Earlier in the Olympics, I talked about the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, when Petr Nedved suited up for Canada and won a silver medal. That was also the last time Canada and Sweden met in an Olympic final, where Peter Forsberg scored his famous shootout goal on Corey Hirsch to capture gold for the Swedes.
Canucks fans could have slightly divided loyalties on Sunday. I know I'll be hoping for good games from Daniel Sedin and Alex Edler, who have been contributing for the Swedish team, though my heart will lie with Canada.
It does feel good to see Canada back at the top of the heap, which was not a sure thing in my mind going into this tournament. This "winning" experience is a forgotten pleasure to us Canuck fans. It sure would be nice if we get a bit more of it once the NHL picks up again...
After all the hype surrounding the semifinal against the U.S., here's hoping Team Canada can keep its mental sharpness and not let down like the Americans did in their bronze medal game today.
Ryan Kesler did his bit. He was one of only two U.S. forwards to log more than 20 minutes of ice time, and had an 8-6 record in the face-off circle.
This big first-period save while the game was still scoreless may have been his best work of the day. He took it right in the chest—great positioning!
Naturally, with all that grit, Kesler will be returning to the Canucks with some bumps and bruises. They mentioned during the broadcast today that he has a finger or thumb taped-up, perhaps from blocking an Alex Ovechkin shot with his hand during the U.S./Russia game last week. It hasn't affected his work on the dot, though. After watching Kesler's style over the years, I think it's safe to say that he's always banged up in one way or another.
Still, there was no way the Americans could match up against the unstoppable force that is Teemu Selanne. The 43-year-old scored his third and fourth goals of the tournament, including the game-winner that really did break the spirit of the U.S. team early in the second. He says this is his last Olympics but we've heard that before. I wouldn't rule him out for 2018.
Lots of blame for the U.S. loss is being heaped on the shoulders of coach Dan Bylsma, with some wistful reminiscing about 2010 bench boss John Tortorella, who took the team to its silver medal.
Though he's one of us now, Torts' grudge about losing that game probably extends to his hope for a Swedish win tomorrow—wrapped up in a bundle of support for Daniel and Edler.
If you follow the link to Elliott Pap's story above, you'll also see the status of basically all the Canucks as we start to kick back into NHL gear. Here's a quick synopsis:
Henrik Sedin: practiced for second straight day; says he feels good
Kevin Bieksa: practiced for second straight day but left early; Torts says he "kicked him off" because he was sore
Alex Burrows: skated apart from the main group; Torts says he's "progressing"
Chris Tanev: skated apart from the main group; Torts is "not sure where he's at." He doesn't think Tanev will be ready to practice even next week.
Yannick Weber: home from Sochi and practiced Saturday
Raphael Diaz: expected at practice on Monday
Utica players: Torts says to expect at least one call-up after the weekend
Sunday's a team day off, so everyone can get up at 4:00 a.m. and watch the gold medal game.
Does anybody want to try to project a roster and some line combinations out of all that information?
Playoff Chances Slim:
No matter how optimistic we feel right now, the Canucks' playoff chances might already be gone.
Click here for the latest data from SportsClubStats, which projects teams' chances of making the playoffs in real time.
Vancouver is already down to just a 23.9 percent chance of even getting to the dance. Time to start making other plans for April...
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