Team Leaders:

Goals: Johan Franzen-16

Assists: Pavel Datsyuk-30

Points: Pavel Datsyuk-43

Plus/Minus: Ian White-+24

Penalty Minutes: (tie) Jonathon Ericsson/Todd Bertuzzi-37

Game-Winning Goals: Johan Franzen-8

Short Handed Goals: Brad Stuart-1

Shots on Goal: Henrik Zetterberg-130

Shooting Percentage: Valtteri Filppula-21.2%

Average Ice Time Per Game: Nicklas Lidstrom-23:49

Goalie Stats:

Jimmy Howard- 24-10-1; 2.05 goals against average; .924 save percentage; 4 shutouts

Ty Conklin- 2-4-0; 3.01 goals against average; .897 save percentage, 1 shutout

Game 39: Detroit Red Wings 5  Dallas Stars 4

The Red Wings started off 2012 with a win in Dallas thanks in part to the second line of Valtteri Filppula, Henrik Zetterberg and Jiri Hudler, who combined for eight points in the first period alone.  Jimmy Howard stopped 31 shots for his league-leading 24th win of the season and it was his first when giving up four or more goals.

Game 40: Detroit Red Wings 3  Toronto Maple Leafs 4

The Maple Leafs quickly went ahead 3-0 before the 12-minute mark in the first period, but had to fend off the visiting Red Wings for the win.  After the Leafs’ third goal, a time out was made and Mike Babcock told them to remember who they were (not really, but you get the point). The pep talk seemed to work until a turnover from behind their own goal by Niklas Kronwall led to Joffrey Lupul’s breaking a 3-3 tie early in the third period.

Game 41: Detroit Red Wings 3  Chicago Blackhawks 2 (OT)

The Red Wings quickly trailed 2-0 early in the game, but rallied to beat the Blackhawks in overtime thanks to Pavel Datsyuk’s game-winning goal. Backup goalie Ty Conklin made 29 saves for his first win in exactly three months and his second of the season.  This win not only boosted the confidence of Conklin, but the rest of the team as well.  It was a statement game and what better way to do it than on their division rival’s home ice.

Red Wings’ Three Stars of the Week:

Pavel Datsyuk-1 goal, 3 assists, +3

Johan Franzen-1 goal, 3 assists, +4

Henrik Zetterberg-6 assists

Team Transactions:

January 2:  F Chris Conner activated off injured reserve, sent down to Grand Rapids (AHL)

January 4:  F Joakim Andersson sent down to Grand Rapids, F Chris Conner recalled from Grand Rapids

January 8:  F Tomas Holmstrom and F Darren Helm both activated off injured reserve,  F Gustav Nyquist sent down to Grand Rapids

January 9:  F Chris Conner sent down to Grand Rapids

Waiting in the Wings/2012 WJC Update

Congratulations to Team Sweden who won their first Gold Medal in the World Junior Championships since 1981, beating Russia 1-0 in overtime. The lone Red Wing for the Swedish team was Mattias Backman, who was taken with the 146th pick in last summer’s NHL Draft.  Backman played very steady in the tournament, finishing with three assists and a +5 in six games.

Another possible future Red Wing who had a strong series was Finland’s Teemu Pulkkinen.  The 116th pick in the 2010 Draft, Pulkkinen finished third in tournament scoring with six goals and four assists.  Two of the team’s prospects from Slovakia, Tomas Jurco (one goal, five assists) and Marek Tvrdon, had decent showings.

Despite not making it to the Gold Medal Game, Czech Republic goalie Petr Mrazek’s stock rose after the WJC. His 52-save performance in the upset win over the United States was his breakthrough game. Mrazek finished with a 3-2-0 record with a 2.49 goals against average and a .928 save percentage.

This Week’s Games:

The Red Wings finish their four-game road trip with a stop in Nassau County as they pay a visit to the New York Islanders. The Red Wings return to the Joe Louis Arena as they host their first home game of 2012 against the Phoenix Coyotes. The Red Wings will have a Saturday matinee home affair with the Chicago Blackhawks to close out the week.

Not only do I enjoy watching the NHL, I’m a fan of international hockey and I love seeing the best taking on the best.  As a puckhead, I’ve gone to see the games in the Canada Cup and the World Cup of Hockey. Not only do you get to see the best players represent their country, but watching the fans soak it all in is just as special.

Over the next few days, the city of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, along with neighboring cities Lasalle and Tecumseh, are hosts to the World U-17 Hockey Challenge.  For those who are not familiar with this event, it is a 10-team round-robin tournament that features the best hockey players under the age of 17 displaying their talents on an international stage. Next to the World Junior Championships, this is second biggest international tournament. These kids are two to three years from being drafted by NHL clubs.

Players from the United States, Russia, Czech Republic, Sweden, and Germany take part, along with five regional Canadian teams, which are Ontario, Quebec, Atlantic (the provinces east of Quebec), West (New Brunswick and Manitoba) and Pacific (Alberta and British Columbia).

The game that I went to today was between Team Germany and Team Ontario and the Canadian colors of red and white were well represented.   Here’s how I can tell: A few rows in front of me, there was a family of seven wearing Team Canada #87 Sidney Crosby jerseys. How’s that for commitment?

Team Ontario has won three of the last four gold medals and they pretty much have the home-ice advantage. I wanted to see Team Ontario play just because of the fact that I’m an OHL fan and I wanted to see these future OHL stars. They are to the U-17 Tournament what Team Canada is to the World Junior Championships. They are a well-oiled machine and they are an example of why the OHL are the best at producing young talent.

Here’s a small sample size of the future Hall-of-Famers who have taken part in this tournament: Joe Sakic (Pacific) and Brendan Shanahan (Ontario) took the first step to Canada’s Program of Excellence by playing in what was formally known as the Quebec Esso Cup.

The NHL stars of today who have participated in the World U-17 include Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Kovalchuk, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Marc-Andre Fleury and Vincent Lecavalier.

The stars of tomorrow took part in this tournament not too long ago.  The “Young Guns” such as Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin, Ryan Strome, John Tavares (all have represented Ontario) and Jonathan Heberdeau (Quebec) got their feet wet before representing Canada in the World Junior Championship.  Being among the best players in this tournament doesn’t mean that they can cut it in the next level of international play—Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (Pacific) excelled in the U-17, but didn’t make the cut for Team Canada in the 2011 WJC.

There some NHL bloodlines involved in the tournament, especially coming from the Canadian teams. Max Domi, who is currently on loan from the London Knights (OHL), is the son of former NHLer Tie, but they are complete opposites.  While Tie was known for being an agitator and for his fights with Bob Probert, Max is a player that’s gifted offensively and has a burst of speed that reminds me of Pavel Bure.  While PK Subban currently stars for the Montreal Canadiens, his younger brother, Jordan is on leave from the Belleville Bulls to help shore up the defense for Ontario.  Cole Cassels was taken in the first round of the OHL draft by the Oshawa Generals and is the son of former NHLer, Andrew.

Bo Horvat and Aaron Ekblad are two that you’ve probably never heard of before, but you probably will very soon.  Ekblad was the first overall pick of the Barrie Colts this summer.  The kid is a 6 foot 3 inch defenseman and, just like any teenager, is still growing. He reminds me a lot of a young Chris Pronger.  Horvat, who is property of the Knights, scored one of the goals in Ontario’s 5-0 shutout of Germany. He, like his teammate Max Domi, is another offensively-gifted player, but he looks like the type of player who will do whatever it takes to win.  Maybe he can bring back the phrase “Bo Knows Hockey,” but time will tell.

Going to an event like this was neat.  I was surrounded by mostly Canadian fans and they were really into it. Being at an international sporting event doesn’t happen that often and I wanted to take advantage of it. I’ll be going to another U-17 game tomorrow as Russia will take on USA in another matinee affair.  Who knows if I’ll see the next Alex Ovechkin or the next Phil Kessel, but it will be exciting to watch.

