Russia/Canada Eye Olympic Gold
The Winter Olympics were officially opened on Friday and starting Monday the NHL takes a backseat to the biggest hockey tournament in the world. With that in mind we’ll preview that tournament and let you know who the medal contenders are and of course give a prediction.
The tournament consists of 12 teams split into three groups of four as follows:
Group A – Canada; United States; Switzerland; Norway
Group B – Russia; Czech Republic; Slovakia; Latvia
Group C – Sweden; Finland; Belarus; Germany
Each team in a given group plays the other teams once in a round-robin after which the top team from each group plus the fourth best team remaining are given byes into the quarter-finals while the remainder of the teams play a preliminary playoff round to determine who will play those four top teams. Conventional wisdom says that only six of these teams has any real shot at the podium namely Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Sweden, Russia, and the United States (perhaps Finland can slip in their too but it’s unlikely). In a tournament like this where every team qualifies for the elimination round it only takes one good game from a “lesser” team to upset the balance which is part of what makes this such an exciting event. With that said we’ll focus on the six, possibly seven, teams who are likely to be in serious medal contention starting with the hosting Canadians.
Considered by many to be the favorites to win the gold in Vancouver the Canadians have an incredibly talented roster (see http://proicehockey.about.com/od/olympichockey/a/2010-canada-roster.htm for full roster) and will be sound in every facet of the game. With a team this strong there is really no meaningful technical analysis that can be done to assess how they will finish. For Canada their biggest issues will be staying healthy and more importantly handling the pressure from the home crowd and media because they will be fully expected to win the gold medal with anything less being considered a failure. I think Canada’s greatest advantage will be their biggest downfall in that the crowd will be with them and that’s always helpful but if things do not go exactly as planned the pressure is going to mount big time and likely lead to Canada cracking under the pressure. It’s not so much because the players can’t handle the expectations as much as the pressure will cause them to play cautiously at times and the Russians (who I think will win the gold) will not have the same pressure on them so they can play loosely and seize the moments Canada plays tight resulting in disappointment for the whole country as they take the silver medal.
As for Russia they too have such a great roster together that technically there is little to speak of but there are some weaknesses for Russia. First off the biggest head-scratcher for them is that they have so many KHL players on their roster who were chosen over some NHL guys who could have (and perhaps should have) been on the team. Not only will these guys have a tough time adjusting to the North American ice size and style of play but in the opinion of most simply are not as talented as their NHL counterparts. Despite possibly diluting their talent pool the Russians still have a ton of fire power on their s squad (see http://www.2010tracker.com/2009/12/25/russia-announces-olympic-mens-hockey-team-roster/ for full roster) which can certainly outscore anyone at even strength but also results in them having an incredibly good power play unit. Teams will have to be concerned with every penalty they take because the Russians are likely to make you pay for almost any power play opportunity given to them. Their goal scoring prowess along with some great play in net will likely lead Russia to the Gold medal in this tournament. (It also doesn’t hurt that they have won two World Championships in a row).
The remainder of the top six are likely only going to be in contention for the Bronze medal (as long as the match-ups work out so that Russia and Canada end up meeting in the final).
Starting with team Sweden; although the Swedes are the defending Olympic champions their team looks good on paper but is an aged group of players and it is unlikely they will be able to keep pace with Canada or Russia but those teams aside the Swedes can make some hey against everyone else and that is why they are my favorite to take the Bronze.
Perhaps on the opposite end of the spectrum is team USA who has a very talented team but are very young (see http://proicehockey.about.com/od/olympichockey/a/2010-usa-roster.htm for full roster). It is unlikely that a team so lacking in experience can make a serious challenge for Silver or Gold but the strength of the rest of the field puts them squarely in the middle of the race for the Bronze medal. All team USA needs is to have their guys play reasonably well and have Ryan Miller steal a couple of games for them in the medal round to have a legitimate shot at the Bronze medal. Although the Bronze medal would be great for the Americans a fourth or fifth place finish would be quite an accomplishment for this upstart squad.
The Czech Republic has a very formidable roster assembled with a number of NHL players led by former NHLer and current KHL all-star Jaromir Jagr (see http://bleacherreport.com/articles/123948-2010-olympic-hockey-outlook-team-czech-republic for full roster). With the nice mix of young and veteran players the Czech Republic have to be considered co-favorites along with Sweden to grab the Bronze medal. The reason they are unlikely to make a push for the Gold is because they have a solid roster but no one really stands out on their team. Tomas Vokoun is probably their biggest star and while a goaltender can steal a game or two for you it would take that along with a star or two to carry the team any further than that and the Czechs simply do not have that.
