If anyone missed the game just played between Germany and Austria, you missed one hell of a game. Germany spotted Austria with a 2 goal lead, and Austria didn't look so good. All of a sudden in period 2 Austria comes back to tie the game, just like they did last night, and proceeds to dominate Germany for most of period two, and part of period 3. Germany gets the game winner in the third with just over a minute to go, and goes on to win, and eliminate Austria. There were some tremendousbodychecks in this game. And tons of emotions. I would say its a fair statement both teams don't care for each other. My last comment: so whats with the goofy blue outfitted cheerleaders in the background, and who are they cheering for???????

Geez, and I thought the first game couldn't have been outdone!!! Wrong. The game between Latvia and Slovakia was equally mind boggling. Lots of intensity here. In fact if the intensity level of any of the remaining games to be played by the remaining teams, including U.S. and Canada, is any indication it should be a most memorable finish to Olympic Hockey this year. Slovakia blew a 6-3 lead here only to end up in a 6-6 tie with Slovakia, which means that Slovakia is out now because they got beat by Germany yesterday. Also, this game featured some pretty serious scrums, and there were some flat out incredible body checks. I can't wait for the U.S. Team to play now. These first few games so far have exceeded my expectations of what I expected. Stay tuned folks!

Hey puckman, just watched that 6-6 tie game, Latvia vs. Slovakia. What a barn-burner! Slovakia is, for all intents and purposes, OUT of the tourney.

I'm loving this Olympic hockey - major intensity, hard-hitting, some scraps in front of the nets (but no gloves dropped - Olympic rules ). I love the big, wide ice and sweet passing game, no-touch icing, and the "no red-line" rule, which produces some exciting break-aways. And everybody shakes hands at the end of every game! The NHL (and Theo) should take be taking notes.

Germany vs. Latvia should be fun on Tuesday (with Arturs Irbe in net for Latvia, finally).

And it'll be interesting to see if Team Sweden incorporates their "Torpedo" offense, a new approach that could make all the difference in their quest for Gold. Man, this gets better and better all the time.

Throw all previous predictions out the window...who knows who'll take the podium.

[quote]Originally posted by Seph:
Germany vs. Latvia should be fun on Tuesday (with Arturs Irbe in net for Latvia, finally).

---

Remember, all Germany has to do is tie this game to be in the medal round. Since Latvia and Austria have both lost already and Germany has not that would give Germany 5 unsurmountable points. Latvia has to win, in which case it will have 5 points to Germany's 4. I see a very defensive game in the cards.
But let's not forget Group B where the supposedly invulnerable Swiss tied with the French (the French?) and Belaruss put the hurt on the Ukranians and once again everything is up in the air.
I just can't wait till the women start playing becuase I enjoy spelling Kazakhstan so much

Edited to include group B and the women

[ February 10, 2002: Message edited by: jqueer ]

Wow! I didn't quite expect this, but its very cool.
Germany? The lowest-ranked team in the tournament is about to advance to the medal round, and even without Kolzig. What a feather in the cap of the Germans, and especially to Marc Seliger, the German cageminder. (See below)

I think that the gameplan for Germany-Latvia falls directly into the German hands. Latvia (as noted above) cannot just tie; they have to push it. That's fine for the Germans, who enjoy creating their offense out of their defense. Seliger is having a whale of a tournament and on the verge of backstopping the Germans to the quarters.

Slovakia-Austria is all about pride, but the Slovaks have something to prove. Granted, they have been hit with some things beyond their control, but I still think that they intend on making a good showing in these Games.

In Pool B, the Suiss still have a chance, their tie with France notwithstanding. But there is so much sharing of personnel between the French and the Swiss during the year that I wasn't that surprised. I do think that the Swiss have been awoken by the tie and will skate much more efficiently in their next two games.

That aside, here are the latest Stars of the Day:

Sat, 9 Feb
Five stars of the day
(A combination of 3 stars for hockey and 5 rings in the Olympics)

1. Marc Seliger, GER goalie who had 17 saves as the 20th-ranked Germans upset the #7 Slovaks in the prelims

2. Jurgen Rumrich, GER: Started the scoring in the rout of Slovakia with a shorthanded goal 30 seconds into the 2nd period

3. Maurice Rozenthal, FRA had 1 goal and 2 assists in the tie against Switzerland

4. Mark Streit, SUI, who notched a goal to tie the game with 4:10 to play in the 3rd, 4 minutes after the French went ahead. Streit also assisted on the first French goal.