Buffalo Sabres young goaltender Jhonas Enroth is no different. Enroth was drafted by the Sabres with the 46th overall selection (2nd Round) in the 2006 NHL Entry after posting a 2.17 GAA and a .922  save percentage for his Sodertalje SK “J-20″ league team in Sweden in the 2005-’06 season. The 5’11″ native of Stockholm, Sweden would then play three more seasons in his home country, working his way up to the top league in the nation, the Elitserien. In 2007-08 –his final season in Sweden– , after posting splits of 2.13 (GAA) and .932 (Save Percentage) Enroth was given the honor of being one of three candidates for the Elitserien league’s Rookie Of The Year award.

Leaving Sweden after the 2006-’07 season, Enroth would sign his entry level deal with the Sabres on May 31, 2008 and was assigned to Buffalo’s AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates. Enroth would go on to play three seasons in the American Hockey League, posting a 2.63 GAA and a .915 save percentage in 147 games for the Pirates, Enroth would finally break through in February of 2011, when he became the full-time back-up to Ryan Miller, supplanting veteran netminder Patrick Lalime. Jhonas would go on to make 14 appearances in the 2010-’11 season, earning a 9-2-2 record with one shut-out while posting a 2.73 GAA and a .907 Save Percentage. Despite only seeing 14 games of action in 2010-’11, the opportunity to be around and learn from a proven NHL all-star like Ryan Miller is something that can be a great benefit to any young player.

Following Saturday’s 6-2 loss at the hands of the Boston Bruins, a game in which Enroth came in to relieve Miller after the second period — “I knew pretty much right after the 2nd period. Ryan didn’t feel very well there so they told me pretty much right after the second period.” said Enroth — I had the  chance to speak with the Sabres’ 23-year old Swedish netminder about  how he has benefited from the guidance of Ryan Miller, over the course of the past two seasons:

“It’s a great opportunity for me to see him practice and prepare for games and play games everyday. It’s been great to learn from him.” – Jhonas Enroth

Entering the 2011 season, as Lalime was no longer a part of the organization, it was clear that Enroth had earned the right to the no. 2 job in Buffalo. As the season began, expectations of a championship ran rampant through the streets of Buffalo after the off-season acquisitions of high-profile d-men Robyn Regehr and Chritian Ehrhoff and former Flyer forward Ville Leino. It was also expected that former Olympic Silver medalist Ryan Miller would return to his 2009-’10 form after a relatively down season (by his standards) in 2010-’11. Unfortunately for the 31-year-old Miller, that has simply not been the case. Despite his 2.86 GAA and .909 save percentage, his team just has not performed for him this season, posting a below average 5-6-0 record in the 11 starts made by the East Lansing, Michigan native. On the other end of the spectrum is Jhonas Enroth, who has posted a 1.75 GAA and a .944 save percentage this season, while sporting an undefeated 5-0-0 record.Prior to the season, Enroth was not expected to see much playing time, and was only slated to spell Miller once in a great while. However, it is only logical to play the hot-hand and right now, the hot goalie is Jhonas Enroth.

“I didn’t think I’d be playing as much. That wasn’t the plan I think but obviously, but I’ve been winning a couple of games. It’s been fun playing a couple games in a row there.” – Jhonas Enroth

The play of Jhonas Enroth, who currently holds a 14-3-2 career record in 22 NHL appearances, seems to have caused quite the stir in Buffalo. Now with Miller shelved due to a concussion suffered on Saturday against Boston, now is the time Jhonas Enroth to step-up and take the reigns as starting goaltender of the Buffalo Sabres. If Enroth can take advantage of the increased playing time and keep up the stellar play that he has enjoyed thus far in his brief NHL career, there could be a once unthinkable goaltending controversy brewing in Buffalo.

Thanks For Reading!

“LIKE” My HI Page On Facebook: HockeyIndependent Bruins

Give Me A Shout On Twitter! : @BWoodward_HI

Or You Can E-Mail Me At BWoodward.HI@gmail.com

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

What if the NHL, NHLPA, KHL and other European leagues negotiated a compensation fee scale that resembles fair market value for talented prospects?  Like the salary cap, the midpoint between the minimum and maximum level of this compensation range should be at the level that would allow all NHL teams to make an affordable offer.  Each subsequent season, the range, minimum and maximum would be adjusted based on statistics such as operating income of the NHL, KHL and other European leagues plus general economic conditions, much like the determination of the salary cap and floor.

Then, to prevent large market NHL clubs from always offering compensation fees at the maximum level, how about implementing a “luxury tax” threshold at, for example, 65% of the compensation fee range, beyond which the excess would be subject to a luxury tax tacked on to the NHL club’s salary cap in the player’s first season.

Example: Compensation minimum and maximum are $250,000 and $2-million, respectively.  65% level = $1.3875-million. Luxury tax set at 130% of excess compensation over the 65% level. Drafting NHL club negotiates $1.8-million compensation fee to KHL club for immensely-talented Russian player ‘X’.  The excess of $412,500 would result in a $536,250 luxury tax (130% x $412,500) added into the NHL club’s total salaries for salary cap purposes in the year that player ‘X’ debuts.

That hypothetical $536,250 may not seem like much but it would be the equivalent of a replacement level player – an enforcer, a journeyman checking line forward or a frequently recalled injury fill-in from the AHL – that most teams need to have on standby to fill out a roster.  From another perspective, that $536,250 might be the pro-rated salary of a potential trade deadline acquisition.

Thus a lot of the decision-making on whether to draft Russian and other European prospects would have to be done well before the actual Entry Draft.  Capologists on each NHL team would have to reason not only if their club should draft a certain player based on scouting reports and projecting his skills to the NHL but they would have to analyse affordability.  If player ‘X’ is drafted, can the club reasonably go all out and pay what the KHL or European club is demanding for compensation given the maximum limit on compensation and the possible luxury tax penalty against a future season’s salary cap?

Nashville right wing Alexander Radulov abruptly signed a contract with Russian KHL club Salavat Yulayev Ufa in the summer of 2008 even though he had one year remaining on his entry-level NHL deal.

Note that presently, many consistent contenders have already tied up some franchise players to long-term contracts and attempts to stockpile more talent via drafting Europeans and paying compensation fees would be a more difficult task if the excess of the compensation fee affects future cap hits.  Therefore, this would allow rebuliding or small market teams with fewer long-term contracts to have a more fair chance at European talent in the Entry Draft.  Since inferior teams tend to draft earlier in the first round, they could select boldly knowing they might be able to offer maximum compensation fee money and not worry about future cap hits as they may presently be near the salary floor and thus could go “all-in” when negotiating with the European or KHL club.

Natural factors would discourage KHL or European clubs from being overly demanding or staunchly asking for the upper limit of the compensation scale.  If the drafting NHL club refuses to meet the asking price and the player returns to play in the KHL or other European league, there is a risk to his incumbent club that his skills will decline or he will suffer a serious injury, thus decreasing the potential compensation fee his club could reasonably expect during a second round of post-Entry Draft negotiations.

Clearly, this modest proposal is a very, very basic framework that seeks to introduce fairness to the currently flawed system. It would give European clubs currently bound by Player Transfer Agreements a shot at receiving more than a flat amount of $225,000 while acknowledging the correct logic of the KHL that obvious budding superstars should yield their clubs a fair market price, unlike the mere $150,000 that brought the exceptionally-gifted Russian centre Pavel Datsyuk to Detroit.

For the NHL, teams would have to continue to be prudent and mindful of the salary cap from the implications of offering compensation fees that would trigger luxury tax in future years.  Small market clubs would have a reasonable chance at garnering top European talent in such a system that would simply not be there in a totally open market.

