Overview of Olympic hockey this year

[leaffan]

This year I managed to catch quite a lot of hockey in a bunch of different settings and what I found and heard was this:

- A lot of people found the Canada/USA game boring. I being a hockey guy thought it was anything but that but I watched the game in a room of 20 to 25 people most of whom were your typical bandwagon fans and they weren't getting the forechecking at all. The comments I heard were mostly about the game being boring. I guess Canada's defensive setup was too much for people not sure.

- Sidney Crosby was hands down the best player on the ice at all times. He only scored 1 goal the entire tourney but the solid amount of work he was doing was god dam impressive. Toews was easily second.

- Finland is the most under rated hockey country in the world. I really get a sense that people don't get it. They've now had medals in the last 3 Olympics (2 bronze 1 silver) and they beat Russia and USA with while being decimated down the middle thanks to injuries. Oh and Teemu forever!

- USA looked lifeless in the bronze medal game. Really poor showing for a team that was easily a gold medal contender at the start of the tourney. A lot of people are going to question why Yandle, Jack Johnson and Bobby Ryan weren't on this team. Burke's time as the GM of the team is probably done.

- Russian hockey is likely going to change over the next few years. An embarrassing showing not only for its country but for the KHL. Defense and two way play is what won medals this year. Lack of defensive depth and frankly terrible coaching really caught up with Russia fast.

- Kessel being dominate in the beginning and people acting surprised was laughable. Wake up people and take your maple leaf blinders off.

- Oliver Ekman Larsson only avg. 10mins of ice time for Sweden a game. That's just stupid for probably one of the top 5 dmen in the world.

 

[1ke]

How many of Russia's players were from the KHL other than Ilya?

 

[Sharkweather]

How many of Russia's players were from the KHL other than Ilya?

NHL - 16
KHL - 9

Ilya Nikulin
Viktor Tikhonov
Alexander Svitov
Alexander Popov
Alexei Tereshchenko
Alexander Yeryomenko
Alexander Radulov
Ilya Kovalchuk
Yevgeny Medvedev

 

[1ke]

Wow, that's more than I thought.

Any chance these results have a impact on the amount of talent that will choose one league over the other?

 

[ThomasTomasz]

I'll post some thoughts on Olympic Hockey later, but what I want to ask is related to it. If the NHL decides that their players can no longer participate in the Olympics, does the KHL stand to profit from it? I could see some players signing deals to make sure that they are FAs in the NHL the season of the Olympics, and then sign a deal in the KHL so they would be able to play in the Olympics. It seems to me that the NHL has the most to lose in this.

 

[leaffan]

I'll post some thoughts on Olympic Hockey later, but what I want to ask is related to it. If the NHL decides that their players can no longer participate in the Olympics, does the KHL stand to profit from it? I could see some players signing deals to make sure that they are FAs in the NHL the season of the Olympics, and then sign a deal in the KHL so they would be able to play in the Olympics. It seems to me that the NHL has the most to lose in this.

We will see how the fallout from this Olympics is. If the owners come out of it making money or looking good then you better believe old Gary will allow the players to go next time.

 

[leaffan]

Wow, that's more than I thought.

Any chance these results have a impact on the amount of talent that will choose one league over the other?

Kind of doubtful. The players that strive for higher competition know where its at. The players that want money fast know where to go as well.

In the back of some fringe players minds though they have to be thinking if I go an play in the KHL for a few years will I actually lose money later on thanks to the output KHL players seem to have.

There's a guy by the name of Nikolay Goldobin who plays for the Sarnia Sting the local team here in town. He's another Russian sniper who's defensive abilities are about as good as a pylon out there (kid is way to lazy on the defensive side). He's projected to go in the top 15 in the next upcoming draft. He will more then likely get sent back to the OHL next season. The sting are pretty awful this year so its either spend another at least year (and then some cuz he might need AHL time) or run back to Russia and cash in now. After these Olympics I'm kind of wondering which way he will go.

 

[calgaryballer]

Re: the Finland point, here is a good article about the history of Finnish goalkeeping and why they always turn out such good netminders

http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/03/the-puck-stops-here/357579/

 

[ram29jackson]

since the Olympics are in the middle of hockey season, I doubt pro's are giving their best effort anyway. Its just a really cool exihibition.. why risk injury and blow a Stanley cup chance ? Just a bunch of hired guns looking for bragging rights

 

[kmanharris]

since the Olympics are in the middle of hockey season, I doubt pro's are giving their best effort anyway. Its just a really cool exihibition.. why risk injury and blow a Stanley cup chance ? Just a bunch of hired guns looking for bragging rights

Stop.

