I don't know about medalling...Mikko Koivu just got injured and will not be 100% in time for the Olympics, even if he is released to play by Minnesota. For Finland, he can not be replaced.
I agree it's completely possible that we don't get a medal.
We'll see how it goes. I'm just trying to make a point about
the shift in mentality there has been since from the 80's,
when we got our first ever medal, until now. (Yeah, I'm that old)
In the 70's we were happy to win a big team.
In the 80's we were frustrated with sometimes winning big teams,
but choking before the medal rounds and never getting any.
In the 90's we started medaling on average every year and
became one of the big teams (men, juniors, women combined)
In the 90's-00's we've been reaching different finals
on a more constant basis, but always choking in them.
In the 10's we've won 2 of the 3 finals we've been in.
See the trend?
I'm not trying to say that we're the favorite in every final we play.
I'm saying though, that there's a shift in mentality going on again
and I just love the fact that we can still fly under the radar.
I despise the old way of "pojat, se on nyt kuulkaas sillälailla
että me ollaan hävitty tää peli"
(Old FIN sketch about a hockey coach who tells his FIN team
BEFORE the game: "Boys, here's the thing. We've lost this
game already.")
I believe psychology is a key factor and that the mindset
helps steering towards self-fulfilling prophecies. It doesn't
mean that one always wins, but it makes it more probable.
In 2011 final we were trailing 0-1 to SWE in the late 2nd.
I was watching the game with my SWE colleagues and I made
a bet with them that a couple of minutes in the 3rd we'll have
changed the whole game. It happened. Maybe I was lucky.
This year, here on HF in the game thread I was confident
and stated that we'll win the game, and refused to blame
anything on the refs. Because in the end it comes to being
able to concentrate, leave the past and stick to the essential.
I was being mocked again. Ok, maybe I was lucky again.
Personally I've just left the old mentality of "yeah, but in the
end we'll lose anyways". Some people want to stick to the old
ways and I sometimes get mocked about it, which is fine
My honor can take the fact, that I can be wrong. No probs.
It seems to me, that our national sports teams are in a shift
(volleyball, basketball, I hope soccer gets infected too
)
and I welcome that new way of thinking.