Ultimately, any player transfer agreement in the future between the NHL, Russia and other European nations must specify fair compensation for selling clubs while giving all NHL teams, regardless of market size, an even shot at acquiring these players.  By doing so, hockey’s leaders will be able to reduce the international turf wars, multiple contracts and mistrust that damage worldwide promotion of the sport.

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

Thus player transfer agreements help to reduce or eliminate trans-Atlantic contract disputes, threats of legal action, strained international hockey relations and anxiety for players.  Compensation funds have the effect of softening the blow to the club losing a player, allowing it to recoup and reinvest money into training new players (assuming the selling club is the original team who trained the departing player).

Yet controversy exists in this area because Russia has continued to refuse to enter into a player transfer agreement with the NHL arguing that flat fees grossly undervalue potential superstars,.  With no formal framework for compensation amounts, it is unsurprising that Russia and the NHL have wrangled over contracts and rights to several high-profile players.  Pittsburgh centre Evgeni Malkin joined the Penguins five summers ago only after weeks of brinksmanship which saw him sign a contract extension with Russian Super League club Metallurg Magnitogorsk under pressure, file for annulment of the contract under Russian labour law before fleeing to the United States via Finland.  The enraged Magnitogorsk owners sued the Penguins and the NHL on the grounds that Malkin was already under contract but the lawsuit was eventually dismissed.  Significantly, the Magnitogorsk club received no compensation after originally demanding $2-million for Malkin’s rights.

The chronology of star centre Evgeni Malkin's departure from Russia and arrival in the United States in 2006 to play in the NHL was filled with acrimony partly due to the lack of a binding Player Transfer Agreement between the NHL and the Russian Hockey Federation.

The man who was drafted thirteen spots after Malkin, right wing Alexander Radulov, played two seasons for Nashville before abruptly signing a second contract with Salavat Yulayev Ufa of the new Russian Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in 2008 despite one year remaining on his NHL entry-level deal.  Days later, with rumours swirling that some KHL teams were looking to lure Malkin back to Russia, the NHL and KHL came to a loose agreement on “respecting everyone’s contracts” – not a formal player transfer agreement, but an informal burying of the poaching hatchet.

But despite this “Respect Accord”, the May 2010 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the updated MOU enacted this July which calls for mutual recognition of contracts, contract information sharing, exchange of free agent lists and conflict resolution procedures, there is still no comprehensive NHL – KHL Player Transfer Agreement on monetary compensation.  What will happen when the next Evgeni Malkin, under contract to a KHL team, wishes to join the NHL team who drafts him?

The relatively low compensation amounts typically paid by NHL clubs to European teams has always puzzled me.  Does it really make sense that first-round calibre players trained in Europe can be purchased for $225,000 when the annual compensation on an NHL entry-level deal is $925,000?  It begs the question: isn’t Russia correct in advocating for a full free market system with compensation based on supply and demand?  Perhaps Sweden and other countries bound by player transfer agreements are being swindled by arbitrary fixed compensation fees.

Unfortunately, if a truly unrestricted open market existed, in other words, if Russian and other European players were no longer subject to the annual NHL Entry Draft, then bidding for services of these players would become like the posting system in Major League Baseball (MLB) where teams must pay ”negotiating” fees to Japanese clubs to earn the right to talk to a player.  In the non-salary capped world of MLB, wealthy teams always win out or dissuade small-market teams from even bidding on Japanese players.  Similarly, rich MLB teams generally have the inside track on signing young Latin American stars who like the Japanese, are also not subject to the MLB Draft.

Applied to the salary-capped NHL, tiny Winnipeg, Minnesota or Carolina for example, would not even bother drafting a talented Russian or European as they know they would not be able to afford an exorbitant posting fee.

In part 2 of this article, a new Player Transfer Agreement between the NHL and KHL and all European leagues is proposed to promote fairness for all parties and international hockey peace.

Sorry to all for not posting sooner, but, when you’re not a full-time TSN analyst/writer; some things have to take precedent over writing for the readers.

The WHC, although amusing to watch (in my mind anyway), is usually completely disregarded due to the much more attention grabbing playoff action of the NHL. No excuses needed. But the tournament itself is beginning to evolve and really play a significant role on the world stage. What I am referring to and I hope some of you have noticed is the substantial amount of upsets occurring in the tournament.

Now give me a list of excuses to why teams may not be performing to their usual level, the main being not all NHL players are overseas playing for their respective countries, and I will gladly agree with you. But I still think merit needs to be given to what is happening.

About two years ago to this day I watched a documentary featuring countries such as Switzerland, Germany and even Norway and their respective developing hockey programs. Some of which even led by amateur to semi-pro coaches from my own Canada. The documentary really hit home the message that countries, previously regarded as no-name hockey countries, will be quickly developing into 5^th, 6^th, maybe even a medal finish or two. No more 9-1 games. Even though it’s not the Olympics I believe it’s evident that we are seeing this trend.

Interesting games thus far;

Germany over Russia: 2-0

Norway over Sweden: 5-4 (SO)

Germany over Slovakia: 4-3

Latvia almost beating Finland: 2-3 (SO)

Norway blanks Austria: 5-0

Denmark holding their own against Russia: 3-4

Canada & USA only beating Norway & France: 3-2

Switzerland over USA: 5-3

Saying it one more time, I am well aware that not all the players are overseas representing their respective countries but it’s more than just an evolution of the final scores. Watching games where France, a former non-qualifier, is not only barely losing but actually controlling the hockey game at times and executing successful plays and strategies. The intensity level from both sides of the hockey game is incredible and it makes for much closer games.

In retrospect, past games would feature (no offense meant to anyone) Belarus v. Canada, if the score only came out 4-0 it was usually because the Belarussian goalie stood on his head or Canada just missed a lot of shots, it was never because Belarus dominated the second period only anything along those lines. With more funding to minor hockey, development programs in these countries and some ‘damn’ fine coaching, these teams are starting to become a proverbial thorn in the top Countries side.

It all begins at the WHC, teams gain confidence playing against ‘weakened’ top teams and see what it takes to beat these teams. Confidence on top of all of the previous mentioned developments and you’re looking at a round robin where Sweden, among other top teams, has to play full force to beat teams like France, Norway & Denmark. Although I love to see Canada dominating on the world stage I am really excited, I think it is fantastic for the sport of hockey and the competition on the world stage. It could potentially make for some interesting Olympic matches in 2014 & 2018…

Of course this is all providing the NHL plays in the Olympics in the future, but that of course is an entirely other article for another day.

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

While partisans on both sides of the border wished for the Canada v. U.S. game to take place in the gold medal game to set up an exact rematch of last year’s World Junior Championship final, the anticipation surrounding this year’s semifinal proved to be just as intense.  Canadians stewed over the crushing of their dashed dreams of an unprecedented sixth straight IIHF U20 title ending on home ice in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan last January when current Washington defenceman John Carlson scored in overtime giving the Americans a stunning victory.

The U.S. entered the 2011 tournament as the consensus choice to repeat as champions as eight players from last year’s champions returned to the roster.  Meanwhile, Canada stereotypically played the humility card, stating that this year’s squad would be a mixture of good old-fashioned grit, grease and size, a collection of four equal lines with no superstars that would have to grind out victories.  Moreover, neither of Canada’s two goaltenders, Olivier Roy and Mark Visentin, stood out like American Jack Campbell a returnee from last year.

And the preliminary games followed the script.  The U.S. went undefeated and Canada dropped their last game to Sweden forcing them into a quarterfinal which they won 4-1 over Switzerland.  On Monday, this writer made the trek across the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge not far from the area where British General Isaac Brock was slain during the War of 1812.  Arriving at HSBC Arena two hours before the Sweden vs. Russia semifinal began, an obligatory inspection of the nearby beer tent, ominously quiet, was made and a thick roast beef sandwich with a side of pickles and chips was quickly devoured.