5. Leonidis Tambijevs, LAT had a pair of assists four minutes apart to help the Latvians break a
2-2 tie and defeat the Austrians.

Feb 10
1. Sandis Ozolins, LAT -- four assists in the comeback tie with the Slovaks

2. Marc Seliger*, GER -- another outstanding performance in the net, 29 saves to help the Germans inch that much closer to the quarters

3. Andreas Loth, GER had the game-winning goal with 1:14 to play. AUT had tied the game up and was outshooting the Germans 16-4 in the third, but it was Loth's shot that was good.

Mention of Seliger just made me think about the last olympics. The Czech team was not the best in the tournament, but the dominance of Hascek (dominance/dominator, get it?) gave them an edge that no one could overcome. How far do you think Seliger can take his team?

Anyone Know when the U.S. and Canada begin play??????

you are so right Seph. Hasn't this Olympic Hockey been fun so far??? Man its blowing my mind how competetive it has been, and this is without the North American teams have even been played. My expectations are notched up even higher for those now.

A hot goalie can backstop a team, which is what's happening with Germany.

The USA begins its charge to the medal round with a game against Finland on Feb 15th at 10:45 pm

The Canadians open with the Swedes on Fri Feb 15th at 6 pm.

The USA women open against the Germans at 11am on Feb 12th. The Canadians play the Kazakhstanis the day before, at 11:00 (Feb 11)

GO USA!!!

The U.S.A. mens game is at 10;45 pm. That really sucks!!!!

Just got done reading about hockey on NBC's Olympic website. Guess both the U.S. and Canada are still undecided as to who will start for their respective teams. I really really hope the U.S. picks Richter, and I will be downright mad if they do not pick him.

Well in the another one bites the dust category you can add the Swiss Mens Hockey Team, who just got beat rather badly by the Ukraine 5-2. The Swiss are now out of it. This was another really interesting game for the most part, and featured some pretty heavy duty scrums almost fights. The competition so far is just incredible. There was another stick in your face incident where the Swiss had a player get a stick to the face and they argued hard for a major but had to settle for a double minor. It didn't matter because they didn't do anything with it anyway. Overall the enjoyment factor on this one was quite high as well.

Same for France now. They are out of it and got beat by Belarus 3-1, in yet another highly entertaining game. This one even featured a penalty shot by Belarus that was thwarted by the simply incredible goaltending of Frances'goalie, Huet. He kept France in this game right up until the very end. France made some critical errors throughout this one, and if it were not for thier goalie it could have been a complete blowout! The second period got almost ugly. It was quite fiesty and featured some exquisite body checks. Overall France just didn't have the power that Belarus had.

Another day, another great series of hockey. And the women got started too! Very cool....
Yes, the Swiss are out. Both pool favorites go down. Could it be a connection that the Slovaks insisted on using NHL players while the Beylorussians chose not to? But I digress....
The open ice is a thing of beauty, and Belarus exploited it. What they also did was what the Germans are doing--riding a hot, inexperienced goalie through the qualifiers. Shabanov! This kid is good! His only goal of the Games thus far was a blooper tonight against the French. What a great feeling he is having, and he should be able to carry that with him into the game against the Swiss and then the first round of final pools.

Actually, I think that Huet had a great game as well. That breakaway stop in the 3rd (which never should have happened) was key, and that 3rd goal through the legs was just unfortunate. He's a solid keeper, but he can't be expected to play defense as well. And had France had the horses that Belarus had, then Huet could have been more effective. They did a great job almost killing off a 2-man advantage, but Belarus scored. It was just a matter of being comfortable; I am sure that had something to do with the 0/5 on PP today.

In any case, stars for the day:
1. Hayley Wickenheiser, CAN had two goals and an assist in the win over Kazahkstan.

2. Irina Gachennikova, RUS keeper made 41 saves to keep the Russians in fighting distance

3. Cristobal Huet, FRA goalie played big, but the Beylorussians were too much tonight.

4. Sergei Shabanov, BLR goalie played bigger. Key saves (ok a couple key plays by blocks out front and a save by a defenseman) but still a SOLID performance.

5. Valentyn Oletsky, UKR had a shorthanded goal to start the Ukrainian rout, and then added another one to clinch the win over the favored Swiss.

