredsson and Sundin. The Finn’s best scoring threat is Teemu Selanne, who scored 76 goals in his rookie season withe Winnipeg Jets and somehow played in the 1992 Olympics.

However, the Swedes have looked strong so far, easly disposing Germany.  The only reason the score was close in the Belarussian game was because they had Jonas Gustavsson in net, who is a young netminder that is still learning the ropes.

The goalie battle here also has to go to the Swedes as they’ll have Henrik Lundqvist between the pipes.  He not only won Gold in 2006 but was also named one of People Magazine’s 50 most beautiful people.  So far in the tournament he’s posted a respectable 100% save percentage, stopping all 21 shots he has faced.

Finland on the other hand will either start Mikka Kipprusoff or Niklas Backstrom.  Backstrom has stopped all 24 shots he’s faced, granted it was against Germany.  Kipprusoff is sporting a 91.67% Save percentage, letting a lone goal in against Sergie Kostitsyn and Belarus.  I may be splitting hairs here, but Kipprusoff has not looked like the top goaltender that he was years ago, during Olympic competition, or during the regular season of the NHL.

Look to the Swedes to repeat their performance of the 2006 finals, but don’t be surprised if Finland makes it interesting.

Sweden and Finland will get acquainted with one another from 9pm on Sunday, February 21 at Canada Hockey Place. If you reckon you can predict the winner and fancy making some cash click here.

Russia favourites by a hair in mouth-watering match up

THIS game between Russia and the Czech Republic, respectively ranked number 2 and 5 to win the tournament outright, will likely be a high-flying and high-scoring affair.

Most of the high-scoring will probably be done by the Russians, but that shouldn’t really come as much of a surprise. They may have the best offence ever fielded in an Olympic tournament, with a top line featuring some of the NHLs next generation of superstars, Alexandre Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin teamed with Ilya Kovalchuk. A fast skating, puck dangling, sniperific trio that could inspire fear into the hearts of even the most seasoned defencemen.

Speaking of defence, the Czech’s top two D-men happen to be Tomas Kaberle and Pavel Kubina, a duo who currently play together for the NHLs Toronto Maple Leafs. Let me repeat that, the two men charged with stopping Ovechkin, Malkin and Kovalchuk play for the Leafs. Yeah, that’s going to work out well.

On the other hand, the Czechs have Jaromir Jagr, who has looked rejuvenated so far in this tournament with a good performance against the Slovakians. With two goals and an assist through two games, Jagr is playing well enough to stir up talk of a return to the NHL.

Both teams are stacked with NHLers, with the Russians having four players based in Europe compared to only one For the Czechs, but no players from either team skate for the Vancouver Canucks, so its unclear which way the crowd will go. Likely the general Canadian animosity towards the Russians will rule the day, but don’t expect either team to get a boost from the crowd.

Goaltending might be one area where the Czechs could suprise the Russians though. Despite not receiving alot of attention this year Czech net-minder Tomas Vokoun is leading the NHL with a .931 save percentage. The Russians though have Evgeni Nabokov between the pipes who is no slouch himself with .927 save percentage for his NHL leading San Jose sharks.

The bottom line is that this is likely to be one of the most fun games to watch of the preliminary round. While it won’t have the passion behind it of Canada vs USA, it will have two teams that both have a realistic shot at taking the tournament, and who will likely finish one and two in their group.

A smart bettor will wait to see how both teams look on the ice before placing his bets, but Russia with all their firepower, has to be the early favorites.

Russia versus the Czech Republic will get underway at midday in Canada Hockey Place on Sunday, February 21. Click here if you would like to back either side.

WHILE their names may sound similar in that vaguely Eastern European kind of way, the tale of these two teams tell a very different story.

Latvia are long shots and will likely be duking it out with Norway, German and Switzerland to prove that they even have what it takes to win at this level.

Slovakia on the other hand were world champions in 2002 and finished fifth at the 2006 Olympic Games. Latvia were dead last and somehow even managed to lose, by a wide 5-2 margin, to Kazakhstan and as we all know Kazakhstan is a country made up by comedian Sasha Cohen as part for his Borat character’s backstory.

Okay, maybe that’s not fair and before our Kazakhstanian readers start flooding our inbox with hate mail, Kazakhstan is a a beautiful country with many redeeming qualities, but international hockey prowess is not one of them.