If there’s one thing to take away from the first semifinal, it is this: Has Russia been playing coy the whole tournament?  They needed a final day victory over the Czech Republic to even guarantee themselves a spot in the playoff round then fell behind 3-1 to Finland on Sunday night before Yevgeni Kuznetsov, a first-round pick of the Capitals, took over.  He scored with under four minutes left then set up the game-tying goal with under two minutes left then scored in overtime to stun the Finns.

On Monday, Russia took a 2-0 lead until Sweden scored a late second period power play goal and an early third period even strength goal to tie up the game.  With 3:52 remaining in regulation, Dmitri Orlov of Russia took a costly slashing penalty and Patrick Cehlin made him pay by scoring 33 seconds later.  But once again, Russia refused to go quietly and Sergei Kalinin made a diving stab at the puck in the goal crease with 1:27 left to tie matters once more.  I looked over at a yellow-clad section of Swedish fans who watched the play right in front of them …. stunned.

Despite being outshot badly by Sweden 49-32 and 5-1 in overtime, Russian goaltender Dmitri Shikin shone in the shootout, keeping out all three Swedish attempts (with a little help from the post on the last shot) as Russia prevailed.

In the evening, well, it was like night and day.  The previously quiet beer tent was literally bursting with fans, virtually all red-garbed Canadians.  Foolishly, I found myself embedded in the centre of the area and it took me nearly ten minutes to even elbow my way back out.  From there, the ticket lines and concourses were also a Red Sea of Canadians, drowning out every “U-S-A! U-S-A!” chant with an emphatic ”Let’s go Canada!” rebuttal.  And in the stands, there was no question this was a “home” game for Canada.  Thunderous cheers greeted Team Canada as they took the ice for the pre-game skate and once again when they lined up for the opening faceoff.

Feeding off the crowd’s energy, Canada opened the game by swarming the Americans, denying them room to set up plays or skate and hitting every white jersey in sight.  Canada was rewarded for its hard work when Curtis Hamilton deftly picked up his own rebound and rammed it in the net at 2:38 of the first period.  Then, at 13:54, Brett Connolly sent a shot towards the net that was neatly tipped over Campbell’s right shoulder by a streaking Quinton Howden to give the Canadians a 2-0 lead, sending the crowd into another explosion of joy.

In the middle frame, Canada kept the pedal down, building on their 12-5 first period shot advantage with a volley of 16 more shots.  Two quick penalties committed by Charlie Coyle and Patrick Wey put the U.S. shorthanded by two men and Ryan Johansen made the Americans pay 1:01 into the 5-on-3 by netting his third goal of the tournament.

Early in the third period, Zack Kassian, a Sabres’ prospect who may one day call HSBC Arena his home, sealed the game when eight seconds after Canada killed off a minor penalty, he took a head-man pass from Calvin de Haan alone on Campbell and buried it to give the red and white a 4-0 lead.  Canadian netminder Mark Visentin lost his shutout bid with 10:23 remaining when Chris Brown scored on a power play but otherwise, the game was pure mastery by Canada.

The atmosphere from a fan’s perspective was simply electric.  Every time a Canadian delivered a crushing hit, the crowd roared with approval; every time Visentin gloved down a puck, the crowd roared with approval.  Every time Canada rushed into the U.S. zone, every fan behind the net would rise with anticipation.  Fortuitously, our seats were one section to the right of the Canadian players’ family area and like every other Canadian in the crowd, they cheered just as loudly.  Finally, in true fan fashion, there was nothing quite like exchanging high-fives after each goal and after the game with strangers around us, united by our common Canadian bond.

Tonight however, one final task must be accomplished or the euphoria from Monday will be moot.  Since the World Juniors became an official international championship in 1977, Russia has won 12 titles (as Russia/CIS/USSR) while Canada has won 15.  Under the current playoff format, the two titans opposed each other in 2002 and 2003 and from 2005 to 2007 with Russia winning the first two matches and Canada the latter three.

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

In contrast to last night’s cakewalk over Switzerland in Oshawa, Sweden was the team that came out firing.  In the first period, Sweden outshot Canada 15-5 and held the hosts without a shot on goal through the first 6:11 of the game until defenceman Calvin de Haan fired a long slap shot from the right point that was gobbled up by Swedish netminder Robin Lehner.

Sean Couturier took the opening faceoff and picked up where he left off last night by contributing, this time on the defensive end.  Just two minutes in, after Sweden broke into the Canadian zone on a partial 2-on-1, a shot came off the left pad of goaltender Olivier Roy.  Couturier, backchecking, slid to interrupt the shooting lane, preventing a scoring chance.

Canada opened the scoring at 7:32 when Jaden Schwartz made a head-man pass to Brayden Schenn along the left wing boards, springing Canada on a 2-on-1. With Ryan Ellis skating stride for stride with Schenn.  Schenn faked a shot, then fired the puck over the left shoulder of Lehner.  Schenn missed a second goal with about two minutes left in the period by inches when his backhand try from a Louis Leblanc pass was thwarted by Lehner.  His counterpart Roy stood tall late in the opening frame too.  When Swedish defenceman Fredrik Stryman cruised in from the point, deking his way to the net before unleashing a shot, Roy used his left shoulder to parry away a high backhand attempt.

The second period was marked by special teams almost from start to finish.  Eight penalties were called in total – five on Sweden and three on Canada.  The hosts doubled their lead to 2-0 at 6:43, 16 seconds into a 5-on-3 advantage.  Jaden Schwartz once again initiated the play when he fired a centre-point shot that was deflected to the right side of Lehner.  Zack Kassian pounced and stuffed the puck into the net.

Captain Ryan Ellis, known more for being an offensive-minded blueliner, showed his defensive skills less than four minutes into the period when he slid headlong, dislodging the Canadian net as he blocked a shot.  ”Everyone’s got to chip in and do their part.  I might not be the big shutdown kind of guy but [blocking shots] is huge for our team,” Ellis said, post-game.  He called the goal by his Windsor OHL teammate Kassian, “huge … it was a power play goal.  It was a big goal to get there at the end of the second.  He’s been playing well for our team, skating hard for our team.”

Later, defenceman Calvin de Haan showed hustle as well, backchecking during a botched moment in a late Canadian power play, racing back to pokecheck the puck off the stick of Swedish forward Oscar Lindberg.

In total, Canada received 7 of its 10 total power plays in the first two periods and overall converted just 1 of the 10 chances.  Coach Dave Cameron repeatedly deployed as his primary power play unit: Ellis at the left point, Schwartz at the right point, Schenn at the right half wall, Ryan Johansen as the screen and Kassian on the left side.  Cameron said, “I thought our power play was like our game: sluggish and sloppy,” noting that the key to effective power plays is traffic in front of the goal.  “That’s a component of it.  You’re not going to beat good goaltending just on straight shots too often.

“There’s a lot of good hockey teams here.  Sweden’s one of them and it’s a real challenge to beat them and they pushed us tonight.  We found a way [to win].  It was a real good test and that’s how you get better,” he continued, commending his players’ composure amidst the fire of a highly-physical game.  “We’re preaching discipline.  You’re not going to win this tournament being undisciplined and I thought we were real disciplined tonight.”

The final period was also marked by Canadian power play chances.  Canada received a 1 minute, 17 second 5-on-3 advantage midway through the period but was unable to convert.  “We had a lot of time to practice [the penalty kill],” Swedish head coach Roger Ronnberg joked.  “We played good but we drew too many penalties.  That’s the brutal truth.  We have to take down the penalties if we want to beat Canada … We have put this team together to have the best chance to beat those guys on the small rink.  My guys competed but we have to learn the lesson to compete under pressure and not go over the edge and draw those penalties.”

