22Brad Park
Registered User
Canada will have to beat both USSR and SWEDEN to capture gold.,barring upset b4 that which i do not see taking place.,I love it,makes for better hockey with medals on line.
Canada will have to beat both USSR and SWEDEN to capture gold.,barring upset b4 that which i do not see taking place.,I love it,makes for better hockey with medals on line.
Yes cause they had an astonishing 3! penalties that period
And I think they where all good calls, nothing to talk about there.
Total penalty minutes: Russia 16, Sweden 4. That means that means that Russia spent 27% of the game shorthanded, while Sweden was only shorthanded for 6% (actually, one of Sweden's two penalties for the game was coincidental, so they were only shorthanded for two minutes). Again, my point is not to take anything away from Sweden's great comeback - only to illustrate that a hostile crowd influences many referees to get directly involved in the outcome of the game. That's just a fact, and it would be naive to deny that it happens.
Wow, 3 Swedish goals of point shots and 1 off a ridiculously lucky bonce. Ugly game for the russian netminder.
Wow, 3 Swedish goals of point shots and 1 off a ridiculously lucky bonce. Ugly game for the russian netminder.
Wow, 3 Swedish goals of point shots and 1 off a ridiculously lucky bonce. Ugly game for the russian netminder.
Canada will have to beat both USSR and SWEDEN to capture gold.,barring upset b4 that which i do not see taking place.,I love it,makes for better hockey with medals on line.
Well, crowd or not it more illustrates how much Sweden carried the play over the 63 minutes, along with the shot count of course. Russia got a big lead and stopped being aggressive. You're not drawing penalties if you don't have the puck and vice versa.
No doubt that Russia is still in contention, but I think the psychological challenges will be more difficult this year than last year. Last year, (1) no one expected Russia to be a Gold Medal contender because of their 6th place finish the year before, and (2) their losses were in the first two games of the tournament. They were able to enter the medal round in the midst of a little winning streak.
This year, they go into the medal round with a negative. They were in clear position to win the game, but Sweden forced a collapse similar to Canada's last year in the 3rd period. Everybody seemed to be standing around waiting for one of their teammates to make a play. Now they are going to have to beat the Czechs, and probably Canada, to make it to the Gold Medal game.
The Czechs will be very encouraged by the 3rd period collapse. Count on them to fight hard for all 60 minutes, thinking that if they can stay within 3 goals, they can pour the pressure on Russia in the final period. IMHO, the road will be much tougher thanks to the meltdown you described.
The kids are going to have to come to terms with the fact that the Alberta crowd will hate them, and that their support for the Czechs will put pressure on the referees to start a parade of Russians to the penalty box for the tiniest touch, such as we had last night. Bragin is going to have to prepare them to play under such harsh and pressure-filled conditions. I believe they have the talent to survive, but everybody will have to fight and contribute at their full capability.
hand pass from the defensive zone with a 3-1 and empty net? lol'd.
Wow, 3 Swedish goals of point shots and 1 off a ridiculously lucky bonce. Ugly game for the russian netminder.
Russia should have finished yesterdays game off, but got lazy, undisciplined and simply decided to stand off and not attack.
Yet, the Czechs aren't the Swedes. They won't be able to have much possession against the Russians and will once again rely on epic goaltending and impotent opposition finishing.
I just can't see the Czechs beating Russia. It would be a monster upset IMO.
Russian can win gold here. They just need to do 2 things. Avoid penalty trouble, and don't sit back. 2 things that are very adjustable.
And this is why you need to watch the whole game and not rely on a short highlight clip.
Vasilevski was the best player in the game by far. No goaltender in the world would be able to take 50+ shots in a game without eventually letting in a few goals.
Russia should have finished yesterdays game off, but got lazy, undisciplined and simply decided to stand off and not attack.
Yet, the Czechs aren't the Swedes. They won't be able to have much possession against the Russians and will once again rely on epic goaltending and impotent opposition finishing.
I just can't see the Czechs beating Russia. It would be a monster upset IMO.
Russian can win gold here. They just need to do 2 things. Avoid penalty trouble, and don't sit back. 2 things that are very adjustable.
I totally agree with you. You can't get lazy and stop attacking against a superior team like Sweden, or they will find a way to beat you. The Czechs seem like a gritty team, but they lack the depth and talent of a team like Sweden. I expect that the Russians will find a way to get by the Czechs.
Unfortunately, if they do get by the Czechs, as expected, that brings up a likely match-up with Canada. For Russians fan, I guess the best way to look at it is that if you are going to play for a Gold Medal, you are going to have to face Canada eventually.
The international games was a lot tougher back then. A concussion, pah, that's nothing!