The Slovakian team also has a fairly solid line-up just a step below the Czechs (see http://bleacherreport.com/articles/126346-2010-olympic-hockey-outlook-team-slovakia for full roster). And much like the Czechs the Slovakian squad lacks in big stars which hurts their chances to even compete for the Bronze medal. Their roster top to bottom is very solid but it’s pretty underwhelming with Zdeno Chara and Marian Hossa being their best players but Chara is a defensemen and Hossa is certainly not the player today he was even three years ago. So while a Bronze medal is a reasonable goal for this team they will likely not even be able to get that far and should probably be ready to accept a preliminary round win and that’s about it.
Those are my predictions but in such a short tournament just about anything can happen so it will be very exciting no matter what. Enjoy the games everybody, we’ll see you next time.
Ovechkin Nets Hart Trophy at NHL Awards
The NHL Awards concluded Thursday night and Alexander Ovechkin was the big winner on the night taking the Pearson Award (MVP as voted on by the players) and his second Hart Trophy as league MVP. Arguably the most exciting player in the league the only thing missing now for him is a Stanley Cup Championship. There were plenty of other high moments for a number of people including Zdeno Chara (Norris Trophy), Tim Thomas (Veznia Trophy), and Steve Mason (Calder Trophy)—[sportsroids.com went 4-0 in picking the four major awards as a result so it was a pretty good night for us too!] On the whole it was a good night for the awards making its first appearance in Las Vegas and it seemed to go off without a hitch. Hopefully the tradition can continue there and perhaps draw more attention to the event and therefore the NHL and sport of hockey. It’s not only a night for celebrating but also to get a bit of a glimpse of the players in an element a bit different from how they are over the course of the season. You also get a chance to hear the players pay tribute to all those who have paved a way for them throughout their careers from influential coaches to parents, significant others, and other family friends. Many also honor we the fans who cheer them on from game to game and spend our hard earn dollars to passionately support them as they give their all to bring home championships. So congratulations to all those who took home awards as we look forward to the next big NHL event which is the entry draft.
NHL Awards Show Upon Us
June 16, 2009 by Big Tony · Leave a Comment
As the Pittsburgh Penguin organization and fans continue to celebrate their club’s victory and people in Detroit continue to lick their wounds the rest of the hockey world looks to the future. The NHL awards dinner is Thursday June 18, the NHL entry draft on June 26 and of course NHL free agency starts July 1st. With the NHL awards first up we’ll take a look at three of the biggest awards (according to me) up for grabs and my prediction for who will win; those awards are the Calder Trophy (Top Rookie), Norris Trophy (Top Defensemen), Vezina Trophy (Top Goaltender), and the Hart Trophy (League MVP).
Calder Trophy Nominees are Steve Mason (CBJ), Bobby Ryan (ANA), and Kris Versteeg (CHI). Bobby Ryan made an unbelievable impact on the Ducks this year and will certainly big a major force in Anaheim for years to come but he’s not taking home this trophy. Kris Versteeg is an important part on a very young team that will be fantastic for years to come with guys like Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Duncan Keith (among others) but it’s not his trophy to win either. The winner in my view has to be Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets because if not for him the Blue Jackets would not have made the playoffs let alone a decent seed at sixth. Mason led the league in shutouts with 10 and first in Goals Against Average (GAA) in the Western Conference at 2.29. They have some talent in front of Mason in Columbus but he was the backbone of the team and if he plays like this in the years to come as the talent improves with time the Blue Jackets can make a lot of noise but without Mason they won’t go anywhere. So as far as I’m concerned the 2008-2009 Calder Trophy winner will be Chris Mason.
Norris Trophy Nominees are Zdeno Chara (BOS), Mike Green (WSH), and Nicklas Lindstrom (DET). Mike Green had a wonderful season for Washington but he was more of an extra forward when he was playing than a good defensemen. Green scored with regularity and played a major role in Washington taking the two spot in the Eastern Conference but his defense is lacking compared to the other two nominees. Nicklas Lindstrom is back once again trying to win the Norris for the 7th time in his career and is nominated for the umpteenth time. Lindstrom has been a major part of Detroit’s success over the years as the face of the team changes over the years Lindstrom remains a constant and it seems like his game never diminishes. I do not think Lindstrom is going to win this year but once again his presence on the ice and leadership on and off of it is second to none. Last but not least is who I think will win the award and that is Zdeno Chara. A major part of the turn-around for Boston from 8th to 1st was the play and leadership Zdeno Chara exhibited this season. He has always been a good player but he stepped up majorly this year not only scoring timely goals but also asserting himself physically to help dominate a number of teams over the course of the season. As a result of those things I think Zdeno Chara will be awarded the Norris Trophy.