Ronnberg said that Schenn’s opening goal helped Canada more than it hurt Sweden, downplaying conjecture that Canada had a fast start to the game.  “I don’t think Canada started this game so good,” Ronnberg said, possibly alluding to Sweden’s 15-5 first period shot advantage.  “We had good control of the game.  They didn’t have any scoring chances before they scored.  It’s tough but I think my guys had good energy even after the goal, but I think it was a relief for Canada.”

Max Friberg cut Canada’s lead to 2-1 when the Swedish forward skated to the middle of the near circle and fired a slap shot that went right through Roy at 9:17 of the third period.

After Quniton Howden passed the puck through the slot from the left wing boards, Johansen gave Canada some breathing room with 4:05 left when he made a turning forehand shot from the far circle that sailed over Fredrik Petersson Wentzel, inserted as Sweden’s netminder at the start of the third period.

He never won the Stanley Cup. He only scored 14 goals with the team. He made a single appearance in the NHL All-Star Game. And there are very few, if any, truly defining moments from his 11 years in Los Angeles.

Yet, Mattias Norstrom will forever be remembered as the Captain of the Kings.

He was back in town over the weekend to be honored in a special ceremony prior to the Kings-Devils game at Staples Center. Along with his family, several former teammates were on hand to share a few stories and pay tribute to one of the toughest players in franchise history.

Below are 10 Tidbits on the man nearly everybody refers to as a warrior…

*  A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Norstrom was drafted by the New York Rangers in the second round of the 1992 draft (48th overall). With the pick immediately following his selection, Tampa Bay took Brent Gretzky (Wayne’s little brother) – who went on to play a grand total of 13 NHL games. Nine slots before Matty was chosen the Kings opted for Justin Hocking, who played a total of…wait for it…ONE game in the NHL.

*  Another note that somewhat links him to Gretzky is the fact that it was after Wayne was traded by Los Angeles to St. Louis on February 27, 1996 that a Kings fire sale soon began.  During that process, veterans Marty McSorley, Jari Kurri and Shane Churla were packaged to the Rangers in exchange for three players and a draft pick.  One of those heading west was Norstrom.

*  As if that wasn’t enough, it was 11 years to the day - February 27, 1996 – that he was traded out of LA.  Kings GM Dean Lombardi saw an opportunity for a win-win situation by trading Norstrom to the Dallas Stars.  The aging veteran could get one final shot at a Stanley Cup and Deano could pick up a few coveted assets, such as a 2008 first round draft pick (which was eventually used though a series of deals with Anaheim and Buffalo to ultimately land the Kings a big WHL defenseman named Colten Teubert) 

*  His ties to Rob Blake are slightly more substantial than Gretzky.  First off, he was the Kings captain from 2001-2007, a time period that was sandwiched between Blake’s two tenures with the ‘C’ in LA (1996-01 and 2007-08).  Norstrom was also the first European captain in franchise history (and to date, the only one!).  Slovak Peter Stastny was the first European-born and trained player to become captain in the NHL (Quebec Nordiques from 1985-90).  In 2008, fellow Swede Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings became the first Euro-captain to lead a team to the Stanley Cup.  Don Cherry must have been proud.

*  Soon after Blake signed a free agent contract with the Kings in the summer of 2006 it was reported that Norstrom called his returning teammate to offer him the ‘C’ back.  Blake refused, saying that Matty was the “soul of the Kings.”

*  Norstrom played 780 regular season games with the Kings - ranking him second all-time among defenseman (behind only Blake) and fifth overall in franchise history.  In his NHL career he totaled 903 games collectively when you add up his time with the Kings, Dallas Stars and New York Rangers.

*  In a January 2006 article with Larry Wigge for NHL.com, Blake – a member of the Colorado Avalanche at the time – said “Matty was the perfect partner.  He was a presence in our own zone and gave me the freedom and encouragement to take chances in other areas up the ice.  I wouldn’t have won the Norris Trophy if I was playing defense with anyone else.”

*  Respect All Around - In the same article, Jeremy Roenick said Norstrom “is the most underrated player in the league, bar none.  He’s tough as nails to play against.  He never let’s up…He’s in your face anytime you step anywhere near the Kings goal crease.”  Luc Robitaille added “Matty is the ultimate warrior.  He takes a beating and gives you a beating.  There is no fear there.” 

*  Team Awards - Norstrom earned the club’s Most Outstanding Defenseman award four times; Best Defensive Player award five times; Most Inspirational Player award two times; and was the Unsung Hero award winner three times.  Pride, Passion and Power at it’s finest.

*  International Experience – Played for his native Sweden in the 1998 and 2002 Winter Games.  Was also invited to play on the 2006 team, but missed the event due to an injury.  He returned to the team this past February in Vancouver – this time as an assistant coach.  Although his teams never medaled at the Olympics, he also played in five IIHF World Championships – picking up a gold in 1998 and twice winning silver (after losing to Canada in a best-of-three series in 1997 and again in 2003 when they were beaten by former King Anson Carter in overtime).

Bonus Trivia Question:  Three players on this year’s Kings roster actually played with Norstrom in Los Angeles.  Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar are the two obvious ones.  Can you name the third player?  [answer at the end of this article]

Forever a Warrior – Matty Norstrom, we salute you!

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
www.facebook.com/MayorsManor

RELATED ARTICLES:

20 Questions with Luc Robitaille

Interview with former Kings Coach Andy Murray – includes word association with Norstrom

Rob Blake:  The Interview

10 Tidbits on Dustin Brown

Interview with Colten Teubert

Roenick previews USA-Canada game

TRIVIA ANSWER:
Three current Kings played with Norstrom in Los Angeles.  Brown, Kopitar and Peter Harrold.  The former Boston College defenseman played with Matty for 10 games in Nov-Dec 2006.
.

Canadian star Hayley Wickenheiser fields media questions after her featured presentation on the future of women's hockey on Day 4 of the World Hockey Summit in Toronto.

Under clouds of concern for the viability of international women’s hockey due to the huge competitive disparity between North America and the rest of the world, Canadian star and featured speaker Hayley Wickenheiser described the frustrating challenges in growing women’s hockey outside North America while American star and panellist Angela Ruggiero was more hopeful about the future when they spoke this morning on Day 4 of the World Hockey Summit.  Wickenheiser opened her presentation by asking a rhetorical question.  “How many of you have women in your life?  Mothers, sisters, daughters?  How many of you, if they wanted to play the game of hockey, would want them to have that opportunity?”  Wickenheiser proceeded to outline the challenges in giving girls outside North America that opportunity to play hockey as well as the economic problems of funding women’s hockey.

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

At a thinktank in Finland this summer that involved the top 14 nations in women’s hockey, the wide gap between Canada, the United States and the rest of the world was exposed.  While Finland, one of the most improved women’s hockey nations in the world, has 62 clubs playing on 124 ice rinks, Russia and China only have 6 rinks in each country.  She noted that the thinktank recommended having development camps for players from all nations in one place to learn and to bring best practices back to their country, coaching exchanges, a full-time person advocating for female hockey at the IIHF and coverage or waiving transfer fees (up to $2,000) for players who wish to change teams.

HAYLEY WICKENHEISER 6 mins 40 sec Hayley Wickenheiser discusses all aspects of the challenges facing the future of women’s hockey. (This writer’s question about the benefit of exchange programs occurs at 3:05).

Wickenheiser said that China has made a start to closing the gap, “playing 35 games with their national team.  What China is doing is that they’ve invested a ton of money into 30 players in their country, centralizing them, “hot-housing them” and trying to really develop a national program.  The problem with that is they’ve only got a few hundred players in their entire country and outside their national team, there’s nothing to support it.  There is no development system.  So I think we need more exhibition games for national teams and for the under-18.”