Just a reminder. The U.S. Womens Hockey Team takes to the ice this morning on MSNBC @ 10:00am p.s.t., 1:00PM e.s.t.
Go U.S.A.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At the end of the first period the U.S. Women are leading Germany 2-0. So far its pretty lopsided with the U.S. outshooting the Germans 15-3!! Way to go girls. U rock!!!!!!

The U.S. Women totally destroyed Germany 10-0. To give you an idea of the domination they outshot Germany something like 60-6, and the U.S. had about 12 players who scored at least a point. Wow. Way to go ladies!!!! Next up, China on Thursday. We be mighty proud of you!!

GO USA!!!
Puckman, you are right on!
Although it took some time for the women to get warmed up, (shots were like 2-2 in the beginning) from there the rout was on. The USA had the last 14 or so shots of the first half, and in the 2nd period they kept the puck in their offensive zone for the majority of the period. They were faster, better stick handlers, and more aggressive. 3 goals in like 1:43!!! Two in 23 seconds, including a sweet redirect to topshelf by Karen Bye. I was very impressed...and word on the street is that the Canadians had a hard time finishing. (ed. note, this seems to pan out...66 shots, 7 goals!)
Have fun against the Chinese!

GO USA!!!

You're both right, puckman and Chip. The US Women are head and shoulders above the competition. They should be sporting gold around their necks soon enough; it'll be great to see them win on home ice and that'll do much to encourage young girls to join hockey leagues across the USA.

Can't wait for the Men's Germany vs. Latvia game tonight. Winner qualifies for the Final Round starting Friday. Should be intense!

yes indeedy Seph.

WOW! Incredible! Germany 4, Latvia 1. What a great effort from Germany. If the 1940 brown-shirts had such a stifling "D," the free-world would not be as we know it today.

Germany advances to the Finals Round, along with Belarus. Anybody know which team will join Group A? Group B?

Germany joins Group C (CAN, CZE, SWE) and Belarus joinds Group D (RUS, FIN, USA!).

The German plan worked perfectly. Score early and give Seliger a lead. Not that they would need it; this man is hot and a hot keeper will carry you a long way. Two goals by the Germans in the opening 4:41 was a big deficit, but they cut it to one, keeping them in the game. But the Latvians pulled in Artus Irbe NOT freshly with the rest of the team, and the Germans had Seliger, who has been with the team the whole way.

All it takes it a look to the rest of the pool. Who was in goal for the Slovaks? Um, no one? As a result they don't even get a win, and barely get the tie in a 6-6 shootout with Latvia. Austria beat them today as Gerhard Unterluggauer scores at 49:09 to break a 2-2 tie. It's relegation time for the Slovaks, who play in the bottom of the pool crossovers.

On a more positive note,
WAY TO GO AGAIN USA WOMEN!

And now the stars for the day.
1. Karen Bye, USA had a 2+2 day, getting the opener for the team and then setting up the second goal.
2. Natalie Darwitz, USA got the 3rd and 4th goals of the day for the USA, opening up the rout. The USA needed that punch to get them over the hump, and once they were there, they coasted.
3. Riika Neimenen, FIN had 3 assists in the match against the Chinese.
4. Marc Seliger, GER goalie. He's 3 for 3. That game against CZE will be quite entertaining with two premier goalies. 25 saves again...and a GAA for the first three games of 1.00 Imagine if Ollie the Goalie hadn't been hurt!
5. Martin Reichel, GER who notched the opener for the Germans just 2:21 into the game. A needed goal got the Germans going.
6. Gerhard Unterluggauer, AUT notched the GWG against the Slovaks at 49.09.

Wow I don't think I would want to play Germany! It will be interesting to see if they give the number one goaltending spot to Kolzig who is coming in or keep the present one, and not chancge a thing. I think I would stick with Seliger. Is that his name? Their 1-4 defense is interesting, and it will be very interesting to see how/if the big powers deal with it.

Its official and was announced this afternoon. Cujo (Curtis Joseph) gets the starting job for Team Canada on Friday. No word yet for U.S.A.

...and so that's the end of the first round for the men. Congrats to the Germans and Beylorussians who have advanced to join the Super Six in the final Olympic Pools!
I'm not sure that's the way that Belarus wanted to go off...a loss to the Swiss and being outshot by them. OK, that was mean because the Swiss are a good team. And the backup keeper for Belarus was in since they had already clinched moving on. Still, the big Mo is a nice thing to have on your side.
In any case, crossovers are set:
Ukraine vs Latvia, Austria vs Switzerland, and Slovakia vs France.
Games when things have been decided are tough. It's the mark of a good team and solid competitors to look past that, but at the same time it's not easy....
ANYWAY, [switching to the women] it's a good thing the transitive property in sports is not valid. Canada beat Russia tonight 7-0, the same score by which they beat the Kazahkstanis two days ago AND the same score the Swedes beat the Kazahkstanis today. I'm thrilled that there is an eight-team tournament in the Games. It's still a two-team tournament. What will happen over the next couple of years is that these teams will be back, and that's a good thing.

