The last time these two teams squared off it was a fast paced game that came right down to the wire when Bobrovsky made a huge save against Plekanec’s on a goal line pass from Voracek. There was only one minute left in the exhibition game and Bobrovsky came up big for team Russia when needed. That was his 29th save of the game and a dandy at that.

Today’s game is and early one and the second time they have faced each other in just two days. Obviously some adjustments will be made from each team as they continue to gel and work on their line chemistry.

Russia may have only gone 1/4 on the power play, but they were ever so dangerous having so many offensive threats. Tarasenko sniped a beauty on the power play and Mrazek really had no chance, it was a laser. If the Czech team or any team for that matter wants to increase their chances of beating the Russian team, they will have to stay out of the penalty box. It’s only a matter of time before the puck goes in with such accurate snipers the Russians have.

Who impressed me last game was Panarin. His vision with the puck is something special to watch, he seems to have a very good presence of mind to where everyone is on the ice, playing with Kane seems to have taken him up to the next level.

It was only the first preliminary exhibition game, but it sure was good hockey to watch. Each of the World Cup games has been excellent, with the players seeming to give a lot of effort for hockey in September.

Watching some of the Canada versus USA game last night, I was actually surprised how physical and chippy the game was for the first preliminary game. Everyone in the tournament is playing hard, and wanting to win. What more can you ask for?

Russia is going to have to be prepared to play some physical hockey going forward in the tournament. Their next game is scheduled to be against Canada on Wednesday, September 14th. That will be Russia’s final exhibition game before they begin their round robin action squaring off against Sweden, North American and Finland.

Enjoy the game,

Thanks for reading.

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