STARS OLYMPIC WRAPUP
The Dallas Stars sent three playing representatives to the Olympics in Sochi, along with coach Lindy Ruff. Jamie Benn is bringing home a gold medal, while Ruff will get a ring for his role as an assistant coach for a defensively airtight Canadian team that allowed just three goals in six games en route to repeating as Olympic champions. Goaltender Kari Lehtonen was the backup for the bronze medalists. Rookie Valeri Nichushkun was one of the bright spots for a Russian team that failed to live up to the massive expectations and pressure.
Individual thoughts:
Jamie Benn (Canada): The rest of the hockey world learned in Sochi what folks in Dallas have known for several years: Benn is a dynamic player whose skill is matched by his work ethic. The Stars captain scored a pair of crucial goals for the Canadians, including a nifty deflection on the lone goal in the Canadians' 1-0 win over Team USA in the semifinals.
Just as important, Benn was one of Canada's top forecheckers. When placed with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, Benn's line made life miserable on opponents.
Kari Lehtonen (Finland): Lehtonen appeared in two games for the Finns, breezing to a 20-save preliminary round win in a 4-1 victory over Norway and then getting the semifinal start against Sweden in the absence of flu-riddled Tuukka Rask. He stopped 23 of 25 shots in his team's 2-1 loss.
Unfortunately, Lehtonen's Olympics will be remembered mainly for yielding a stoppable power play goal by Ottawa Senators superstar Erik Karlsson in the second period of the semifinals. The unscreened center point shot went off Lehtonen's arm and into the net.
Thereafter, some writers and the NBC television announcers -- especially Ed Olczyk and Pierre McGuire -- have continually crapped on Lehtonen's head. At one point in the bronze medal game, the NBC crew started wondering aloud what might have been for Finland had Rask been able to play in the semis. Olczyk said something along the lines of "I doubt that Rask would have let in a goal like that one that decided the game against Sweden."
I was angered over the way Lehtonen was scapegoated and I think someone needs to speak in his defense here:
1) Finland did NOT lose to Sweden primarily because Lehtonen let in a bad goal in a 2-1 game. The Finns lost because they went 0-for-5 on the power play, including a failed 5-on-3 that was 1:35 in duration.
2) Goaltending was ultimately a non-factor in the outcome. Each goalie let in one soft goal, so they essentially canceled out. Henrik Lundqvist (25 saves) allowed a bad short-side goal to Olli Jokinen on the lone Finnish goal. The Team Sweden goal by former Stars forward Loui Eriksson that tied the game was from point-blank range.
3) After the Eriksson goal, there was still 23:24 remaining in regulation for the Finns to get the goal back. It needn't have been fatal, although third period comebacks are difficult.
4) Lehtonen made several tough saves during the game. Most notably, he had a tremendous sliding save on a mini two-on-one early in the third period to keep his team within a goal.
5) Lehtonen is a very good goaltender and has arguably been the Stars' most valuable player -- and the primary reason they even flirted with the playoffs in each of the last three seasons -- since his arrival. There wasn't THAT much of a drop-off, if any, in the caliber of goalie available in lieu of Rask. It wasn't like the Finns had to hand the reigns to Jussi Markkanen with Pekka Rinne injured and Rask ill.
6) While Rask is an excellent goaltender and arguably marginally better than Lehtonen (although it's really splitting hairs) he's human and fallible. He lets in the occasional bad goal, too, like every goaltender who has ever played the game. I seem to recall that Rask was just so-so in Finland's 8-4 win over Austria in the preliminary round and had some shaky early moments in the 2-1 shootout loss to Canada. I also recall that he wasn't exactly Superman when the Bruins blew a three-games-to-none series lead (and a Game Seven 3-0 lead) against Philadelphia in the 2010 playoffs.
Valeri Nichushkin (Russia): The dynamic 18-year-old NHL rookie played sparingly in Sochi, averaging just 7:03 of ice time per game. However, he showed flashes of the potential that have many predicting future NHL stardom. Nichushkin's biggest tournament highlight came early in the third period against Slovenia, as he scored a spectacular goal to give the Russian team some breathing room after taking a one-goal lead into the third period.
Lindy Ruff (Team Canada assistant coach): Mike Babcock surrounded himself with an elite staff of assistants. As the medal round progressed through the semifinals and gold medal game, Team Canada looked better prepared than either Team USA or Team Sweden. The Canadians, who struggled to finish scoring chances for much of the tourney, won first and foremost because they got team-wide commitment to defense. Ruff and the other assistants, including former Stars coach Ken Hitchcock, deserve their share of the credit along with bench boss Babcock.
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OLYMPIC INTEREST IN EAST TEXAS
Say what you will about the negatives of NHL participation in the Olympics. The schedule is interrupted. When the Games are held overseas, the hockey tourney matches often start at inconvenient times for U.S. viewers (with some of the games in Sochi starting as early as 2 a.m. central time and none starting later than 11 a.m. central).
People have also debated whether NHL participation in the Olympics actually boosts interest in the sport in the portions of the U.S. where ice hockey has little following. I see both sides of the coin, but I can offer a personal anecdote that shows there's at least a short-term spike in interest.
Shortly after the U.S. downed Russia in a memorable preliminary round game, I went out for lunch with my wife and baby daughter to a Bodacious BBQ restaurant in Henderson. Now, East Texas is about as far from being a hockey hotbed as any part of the United States. From my experience, even in Tyler, it is hard to find much interest in the Stars. As for my wife's hometown of Henderson, good luck find someone who knows a wrist shot from a wrist watch.
Nevertheless, one thing that is most certainly in abundance in East Texas is people who have a strong feeling of American patriotism. As such, the idea of beating the Russians -- to this very day, even in the post-USSR era -- holds allure. The television in the restaurant was tuned to a sports channel, and they were discussing the U.S. win over the Russians.
Much to my amazement and amusement, there were two good ole boys in their mid-to-late 50s-- once of whom was even sporting a pair of overalls -- talking excitedly about the way the "American boys beat the Russians" and raving about the play of Jonathan Quick.
I had to go over and ask them if they'd ever seen an NHL game. Neither one had, either on television or in person but they loved the game. Likewise, neither of them had ever heard of Quick before that day. Now they know who he is.
While it's doubtful that two new hockey fans were created that day, I do know this much: If I were to walk into the same place on any given Saturday during the NHL season, the chance of any two locals talking hockey would be slim to none (and Slim just left with a pound of brisket and a sweet tea). Those sorts of things only happen during the Olympics.
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Coming tomorrow: A breakdown of the stretch run schedule for the Stars.