And now for some stars of the day....
1. Hayley Wickenheiser, CAN had another scoring barrage, 1+2 today

2. Irina Gachennikova, RUS had 53 saves against the Canadians. Sure, she allowed 7 goals. I think it could have been worse.

3. Erika Holst, SWE had 2+2 against KAZ

4. Jean-jacques Aeschlimann, SUI had the GWG against Belarus

5. Martin Garber, SUI GK had 11 saves on 11 shots against Belarus in the 3rd, protecting a 2-1 lead.

6. Roman Salnikov, UKR had three assists in the 4-2 win over France.

In Women's Hockey today, Canada beat up on Russia 7-0, outshooting them by a margin of 60 to 6. Which means that if Canada had played without a goalie, they still would have won 7-6! (Unless the judges saw it "differently.")

Can't wait for the eventual USA vs. Canada gold medal game, which should register a perfect 6.0 on the doozy-meter!

Go, Canada! My homo native land....

The U.S. Women take to the ice this afternoon at 3:00pm p.s.t. again. Their opponent today is China. This will be an even bigger blowout than Germany was, if you can believe it! I said it first!!!!
GO U.S.A.-U.S.A.U.S.A.

Way to go US Women. They just got done blasting China 12-1!!. Cami Granato scored a hat trick as the U.S. Ladies outshot China 71-10, if you can believe that. Believe it!!! At one point during the second period they scored 3 goals in 69 seconds.
Alright U.S. Womens Hockey Team. WE Be proud!!!!!
U.S.A. U.S.A.

Wow--I think that the team looked better this game than they did against the Germans. Way to go for Captain Cammi--a hat trick, and only the second one in the history of the Games for the USA. She hit the two in the first to get things going; they needed that one. Goals came in spurts, including a sweet 69 second run with a triple and then a similar burst in the third.
As a defenseman, I was thrilled to see Ruggiero and Merz shoot through to the post and notch a pair of goals, thanks to excellent tape-to-tape passes. Way to go DEFENSE!!
It was unfortunate that Tueting was unfocused when that shot came from the neutral zone; got to get those pads closed way earlier. Still she is who I want behind me if I'm in the USA backfield.
I'm thrilled that the women are through, along with Finland, Sweden and Canada. Still have a solid game against Finland coming up.
GO USA!!

Oh yeah...stars of the day:
1. Karen Bye, USA--was everywhere tonight!!
2. Cammi Granato, USA--2 goals set the tone early, and kept the team fired up
3. Hong Guo--CHN goalie. Yes, she let in 12 goals. She made some great slides side to side..could have been that much worse
4. Stephanie Wartosch-Kurten, GER goalie -- a 3-1 loss to the Finns could have been much worse
5. Katja Riipi, FIN--pair of assists in the 3-1 win

This afternoon the "Big 6" get underway. I simply cannot wait for this. I guess Canada plays Sweden with its torpedo style game. This should be really interesting, and Team U.S.A. plays at 7:45 p.s.t. tonite, so its a late game, 11;45 back east which really sucks for you guys back there.
Then the U.S. plays Russia Saturday. Can you imagine what the scalpers are getting for this one???
Anyhow major hunks on the U.S. Mens Team as far as I am concerned are Chris Chelios, Tony Amonte, and Mike Modano.
Two little words: Go U.S.A. GO!!!!!!!!!

[ February 15, 2002: Message edited by: puckman45 ]

Mr. Puckman, if I may be so bold as to offer a correction, the USA men's game tonight is at 10:45 EST. I'd hate for any of you to miss it!! The guys are very psyched and enjoy hearing about the support.

I am also very interested in the Canada Sweden game....I like the concept. Now let's see it on the ice. I wonder how well it would have worked with Forsberg skating it.....

Is NBC going to show the entire USA - Finland game live -- at once?? (or is it on MSNBC / CNBC ...?) Or are they gonna cut away for other events as seen fit?