On the topic of funding, Wickenheiser lamented the paucity of dollars supporting women’s national teams, wistfully noting that her former elite club team in Calgary, now defunct, operated on a budget of $480,000.  “I don’t see how you can run a national team on a budget of $480,000.”  While Slovakia has increased their budget for women’s hockey, she expressed concern that Germany’s budget has actually decreased by 21%.  She said she spoke with German men’s coach Uwe Krupp about the reason for this and he responded, “because they’ve had no success … that’s the way it is, that’s the battle we’re facing, if they had success, there would be more money.”  Wickenheiser termed this “inverse thinking”.

Alarmingly, she noted that Russia is “spending zero on development, yet they’re hosting the next Olympics … so to me, on a federation and country level, it’s just not good enough and we have to raise the bar.”  Furthermore, she pointed out that half of the top 14 women’s hockey countries don’t even have a national women’s committee.  She exhorted other countries to mimic the model of Canada and the United States in terms of funding, recruitment, a balance of elite-level and grassroots hockey programs, leadership and education.

American star Angela Ruggiero, the all-time U.S. leader in games played, started by saying, “If I could send one message, it’s ‘give that opportunity to all the girls out there that want to play.”  She described her own experience, having to persevere and trying to even find a league to play hockey in California, through getting cut from boy’s teams as a youngster simply because she was a girl.  She described the explosive growth in American women’s hockey, from 5,000 girls playing at the time of the first U.S. national team in 1990 to 60,000 today.

ANGELA RUGGIERO 6 mins 17 sec U.S. star Angela Ruggiero answers questions about marketing and exposure of women’s hockey players and her role as advocate for womens’ sports. (This writer’s question on Ruggiero possibly becoming an IIHF board member occurs at 4:19).

“That’s improvement to me, that’s says that we’ve put some time, money and effort into it and we’ve seen some results.  That was only 20 years ago and I think there is the same potential worldwide.  I think it just takes the right people, believing that the girls deserve to play and that they can be amazing hockey players and just giving them the support to do it.”

U.S. women's hockey star and IOC member Angela Ruggiero answers media questions after her panel appearance on Day 4 of the World Hockey Summit in Toronto.

Ruggiero was grateful for all the benefits that playing hockey has afforded her in her life.  “I’ve been able to play in four Olympics, get a great degree from Harvard.  I’m pursuing a master’s degree as well.  I’ve had all these doors opened up to me because of the sport of hockey.”  In turn, Ruggiero, involved in numerous girls’ sports advocacy groups and charitable foundations, wants to use hockey as a vehicle to open up those same doors to others.  “I meet kids that can’t even talk, but they’re so excited to meet you and all they want to do is get your autograph, and they’re inspired, and to me you can change a generation by inspiring and I think that’s what women’s hockey has the potential to do.”

She enthusiastically talked about her visit to China with the New York Islanders when she attempted to introduce hockey amongst girls and boys, with the aid of a translator, teaching them simple skills like how to take a wrist shot.

Both Wickenheiser and Ruggiero were clearly moved when reminiscing about their childhoods and both stressed how much it meant to them that their respective families were involved in encouraging them to pursue hockey, when many at the time put up obstacles in their way.

Finnish women’s hockey director Arto Sieppi openly talked about how he had to overcome his ignorance and dismissiveness about women in sports in general, to become one of the strongest advocates for the women’s game in Europe.  He likened women’s hockey to a corporation and called each of the delegates a potential shareholder, urging them to “invest” and “buy that stock”.  He cited hopeful information about his nation: an increase in the number of proficient skaters from 2,300 to 4,700, “excellent cooperation with Hockey Canada” including a version of the Girl’s Hockey Day project, and heavy centralization of the national women’s team in advance of the Sochi 2014 Olympics.

twitter.com/PenguinsMarchHockey Independent on Facebook

From the NHL, commissioner Gary Bettman, deputy commissioner Bill Daly, GMs Brian Burke, Darcy Regier, Ken Holland, Steve Yzerman, coaches Peter Laviolette, Bob Boughner and players Jamie Langenbrunner and Daniel Alfredsson, are all scheduled to attend.  KHL president Alexander Medvedev, KHL chairman of the board Vyacheslav Fetisov and IIHF president Rene Fasel headline the list of panellists from Europe, a group that will also include representatives of Swedish, Finnish, Czech and Slovakian national hockey associations.  Members of USA Hockey, Hockey Canada, the CHL and NHLPA will also be among the featured speakers and panellists.

On Monday evening, the World Hockey Summit will open at the Hockey Hall of Fame with four “Hot Stove Sessions” tackling some of the challenges facing the business of hockey.  The first topic, Contracts and Transfers, will examine contentious issues surrounding contracts and player movement, especially between the NHL and KHL.  Second, Agents’ Role in Working with Young Players will focus on the reservations and perception that European hockey associations have about their junior players being transferred to the CHL through the work of agents.  Third, State of the Game will look at whether the time is right for hockey to be introduced to non-traditional countries.  Finally, the fourth session, Comparison of the North American and International Game, plans to study the differences between the NHL-sized rink and international-sized rink and whether one size emphasizes certain skills or promotes a more exciting game.

From Tuesday through Thursday, in-depth presentations and discussions will focus on six key topics: player skill development, junior development, an evaluation of hockey at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, establishment of a long-term global event agenda, women’s hockey and growing participation in hockey.

For cerebral hockey fans, this event will surely be considered a potential landmark, and a great lead-in to the upcoming hockey season.  Just last week, the NHL held the Research, Development and Orientation camp in Toronto to brainstorm and test proposed rule changes that may make the game more exciting and enjoyable for players and fans.  Likewise, by bringing the most influential decision-makers in hockey from around the globe to Toronto for the World Hockey Summit, one hopes that this week, they will establish a foundation for new protocols, innovations and improved communication within countries and across borders, to enhance the excitement of hockey for all stakeholders for many years to come.

Going into yesterday’s set of games in Vancouver, not many people expected Norway, Belarus, Germany or Latvia to beat their opponents and advance to the quarterfinal round of the tournament. Canada, Switzerland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are simply way too good for those other four growing hockey nations.

Surely enough, we sit here on the day of the Quarters and the four teams expected to advance are lining up to face the teams that received qualification byes after the group stage. But other than Canada’s 8-2 romping of the Germans, the other match-ups left us guessing until the very end.

With the matches below done and in the books, we’re all set for four incredible matches to decide who goes to the medal round, and who plays in the loser games.

Who will make it to the Semi finals? Who will go home? Leave your predicitons in the comment section below!

——————————
SWITZERLAND 3 – BELARUS 2 (SHOOTOUT)
Quarterfinal Matchup: Switzerland vs. USA, 3PM Eastern

The first game of the day was the closest, both before and after the game was completed. While Switzerland isn’t exactly a hockey powerhouse, they’ve made great strides in the past decade. With the emergence of Mark Streit as an elite defenseman, Jonas Hiller as a #1 goaltender, this team isn’t exactly full of NHL names, but definitely poses a risk to any team they face. As for the Belorussians, with two of their best players (Grabovski and Andrei Kostitsyn) out with injuries and with Sergei Kostitsyn their only notable player in North America, things were looking pretty grim.

And despite Swiss dominance in the shot department (42-22), the game went back and forth, first with Belarus going up 1-0, then with the Swiss rallying and taking a 2-1 lead, and finally with Belarus tying it back up and battling their way to a shootout. Two goals from Switzerland in the shootout and a miss by 3rd shooter Sergei Kostitsyn means that Hiller, Streit and the rest of this underrated Swiss group will play the Americans today and look for revenge after team USA beat them 3-1 in the group stage.

The game is set for 12PM Vancouver time, 3PM Eastern time.

