Amrit Ahluwalia
Sweden
Jake Edmiston
Canada
Michael Woods
Russia
Old. Soft. Out of practice. Past their prime.
There’s an air of dismissiveness emanating from hockey fans regarding this year’s Swedish men’s hockey team as they gear up for the Olympics, but I’d advise against counting out the Tre Kronor.
While it’s true that there’s an above-average number of players on the provisional roster who are 30 or older, one would do well to remember these aren’t your average hockey players. Many of them won the gold in Turin in 2006.
Oft-injured 37-year-old right-winger Daniel Alfredsson has notched 47 points for the Ottawa Senators in the 49 games he’s played this season. The Sedin twins, both 29, are two-thirds of the most explosive offensive line in the NHL this season, combining for 130 points. Forward Henrik Zetterberg, also 29, is one of the most feared offensive guns in the game and teammate Nicklas Lidstrom, the oldest member of the Swedish roster at 39 (40 in two months), has consistently been one of the best blueliners in the NHL for the better part of two decades. He’s contributed 33 points to his Detroit Red Wings in 59 games, and since 2005 his lowest season point total has been 59.
Age clearly isn’t an issue for these guys.
While I’m clearing up misconceptions about Swedish hockey, let me take this opportunity to clear up the biggest one.
They aren’t all softies. Anyone who’s been “Kronwalled” in a game against the Red Wings can attest to that. And don’t forget the strength brought to the lineup by guys like Mattias Ohlund, Peter Forsberg and Douglas Murray. This isn’t a team that backs away from a physical challenge.
The Russian roster is full of hot dogs—self-absorbed prima donnas who are looking to make a fast buck, spending more time trying to figure out their next goal celebration rather than working on their game. They’re guys who can’t ever seem to find their game in the clutch—Maxim Afinogenov and Evgeni Nabokov to name a couple.
The normal media attention on the Canadian team is intense during any Olympic year, but we’ll experience a whole new level of obsession since the Olympics are being hosted in Canada. Regardless of their talent and performance, the Canucks will be overrun by media attention and second-guessing of the roster and choice of starting goaltender throughout the tournament.
Sweden is a team chock-full of hardworking, clutch hockey players who will turn a few heads in Vancouver when they bring home their second-straight gold medal.
Unlike other teams competing in the men’s hockey Olympic tournament this month, Canada has no wildcard aspect.
While many teams could win if they fix their defensive shortcomings, goaltending, or goal-scoring, Canada doesn’t have a hole.
The only thing general manager Steve Yzerman has to worry about is one of his selections getting injured in the final games of NHL league-play, and deciding what premium player to choose as the replacement.
With such a large home-grown talent pool, Canada could have chosen two teams. Of course people will complain about omissions. But questions like, “Where’s Mike Green?” are irrelevant. The current roster resembles an NHL fantasy team chosen by someone who’s rigged the draft.
The depth of Canadian talent has afforded Yzerman the luxury of filling specific roles, not just scrolling down the NHL point-leader list and picking every countryman near the top. Russia tried that, and still had to look to the KHL for players.
The fact that Canada didn’t have to fill their bottom two lines with players from other domestic leagues is what separates them from other contenders. The full 23-man roster is made up of NHL players versed in the same style of play and the North American ice surface, so there will be no need for adjustments.
The familiarity among these players eliminates the uneasy start that most talented teams experience during the first games together. Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook play together in Chicago. Ryan Getzlaf, Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger played in Anaheim.
Canada has five of the top 10 NHL scorers, but it’s going to require more than scoring ability for gold. The experience of this team begins with goaltender Martin Brodeur, who led Canada to gold eight years ago and still is among the top goalies in the NHL.
And the Olympics are in Canada. With fans that will have had to sell organs and their first-born child for a ticket, every goal, shot and sneeze will be met with motivation from the stands.
Canada has young players’ talent and speed while still maintaining the level of experience to succeed in the high-pressure climate of international competition. Most teams are lacking in at least one of those domains.
Every team has big names on the roster, Canada included. The difference is Canada has everything else.
It’s hard to believe that since the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, Russia hasn’t won an Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey.
That’s about to change.
Alexander Ovechkin, the best hockey player in the world (sorry, Sidney Crosby), leads a balanced group of forwards that will give defencemen and goalies nightmares. Pavel Datsyuk, who was fourth in league scoring and won the Selke Trophy last year, doesn’t even crack the first line. Arguably the tournament’s top three goal scorers—Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Ilya Kovalchuk—will likely skate on the top line.
Goalie Evgeni Nabokov’s having a career year. His .927 save percentage is fourth in the NHL. Canada’s Martin Brodeur and Roberto Luongo are out of the top 15 in that category. Nabokov also leads the two Canadian goaltenders in goals-against average. Backup Ilya Bryzgalov might be the league’s best goalie this year other than Nabokov.
On defence, Russia boasts the league’s two best power-play quarterbacks in Sergei Gonchar and Andrei Markov, along with a host of other underrated players.
Stereotyping the Russians as prima donnas and selfish players is an antiquated approach. Stanley Cup winners like Datsyuk and Malkin and hard hitters like Ovechkin and Anton Volchenkov have done enough to dispel that stereotype. Even if that stereotype still applied, it has always disappeared at the international level.
Sweden’s core players are past their prime and their torpedo system doesn’t translate well to the North American ice surface. Their 2006 Turin gold medal likely won’t be repeated in Vancouver.
Canada has 12 players aged 25 or under—that’s most of their team. Youthful exuberance won’t make up for the unbearable pressure of playing on home soil.
There’s also the issue of team chemistry. Russia has some KHL players who are used to each other and have competed in many World Championships together. Chemistry problems plagued Canada in Turin on their way to a seventh-place finish.
The goaltending question will likely also haunt the Canadians. If Brodeur and Luongo falter, can Marc-André Fleury step in against the Russians in a winner-take-all game? His previous international experience suggests he might have some difficulty.
Don’t get me wrong: like any Canadian hockey fan, I’ll be pulling for the hometown boys throughout the next two weeks. But in the likely event of a Canada-Russia gold medal matchup, I won’t have my hopes up.
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