DC Bucky. Stay tuned. I am not completely sure how they will deal with it. When I looked at NBC's Olympic site earlier it was quite confusing to me. Looked like a couple of periods on CNBC then??? So, stay tuned, as I find out more hopefully throughout the day I will post it.
Thanks for the correction on the time back east too. Things get confusing.
Go U.S.A. all the way!!!!!!!!!

Here is the TV schedule through Monday from the NBC Olympics website:

Friday, February 15 / Day 8

9 - 10:45 PM ET / 6 - 7:45 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Czech Republic vs. Germany

10:30 - 11:30 PM ET / 10 - 11 PM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, United States vs. Finland (First Period)
10:45 PM - 1 AM ET / 7:45 - 10 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, United States vs. Finland
12:05 - 1:35 AM ET / 11:35 PM - 1:05 AM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, United States vs. Finland (Second / Third
Period)

Saturday, February 16 / Day 9

1 - 3:20 PM ET / 10 AM - 12:20 PM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Women's game, United States vs. Finland

6:30 - 9:15 PM ET / 3:30 - 6:15 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Finland vs. Germany

9:15 - 11:15 PM ET / 6:15 - 8:15 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Women's game, Canada vs. Sweden

11:30 PM - 1:30 AM ET / 11:30 PM - 1:30 AM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, United States vs. Russia

Sunday, February 17 / Day 10

6 - 9 PM ET / 3 - 6 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Sweden vs. Czech Republic

9 - 11:25 PM ET / 6 - 8:25 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Canada vs. Germany

Monday, February 18 / Day 11

1 - 3:30 PM ET / 10 AM - 12:30 PM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, United States vs. Belarus

3:30 - 6 PM ET / 12:30 - 3 PM PT
NBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Russia vs. Finland

6 - 9 PM ET / 3 - 6 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Czech Republic vs. Canada

9 - 11:25 PM ET / 6 - 8:25 PM PT
CNBC Ice Hockey: Men's game, Sweden vs. Germany

So the US-Finland game is on CNBC in its entirety live. NBC will show it but interrupt it for local news and tape-delay it.

And Sweden leads Canada 4-1 in the 2nd period....Wow!

Well as I posted a couple of days ago, I said I wouldn't want to play Sweden. They just got done bombing Canada 5-2 in their opening game. The "torpedo" was extemely effective against Canada. Swedens passing game was absolute precision as well. Canada did look good in the third period, but I would say the torpedo is going to soon have to been learned to our advantage in North America. It would be interesting to see what the Canadian press says about this stunning loss. Do they blame Roy at all???

Final score: Sweden 5, Canada 2. Ooh, that’s gotta hurt, Wayne!

Sweden completely controlled the neutral zone with their long passing game, taking advantage of the “no red line” ice. Heck, they grew up playing that type of game! This does not bode well for non-Euro teams like Canada and the USA. Canada made some good adjustments in the third period, but it was too little, too late, too bad. They’d better get their act together before Sunday’s game vs. Germany.

CuJo was a bust in net for Canada, letting in some easy goals; expect Martin Brodeur to start their next game. At the other end, Tommy Salo looked great, making 33 saves.

puckman: it's a little early to start blaming Roy...I'm too busy blaming the guys who were on the ice tonight!

Starting in goal for Team USA tonight vs. Finland will be....Mike Dunham! Herb Brooks says he wants to go with his "most rested" guy tonight, then start Mike Richter tomorrow vs. Russia. I guess that leaves Tom Barrasso as odd man out.

Seph, you are right...once the Canadians seemed to have figured it out, it was too late. That barrage in the second was too much for them to overcome in 20 minutes, but the shots in the 3rd were like 16-2. I agree that the lack of a red line was obviously much more of a problem for Canada, but it's not like they didn't know it was coming. The torpedo can be beat with solid INTELLIGENT defense and communication, it seems, but if it is skated well, like the Swedes did, it will be tough to beat. Counteract, yes...

I did not expect the 5-2 drubbing, but then I expected more out of Sakic/Kariya/Lemieux; scoring came from the defense tonight.

And I have to say right here that I really admire the German coach for starting Kunast. What a pleasure that man must be to play for--"everyone gets a chance and I told him he would." It's no wonder the Germans advanced with a leader like that.

Period one is in the books, 3-0 CZE. This is a GOOD czech team!!

U! S! A!
WOW!! A 6-0 win.... they looked good. Right from the opening faceoff win and the first shot (Chelios). Granted the 1st period was a 0-0 deadlock, but they USA was moving the puck around. Once Young scored, it was Katie bar the door.