Links:

- CTV game recap
- Game Box Score

——————————
CZECH REPUBLIC 3 – LATVIA 2 (OVERTIME)
Quarterfinal Matchup: Czech Republic vs. Finland, 10PM Eastern

The Czechs’ road to their quarterfinal game against the Finns was supposed to be an easy one. The Latvians were arguably the worst team of the group stage, going 0-3 and surrendering 19 goals, while scoring only 4. In fact, the last time the Czechs faced Latvia, they beat them 5-2.

This time, it wouldn’t be so easy, as the Latvians brought in the game that really counted, taking the Czechs to the brink of elimination in a nail biting 3-2 overtime Czech victory. With Jaromir Jagr leaving the game in the 2nd period with a shoulder injury, and the Latvians rallying from a 2-0 deficit, it took a David Krejci overtime goal to advance the Czechs. Latvian goaltender Masalskis made 47 saves to Tomas Vokoun’s 24 in the game.

What’s next is a Finland-Czech Republic game set up for tonight at 10PM Eastern time at the UBC Thunderbird Arena, in what should be an equally thrilling game.

Links:

- CTV Game Story
- Box Score

——————————
SLOVAKIA 4 – NORWAY 3
Quarterfinal Matchup: Slovakia vs. Sweden, 12AM Eastern

In as big a surprise as the Czech game, the seemingly lowly Norwegians managed to beat Jaroslav Halak 3 times and take the Slovaks to the brink of elimination in a 4-3 game. Norway, who was paired up with the Swiss, Canadians and Americans in the group stage, gave up 19 goals in that round while only scoring 4, and despite managing to take the Swiss to overtime, finished with only 1 point and a 0-1-1 record.

In this game, however, they brought everything they had against the Slovaks, rallying from a 2 goal deficit in the second period to tie the game 3-3. But one of their best players, Ole Kristian Tollefsen, destroyed Slovakia’s Lubos Bartecko in what can only be described as a “Dirty hit. Dirty hit” by Slovakian captain Zdeno Chara. Tollefsen was ejected from the game, leaving the Norwegians a man down. Bartecko, who left a pool of blood on the ice, left the game on a stretcher, and was diagnosed with a severe concussion, but is in stable condition.

Tollefsen is the only NHLer amongst the Norwegians. The loss of the Red Wings defenseman allowed the Slovaks to go up 3-1 in the first period. But the Norwegians used a partisan crowd to rally to a 3-3 tie, as mentioned above. Still, the Slovaks were too much for this underdog team, as Miro Satan scored in the 3rd period to put the Slovaks up 4-3 once and for all.

Despite going 0-4 in the tournament, the Norwegians had a fairly good showing in their Olympic debut, and “can go home with our heads high,” according to Tore Vikingstad, who had 4 of Norway’s 8 total goals.

What comes next for Slovakia is 2006 Olympic champs Sweden in the quarterfinals. If this now underdog team stands any chance of making the semis, Jaroslav Halak is going to have to be much better than the 3 goals on 19 shots he allowed last night against a team that shouldn’t be scoring any goals, and Zdeno Chara is going to have to play the game of his career to shut down a stacked Swedish group, which includes the Sedins, Henrik Zetterberg, and many others.

Links:

- CTV Game story
- Box Score.

——————————
CANADA 8 – GERMANY 2
Quarterfinal Matchup: Canada vs. Russia, 7:30PM Eastern

Many expected Canada’s qualification match against the Germans to be a cakewalk, a gimme game, a glorified practice. And it was. Nevertheless, this blogger believed that Germany was one of the more underrated teams in the tournament, with 6 good NHLers on their team and a respectable showing in the group stage. Eight goals and complete domination told another story last night, as Canada lit the lamp.

Predators forward Marcel Goc and Manuel Klinge were the goalscorers for Germany, while Canada’s goalscorers included a two goal performance from Jarome Iginla (his 4th and 5th of the tournament), a rare Joe Thornton goal, a rare Scott Neidermayer breakaway goal, and a weird Shea Weber goal that went into the net and through the mesh. Rick Nash, Mike Richards, and Sidney Crosby also scored for Canada. Eric Staal had 3 assists and defenseman Duncan Keith had 2 in a team-leading 19 minutes of ice time.

Canada now puts Germany behind them and looks ahead to tonight’s primetime game against the Russians. This is the second Olympics in a row that Canada will face Russia in a non-medal round. Needless to say, many were hoping that these two teams would face off in the gold medal game. But we’ll get the most anticipated game of the tournament in the quarter finals this year. There is way too much to be said about this game than just a paragraph in a recap article, so I’ll leave the game previews to my colleagues .

Links:

- CTV Game story.
- Box Score.

——————————

It’s a fun day of hockey ahead, and you can bet that at from 3PM to 3AM tonight, a lot of Canadians will be glued to their TV sets in what might be 4 of the best games to be televised in a long time.

Leave your predictions and thoughts below!

The Swedes were dealt a minor set back as it was learned Tomas Holmstrom would not be joining the team in Vancouver.  Holmstrom has been plagued by foot and knee injuries for most of the year.  Despite regaining his health and joining the Detroit Red Wings earlier this month, he re-injured himself and declared himself unable to play in the Olympics.  There is a silver lining though.  The mule, Johan Franzen, just 4 months after tearing his ACL was named as Holmstrom’s replacement.  In my opinion this is an upgrade from the aging Holmstrom.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Holmstrom and believe he is one of the most effective players in the NHL at what he does.  He is a net crasher and a nuisance in the crease.  But Franzen provides a little more size and offensive upside than Holmstrom.  Franzen can play the role of big body in the crease if needed, although not as well as Holmstrom.

Look for these line combinations and defense pairings tonight as Sweden takes on Germany.

D. Sedin–H. Sedin–M. Weinhandl
P. Forsberg–H. Zetterberg–P. Hornqvist
L. Eriksson–N. Backstrom–D. Alfredsson
J. Franzen–S. Pahlsson–F. Modin

N. Lidstrom–N. Kronwall
M. Ohlund–T. Enstrom
H. Tallinder–M. Johansson
D. Murray–J. Oduya

Goalie: Henrik Lundqvist

Should be a great game.  The Germans never lay down for anybody.  Tonight’s game can be seen on CNBC……hopefully in it’s entirety.

February 16 marks the beginning of the gold medal defending run for the Tre Kronor.  Team Sweden will be looking to defend their gold medal from Turin in 2006.  And just as they were four years ago, Sweden finds itself flying under the radar and much overlooked.  Here is a look at players on the Swedish Olympic roster, and their respective club teams.

G. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
G. Jonas Gustavsson, Toronto Maple Leafs
G. Stefan Liv, Jonskoping
D. Tobias Enstrom, Atlanta Thrashers
D. Magnus Johansson, Linkopings
D. Niklas Kronwall, Detroit Red Wings
D. Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings
D. Douglas Murray, San Jose Sharks
D. Johnny Oduya, Atlanta Thrashers
D. Mattias Ohlund, Tampa Bay Lightning
D. Henrik Tallinder, Buffalo Sabres
F. Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa Senators
F. Nicklas Backstrom, Washington Capitals
F. Loui Eriksson, Dallas Stars
F. Peter Forsberg, MODO
F. Tomas Holmstrom, Detroit Red Wings
F. Patric Hornqvist, Nashville Predators
F. Fredrik Modin, Columbus Blue Jackets
F. Samuel Pahlsson, Columbus Blue Jackets
F. Daniel Sedin, Vancouver Canucks
F. Henrik Sedin, Vancouver Canucks
F. Mattias Weinhandl, Dynamo
F. Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit Red Wings

This year’s team will have the same cast of characters that past Swedish teams have had.  Experience will be a key to this year’s team as 13 of the 23 players on the 2006 gold medal winning team are returning for another run at gold.  Most notably Peter Forsberg.  Forsberg has been out of the NHL for a few years now but despite battling injuries is contributing with MODO in the Swedish Elite League.  A less vigorous schedule in the Elite league should benefit Forsberg’s legs.  It could be argued that the Swedes lack the high scoring fire power of the Russians or the grit of the Canadians, but by no means is this team short on talent. They are just as skilled as any team in this tournament. Their top two centers now are now top four in the NHL in scoring. Henrik Sedin is lighting it up  in Vancouver already and is on pace for a 100 point season. Henrik, along with his brother Daniel have now combined for 130 points. The only center/left wing combination putting up better point totals than the Sedin twins are the combination of Backstrom and Ovechkin.

