Match-up - Norway (0-1-0-0 | 0 points) vs Finland (1-0-0-0 | 3 points) TV - MSNBC, Sportsnet Puck drop - 12:00 p.m. ET Projected starting goalies - Lars Haugen vs Kari Lehtonen
Projected lines for the Norwegians:
Mats Zuccarello - Ken Andre Olimb - Patrick Thoresen Mathis Olimb - Anders Bastiansen - Mats Rosseli Olsen Morten Ask - Kristian Forsberg - Per-Age Skrà¸der Robin Dahlstrom - Mads Hansen - Niklas Roest
Ole-Kristian Tollefsen - Mats Trygg Alexander Bonsaksen - Jonas Holos Henrik Odegaard - Henrik Soergaard Solberg
Projected lines for the Finns:
Mikael Granlund - Aleksander Barkov - Teemu Selanne Lauri Korpikoski - Olli Jokinen - Tuomo Ruutu Jussi Jokinen - Petri Kontiola - Juhamatti Aaltonen Leo Komarov - Jarkko Immonen - Jori Lehtera
Olli Maatta - Kimmo Timonen Sami Vatanen - Sami Salo Sami Lepisto - Juuso Hietanen
Game notes:
- Norway isn't a scary paper on team by any stretch of the imagination as their only NHL player is Mats Zuccarello, but Finland best take them seriously. They gave Canada, who is considered among many to be the best team in the tournament, a good run for their money losing by a score of 3-1. Canada was never in jeopardy of losing the game, but the Norwegians played very well and weren't out of it until the final buzzer sounded. If Finland wants to win this game, they're going to have to earn it. Norway's not going to hand them three points.
- One thing working in favor of Finnish head coach Errka Westerlund and his team is that they have last change. Each member of Norway's top line played at least 21 minutes and the expectation is they'll do it again today. Zuccarello is a damn good hockey player and Thoresen will do damage if you give him chances, too. He used to play in the NHL for a reason. As I mentioned, they'll likely play a lot and I imagine they'll see a steady dose of the Olli Maatta - Kimmo Timonen pairing.
- Another guy the Finns will want to watch out for is Ole-Kristian Tollefsen. He logs a ton of minutes on the backend for Norway and will hit everything that moves. Finnish forwards better be aware when he's on the ice because if they're not, Tollefsen will make them pay.
- Kari Lehtonen will get the nod in goal vs Norway. Tuukka Rask was less than spectacular so a good showing from Lehtonen could lead to a start Sunday against Canada. This is a big start for him.
- Finland's young stars in Mikael Granlund, Aleksander Barkov, Sami Vatanen and Olli Maatta all rose to the challenge and made contributions in Finland's win over the Austrians. If Finland has any hope of winning a medal the kids will need to produce on a consistent basis. It's a lot to ask, but they certainly have the talent to do it.
- This is a huge game for Finland. Right now they're 1-0-0-0 with a plus-4 goal differential, which is the 2nd best differential (only behind USA) in the tournament. Who the Finns play in the elimination rounds might depend on goal differential, so the higher number they can get, the better. It could be the difference in drawing an opponent like Latvia rather than someone like, say, Slovakia. That's a bit of a jump.
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