Now back to the matter at hand, Latvia did manage to pull out a shocker over the Americans in 2006, playing them to a 3-3 tie, but despite that they still managed to come in dead last in the tournament.

Slovakia boast an extremely talented roster, with their top line featuring Pavol Demitra of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, so expect the Vancouver fans to lend their support to the Slovakians.

Of their 23 man roster, 13 play in the NHL, including the Marian Hossa and Marian Gaborik, while most of the rest play in the increasingly competitive KHL. Latvia has just two NHLers in Karlis Skrastins and Oskar Batulis, neither of whom are exactly household names.

Latvia will take on Slovakia at 4.30pm on Saturday, Feruary 20 in Canada Hockey Place. If you would like to back either one of the teams in this clash, just click here.

Germany's Canuck Christian Ehrhoff

THIS game, featuring two teams who have about as much chance of winning a medal as Leafs do of winning the Stanley Cup, may actually produce one of the more exciting and unpredictable games of the preliminaries.

While the Belarussians are the bookmakers favorites at -110, this match has some of the tightest odds of the entire tournament, so getting a bead on even a slight edge may be enough to turn this one into a money maker.

The NHL name drop contest actually goes to the German’s in this game as they have six current NHLers on their roster and one of them, a defenceman might be their x-factor. Christian Ehrhoff, while far from an all-star calibre player, happens to play for the Vancouver Canucks, so the crowd will likely side with the Germans.

In a contest between two awful, but evenly matched teams, the pump from an energetic olympic crowd might just be enough to put the Germans over the top.

Germany will also be coming off a match against the aging Finns who are aren’t known to be the most physical of teams at the best of times, so the Germans will likely be in better form and better spirits than the Belarussians who will be coming off what was a physical but lopsided loss against the Swedes the day before.

The last piece of the puzzle here is the goaltending battle. The Germans will likely start Thomas Greiss, a backup for the San Jose Sharks, while the Andrei Mezin is slated to play between the pipes for Belarus. While Mezin was named best goaltender at last year’s World Championships, Greiss is twelve years his junior and has been putting up good numbers for the Sharks. Goaltending will be the looming question mark in this contest, but at this stage in his career Greiss has much more to prove than Mezin.

Look for a hard-fought grind in this game, with an uncertain outcome. Germany has a stronger team, a better goaltender and the support of the home crowd. Take the Germans to win and close out the preliminaries with some national pride.

Germany will face Belarus at Canada Hockey Place at 9pm on Saturday, February 20. Click here if you reckon you can predict the winner and fancy making some cash.

Swiss on course for victory – and possible shutout

A BATTLE at the bottom, Norway and Switzerland will be fighting to regain national pride in this not-so-epic of battles. Very few of even the most dedicated hockey fans will recognize many names in this one. History could be made, however, as Norway could possibly pick up their first ever Olympic top-tier win.The single current NHL’er on team Norway, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, will be taking on two Swiss NHL players in Mark Streit and goaltender Jonas Hiller. Goaltending will likely be the deciding factor as both teams will be scrambling to put up points. Despite the occasion, Norway is still outmatched against a Swiss team that could have suprised some teams had they not been placed in 2010’s most difficult group to advance from.

Norway's sole NHLer Ole-Kristian Tollefsen

Jonas Hiller put up a rockstar performance only a couple of nights ago against the Canadians. The likes of Crosby, Nash and Iginla could muster only two goals past Hiller in what proved to be a tight shootout victory. They shocked the world and will be looking to ride that wave of confidence into this very winnable game. The Norweigans looked better against Team USA than they did in their opener, but they don’t match up well in this one. There isn’t an area of the ice that Norway can point to as an advantage, or even a strength.

Both teams here have an advantage over their opponents in that they are primarily non-NHLers which allows them to practice together and build chemistry. The Swiss are clearly the better chemists and would have beaten the world’s best if not for a couple of goal posts. Norway has performed as expected, and no one expects them to break their winless streak here.

Take Switzerland to win going away with a possible shutout on the opposite side of the scoreboard.

Norway will face off against Switzerland at midday on Saturday, Feruary 20 in Canada Hockey Place. If you would like to back either one of the teams in this clash, just click here.