Vezina Trophy Nominees are Niklas Backstrom (MIN), Steve Mason (CBJ), Tim Thomas (BOS). Niklas Backstrom has a wonderful season for the Wild but two things that hurt his chances are A. that he plays for a team that did not make the playoffs, and B. that he played in the Jacques Lemaire neutral zone trap that has a reputation for making a goalies life much “easier” on a goaltender whether that’s fair or not. As a result a person who is probably deserving of winning this award will be left out in the cold. It’s a similar story for Steve Mason in that he is definitely deserving of winning the award but since he will in all likelihood win the Calder Trophy the odds that he wins the Vezina trophy are not good. Of the three in the running Mason probably did the most for his team and as a result should probably win the award but it is doubtful that he will take the trophy home. That leaves Tim Thomas who may win the award just by process of elimination but despite that Thomas certainly deserves to win the award and his nomination was well earned. Thomas led the league in GAA at 2.10 as well as save percentage at .933 and was under a lot of pressure to perform in Boston because many felt he could not be a top goaltender. He proved everybody wrong with his consistency this season and should be awarded accordingly. While it may be true that Thomas will win as the last man standing of the three up for the award Thomas could win the award up against any other goaltender in the entire league which is why he’ll be given the award at the show on June 18th.
This year’s Hart Trophy nominees are Pavel Datsyuk (DET), Evgeni Malkin (PIT), and Alexander Ovechkin (WSH). This is probably the most anticipated award of the whole show and is definitely one of the most hotly contested award up for grabs. Each nominee is as deserving of the award as the next and that makes it one of the hardest awards to call because each player is so important to the success of his respective team that so little separates them. Pavel Datsyuk had an unbelievable year finishing 5th in assists (65) and 4th in points with 97. He is one of the best two way players in the world and has played a large part in the amount of success the Detroit Red Wings have experienced in the last few years in particular. Datsyuk’s play in both the offensive and defensive is something that every team craves to get out of their players to at least be adequate at doing let alone excel the way Datsyuk does. To stand out on a team of superstars the way Datsyuk does really says a lot about his game and makes him a deserving Hart Trophy candidate.
Next is Evgeni Malkin who had an unbelievable season in Pittsburgh leading the league in assists with 70 and overall points with 113. Malkin has the ability to take games over when the going gets tough and does just that time and time again carrying the team on his back. He’s a player who is great at scoring goals when he needs to be also in making players around him better while he’s on the ice. Malkin is a pretty good two-way player—although not as good as Datsyuk—who can back-check with the best of them and turn a rush for the other team into a great counter-attack for Pittsburgh. Leading by example is a strength for Malkin and is a top reason why the Penguins went from a team on the outside looking in on the playoffs to home-ice advantage in the first round in a very short period of time.
Last but not least is Malkin’s fellow Russian teammate Alexander Ovechkin. What Ovechkin can do on the ice is clear as he led the league in goals with 56 and finished second in points with 110. Ovechkin is an explosive player who helps make Washington’s power play one of the best in the league by far, and can help keep the Caps in a game by scoring big goals in games Washington probably should not be in otherwise if they’re being dominated in their own end. Perhaps Ovechkin’s biggest weakness is that he is not very good in the defensive zone and has a tendency to disappear if the other team is controlling the puck in the Washington zone while also disallowing the quick breakout counter attack. Nevertheless the energy Ovechkin brings to the game feeds off on other players and certainly makes them better offensively than they might be in other situations. So in terms of value to a team there may be no one who means more to their team than Ovechkin means to the Capitals because he is the lifeblood of that organization. All that said it is hard to say who will win the award by just looking at these three guys on paper. However, it may come down to the fact that Malkin plays with another star in Sidney Crosby and Datsyuk has a bunch of guys around him who are superstars in their own right. Ovechkin on the other hand does not have the stand out superstar around him and as a result Alexander Ovechkin will be your 2008-2009 NHL MVP.
It has been a wonderful season and the NHL awards are a great way to reflect on how wonderful the season has been even including the playoffs despite these being regular season awards. I hope everyone enjoyed this season as it was one of the best for the NHL in recent history which is something they can certainly build on. Now that the season is over it’s a fresh start for everyone and so there should be a fair amount of things to talk about this summer as teams prepare to make a cup run of their own next season. Thanks for reading this season everyone and I hope you continue to follow along right here on sportsroids.com as we cover the happenings of the offseason and into training camp come September.