Sure, LeClair had a hat trick and Dunham (Dunham!?) had the shutout--he played very well, but I thought our defense was phenomenal. We rushed when we had to, sent men through the lines, and protected Dunham.

What a great team effort. Amonte was all over the place, as was Drury.

I am psyched, I love shutouts! One comment....don't take dumb penalties, please. I believe I have made myself perfectly clear on that point!

Bring on the Russians!!

GO USA!!

Chip. You are sooo right about the penalties. For the U.S. team to be really successful, they must stay out of the penality box. I know their emotions are sky high but....
They looked really good. I was way impressed with Dunham. Excellent job. We have a reallysmart hockey team this year guys. They waitied sooo patiently, and in the end were rewarded.
So like who is the dumb schmuck who schedualed the hockey games. I see where the game vs. Russia looks like a red eye!!
Anyway I close with two words. U.S.A. U.S.A.

Don't forget today at 10:00am p.s.t. its U.S. Women Hockey Vs. Finland as the women go for a perfect 3-0!!!
U.S.A.U.S.A.!!!!!!!

The U.S. Women dismantled Finland just now 5-0, led by Darwitz who got the hat trick. Finland was the toughest competetitor the U.S. squad has faced so far, but the ladies just seem to play like a machine out there. They are just so strong. They will now play the loser of the Sweden-Canada game next Tuesday. So far the U.S. team has outscored their opponents 27-1 now in goals. Way to go Team USA!!!!

Richter will be in goal tonite for the big game against Russia at 8:30pm. p.s.t., and 11:30pm. e.s.t.another late one. I hope this is the last of these! Lets go Team USA!!!!!

OK...most importantly, we got the tie. Down 2-1 with less than six to play; I'll take the tie.

Now if we didn't take so many penalties!!!

Special teams were certainly a key here, but the Russian defense came up big for 50 minutes of the game. With their backs against the wall, the USA men stood up strong. Once again, I'll note, it was a defenseman coming through who came up with big! (Housley).

Richter was awesome tonight. It could have been that much worse for the USA had it not been for him. Of course, Khabhibulin was also a wall (as his helmet states) and the USA also generated a series of chances early...but once the Russians weathered that early charge, they controlled the game for the next 35 minutes (the one exception the 5 on 3 PP in the 2nd). Then the USA controlled the final portion of the game.

I think that the USA needs to take less penalties (gee did I say that?) and send a defenseman through more often, even if it means drawing a wing up ice and then checking back behind the puck while the defense comes through.

In any case, the USA is up +5 vs +3 for the Russians. That's a good sign, because I don't think that the Finns are going to allow a) 5 goals again and b)more of a difference than the USA will get against the Beylorussians.

The women...WOW!!! But did anyone expect anything different? I think it's cool that both teams shutout Finland. It's just a matter of time before the match we have all been waiting for takes place...

GO! U! S! A!

Chip thanks for the info. I didn't see the game because it was so ridiculously late!! , But I would take the tie as a victory NOT a loss. Way to go USA.!!!!!

From what I read, Hull was the hero, and Richter played on his head. I knew he would. I think he is one of the best money goaltenders the U.S. has for any Olympic game. Needless to say I was really impressed with Dunham the other night in the victory over Finland. Herb Brooks has a wonderful dilemma now doesn't he?
Canada's game today should be of interest.
All I can say is the U.S. had better get a decent time showing for its next Olympic game, or heads will roll at NBC!!!

Team USA really impressed last night - they're for real, for sure. Richter was sooo-poib in nets. Chip, you're right on about those dang dumb penalties; both Russian goals were scored on power-plays. Anybody know the status of Keith Tkachuk, who was injured (knee?) in the last minute of the game?

puckman, the next Team USA game is Monday vs. Belarus at 10:00 am PST - the "brunch" game.
Herb Brooks may go back to Dunham for that one, then Richter for the rest of the games. Just my guess...

Go Canada!! vs. Germany tonight...

Thanks Seph! I will be watching and rooting for the Canadians this afternoon. Go Canada!!

Tkachuk's leg is bruised. He will be available for the Belarus game. The USA has a GD of +5 and a GA of 2, while RUS is GD +2 and has a GA of 6. Realistically the USA just needs to win the game, allowing Belarus no more than four goals. With the defense playing so solidly, I'd say that is pretty possible.
GO! U! S! A!