Which brings me to the player who continues to fly under the radar and is still somewhat underrated in my books. Nicklas Backstrom is making a name for himself and is arguably one of the three best centerman in the NHL. Backstrom is now 4th in the NHL is total points. Trailing NHL coverboy Sidney Crosby by just one point. He has already surpassed his career high in goals with 25 and sits 3rd overall in assists with 48. Backstrom flying under the radar is not the fault of his own, nor is it any intentional lack of coverage by the media. Alex Ovechkin gets most of the attention these days in DC, and deservedly so. But understand that Backstrom is perfectly fine being in the shadow of one of the games best players. Ovechkin thrives in the spot light. Backstrom prefers the attention be elsewhere. Backstrom should enjoy it now because if his current point totals are a taste of what is to come, he’ll be in the spotlight in no time.

The Swedes are blessed to have premier goal scoring talent and play making ability. In addition to the Sedin twins and Nick Backstrom, the Swedes boast Henrik Zetterberg, Daniel Alfredsson, Loui Eriksson, and Thomas Holmstrom just to name a few.

The key to toppling the Russian and Canadian juggernauts will be the ability to stop them. All boils down to defense and goaltending.  Both of which are strong suits for the Swedes.

The backbone of the the Swedish defense will once again be Nicklas Lidstrom.  The six-time Norris trophy winning is once again showing why he is one the game’s greatest defenseman.  He remains a steady contributor on the Red Wings blue with 33 points and a +21.  Expect to see Lidstrom quarterbacking the power play for team Sweden; a power play consisting of the Henrik Sedin, Nick Backstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, and Tomas Holmstrom.  That is down right scary and is on par with any power play this year’s Olympic games will offer.  Puck moving defensemen like Tobias Enstrom and Johnny Oduya will add to the offensive threat this team presents.  The Swedes will also bring the grit needed to hang with the Canadians as Douglas Murray, who is amongst the NHL leaders in hits. 

The final piece of the puzzle is the king.  King Henrik Lundqvist will once again see the bulk of the time in net.  Lundqvist has proven he is capable of winning of playing well and winning international tournaments.  He has participated in multiple World Junior Championship tournaments and carried the load during Sweden’s gold medal run in 2006.  In three appearances in the 2006 games, Lundqvist went 3-0 with a GAA of 2.33 and a save percentage of .901.  Solid numbers.  Should Lundqvist play like he did in 2006 and avoid a Tommy Salo moment, the Swedes should be in good shape.

The countdown to Vancouver has officially begun.  Is this Canada’s tournament to win?  Will they survive the pressure of an entire nation?  Who will stop the Russians offensive assault?  And don’t forget the team nobody is talking about–the Tre Kronor.

Who’s your pick to win Olympic gold in Vancouver?

Sweden unveiled their mostly Veteran-laced line-up today, for next February’s Olympic tournament.

Their seemingly stacked roster contains mostly NHL names, including former NHL superstar and very controversial center Peter Forsberg, who along with Mattias Ohlund, Daniel Alfredsson and captain Nicklas
Lidstrom, will appear in his 4th Olympic tournament. Lidstrom was the obvious choice for captain, as the only European captain to ever win a Stanley Cup. And despite the leadership of such big names as Alfredsson, Zetterberg, Forsberg or the Sedins, he will be a good leader for his country.

The Swedish roster is laced with 13 members of the 2006 Torino team that won gold. However, 5 of their 8 defensemen are first timers (Murray, Johansson, Enstrom, Oduya, and surprisingly, Henrik Tallinder).

And although Peter Forsberg’s addition to the team is as controversial as the last few years of his career, he won’t be the only player on team Sweden with injury troubles this year. Ottawa captain Daniel Aldredsson is currently out with a shoulder injury, and although he should be ready for the event, his conditioning will be in question. Henrik Zetterberg is also currently out with an injury, albeit less severe than Alfie’s. His teammate Niklas Kronwall has been out with a knee injury for nearly two months.

Goaltending is solid for Sweden, who will rely on gold medal winner Henrik Lunqvist for the bulk of the work. Stefan Liv may be an unknown to North Americans, but he was a part of 2006′s gold medal winning team and he will back-up the king. Toronto’s Jonas Gustavsson will ride the taxi.

The biggest omission from the roster was Johan Franzen, but it is doubtful he would have returned from his knee injury in time for the event.

Surprisingly left off the list were Kristan Hulesius, who ranks seventh amongst Swedish scorers in the NHL and who would be familiar with teammates Fred Modin (the biggest surprise on the roster) and Sammy Paahlson, among others. The left winger has 550 games of NHL experience, and has played in two world juniors and 3 world championships for his country, collecting two bronze medals and scoring 21 points in 25 games. Definitely a surprise omission from an outsider’s perspective.

Also missing from the list was Niclas Bergfors, the New Jersey winger who is an early candidate for rookie of the year. Mikael Samuelsson and Alex Edler from Vancouver were also omitted, as were last year’s 2nd overall pick, Viktor Hedman, Minnesota’s Kim Johnsson and Dallas’ Fabian Brunnstrom. Johan Hedberg from Atlanta was the only goaltending omission of note, but not a surprise.

If anything, these omissions speak highly of Sweden’s depth, which has been overshadowed by the talk of Canada’s favored spot in February’s event. It would be hard to remove anyone form their spot for the above mentioned names.

Sweden clearly went for both balanced lines and somewhat of a checking line and a few defensive defensemen, just like russia did and just like people have been talking about Canada. Samuelsson, Huselius, and Bergfors, Hedman and Edler, they could have very well been chosen over the Modins and Paahlssons, the Tallinders and Murrays for their offense, but Paahlsson’s Stanley Cup winning experience will serve Sweden well at the Olympics.

FORWARDS:

Daniel Sedin (VAN) – Henrik Sedin (VAN) – Henrik Zetterberg (DET)
Tomas Holmstrom (DET) – Nicklas Backstrom (WAS) – Daniel Aldredsson (OTT)
Loui Eriksson (DAL) – Peter Forsberg (MODO) – Patric Hornqvist (NAS)
Fredrik Modin (CLB) – Sammy Paahlsson (CLB) – Mattias Weinhandl (RUS)

DEFENSEMEN:

Niklas Kronwall (DET) – Nicklas Lidstrom (DET)
Mattias Ohlund (TB) – Henrik Tallinder (BUF)
Tobias Enstrom (ATL) – Douglas Murray (SJ)
Johnny Oduya (NJ) – Magnus Johansson (Linkopings)

GOALTENDERS:

Henrik Lunqvist (NYR)
Jonas Gustavsson (TOR)
Stefan Liv (HV 71)

Sweden, along with Russia, represent the biggest gold medal threats at next year’s Olympics. And while Canada will certainly be garnering the most cheer’s at the Vancouver event, Sweden has an exciting and proven line-up which includes the Canucks two best forwards. They will represent a threat to both Canada on the ice and in the stands come February.

See Russia’s Olympic Roster here

Prax
www.thecheckingline.com
www.twitter.com/thecheckingline

PS: VOTE in our latest poll