 

[ram29jackson]

Stop.

LOL sorry you don't like it but its my honest opinion. All these guys are in the NHL. It takes away from any real feeling of earning a gold medal. It really doesn't mean that much for them. Its a 2 week all star break. Then they go back to their glorious NHL lives.

 

[kmanharris]

LOL sorry you don't like it but its my honest opinion. All these guys are in the NHL. It takes away from any real feeling of earning a gold medal. It really doesn't mean that much for them. Its a 2 week all star break. Then they go back to their glorious NHL lives.

If you really think that these guys take playing for their country for granted and don't try their hardest then I don't know what to tell you. Most of these guys DREAM about wearing their country's colors.

 

[Ravin]

That's why Henrik Zetterberg and John Tavares are hurt right? Because they just dogged it all Olympics.

You really have no idea how much these players want to play for their country. Alex Ovechkin said if the NHL didn't let him in the Olympics, he would just go anyway. Martin St. Louis was so pissed he didn't get picked, that when he did get selected, he almost found it as an insult, but went because it was a once in a lifetime chance to earn a gold medal. Players like Mats Sundin didn't care if he got traded to a 'contender' in his final year in Toronto because he won a gold medal with Sweden at the Olympics.

So your theory that it is just a big all-star game is far from true.

 

[Houston]

The Olympics are just a break, an activity to fill spare time.

:dead:

 

[leaffan]

Houston and Rams

:jonesy:

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Houston and Rams

:jonesy:

Got to give them some credit, at least they are posting :faceofmlb:

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Leaf, your comment about forechecking made me :lol: You can tell they were clearly just USA Olympics! fans or they were post-lockout fans. They would have never understood the trap game that was run by the Devils for many years. It's certainly a different game to watch, but what I got to watch, I definitely enjoyed.

I was disappointed that Sweden was down both Henrik Sedin and Backstrom for the gold game. If Sedin was healthy and Backstrom not suspended, I think they had a shot to take down Canada. Daniel Sedin gave Backstrom a lot of praise, saying it was almost like he played with his brother out there. That certainly says a lot about Backstrom's game.

Finland deserved to beat the USA, and USA deserved to be beaten. Burke's time has to be done as GM of the team, and I'd love to see the defensive unit go through some changes for the next Olympics.

Also agree with Leaf's assessment on Crosby and Kessel. Very impressed with Kessel recently, the only reason he still has heat is because he's a Leaf.

 

[leaffan]

Leaf, your comment about forechecking made me :lol: You can tell they were clearly just USA Olympics! fans or they were post-lockout fans. They would have never understood the trap game that was run by the Devils for many years. It's certainly a different game to watch, but what I got to watch, I definitely enjoyed.

I was disappointed that Sweden was down both Henrik Sedin and Backstrom for the gold game. If Sedin was healthy and Backstrom not suspended, I think they had a shot to take down Canada. Daniel Sedin gave Backstrom a lot of praise, saying it was almost like he played with his brother out there. That certainly says a lot about Backstrom's game.

Finland deserved to beat the USA, and USA deserved to be beaten. Burke's time has to be done as GM of the team, and I'd love to see the defensive unit go through some changes for the next Olympics.

Also agree with Leaf's assessment on Crosby and Kessel. Very impressed with Kessel recently, the only reason he still has heat is because he's a Leaf.

Backstroms suspension was BS imo but the IOC has some of the most stingiest batch of people when it comes to performance enhancing shit.

The fans I watched with essentially were made up of people that watch hockey like once or twice a year. I had to tell people what team Quick played for

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Backstroms suspension was BS imo but the IOC has some of the most stingiest batch of people when it comes to performance enhancing shit.

The fans I watched with essentially were made up of people that watch hockey like once or twice a year. I had to tell people what team Quick played for

I mean, I understand it, but he was also under care of the Capitals' doctor and had that medication approved by the NHL. That should have allowed him an exemption. It's hard when you have "professional" athletes like hockey players come into the Olympics though, because they have to be worried about two sets of rules for performance enhancers.

I bet they couldn't even name the Parise's team, and he's the captain of the squad.

 

[leaffan]

I mean, I understand it, but he was also under care of the Capitals' doctor and had that medication approved by the NHL. That should have allowed him an exemption. It's hard when you have "professional" athletes like hockey players come into the Olympics though, because they have to be worried about two sets of rules for performance enhancers.

I bet they couldn't even name the Parise's team, and he's the captain of the squad.

Yah they didn't know who Parise was easily.

One person didn't know which team Price played for :shifty: