The Semis Are Set: Canada/USA Rematch Shaping Up?

- With an assist on Zach Parise’s first goal, defenceman Brian Rafalski earned his sixth point of the tournament. He is tied with Canadian Dan Boyle for most points among defencemen.

- Ryan Kesler kept up his remarkable faceoff success streak. Kesler is now an impressive 77.94% in the faceoff circle.

- Jonas Hiller’s gaffe at the end of the second period (batting the puck into his own goal) looked at the time to be a possible heartbreaker for the Swiss, who had worked their way to a scoreless game after two periods. The goal was disallowed, which may have temporarily sagged the Americans, but they came out and scored the game’s first official goal at the beginning of the third. It was wacky. And then, the wackiness was taken to new heights when Switzerland thought they had scored, but the Americans went the other way and thought they had scored. Everyone paused and scratched their heads while the officials determined that Switzerland had hit the inside of the post (no goal) and the American goal was disallowed because of a penalty in front of the net. The sequence ended with Switzerland on the powerplay.

- Mike Babcock pinpointed four players who needed to improve for Canada to move on: Dan Boyle, Chris Pronger, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Not only did these four get on the scoresheet, but the Ducks line dominated, Dan Boyle was a major offensive sparkplug, and Chris Pronger was back to being nasty. Message received.

- Jonathan Toews leads the tournament with a rating of +9, followed by Dan Boyle (+6) and Eric Staal (+6).

- Pierre Mcguire would probably agree that Brenden Morrow creates a nuclear explosion when he hammers opponents on the forecheck. Morrow is a sparkplug, a game-changing presence — his inclusion on the team was a brilliant move by Steve Yzerman. Maybe last night’s highly physical performance was enough to silence Canadian doubters after much skepticism. Morrow was inserted onto the Getzlaf-Perry line to energize the Ducks duo, who displayed by far their best offensive showing of the tournament.

Semi-Final Preview: Canada vs. Slovakia

The Slovaks slipped by the Russians in a shootout, while the Canadians toppled the Russians in a blowout. Russia is loaded with superstars up front with very little depth on the blueline. Slovakia has a better blueline than Russia, but are inferior at the centre position. Both the Slovaks and Russians have quality goaltending. How will they match up with Canada?

The Canadians capitalized on Russia’s lack of grit and skill on the back-end, which was no surprise, as this was clearly the area in which Team Canada had a distinct advantage. This shouldn’t be nearly as easy against Slovakia, the proud owner of one Zdeno Chara. Overall, Slovakia’s defense is better, and they play more of a team game. The tactics they employed against Sweden were brilliant. With the lead, they forced the passive Swedish team to attack, lining up four blue sweaters along the entrance to the attacking zone and allowing virtually no entry. They frustrated the Swedes for a period-and-a-half with this strategy, and found some chances of their own off turnovers. The speed of Gaborik, Hossa and Demitra could not be matched by Sweden. If Slovakia finds a way to score the first goal against Canada and can play their game then it could get interesting.

However, Canada is far too big, skilled and strong to be toyed with as Sweden were. For Slovakia’s gameplan to work, they need to force turnovers and develop odd man rush opportunities. Canada was spotless defensively against the Russians, clearly out of respect for their capabilities off the rush. Canada will be just as alert as to avoid handing the puck over to the high-end skill of Slovakia’s superstars. If the Slovaks pull off another monumental upset, you can bet on Gaborik and Hossa to be the catalysts.

It’s difficult to envision the Canadians losing this one if not for a 40-plus save performance from Jaroslav Halak. Of course, Halak has done this many times in his career so the possibility exists. Roberto Luongo is the better goaltender, but you might give the goaltending edge to Slovakia heading into this one. Halak hasn’t been insulated by an elite team in front of him.

Sidney Crosby’s line wasn’t called upon much against Russia, but expect big minutes for the trio against Slovakia. With two games remaining, Mike Babcock will use no one sparingly, so expect Crosby’s line and along with them Toews’ line to be called upon as the go-to units.

Check out our Team Canada Olympic Hockey Line Combinations.
Check out our Team Slovakia Olympic Hockey Line Combinations.

Semi-Final Preview: USA vs. Finland

The United States barely snuck by the Swiss team who were backstopped by Jonas Hiller. Up next is Miikka Kiprusoff. Will they make the necessary adjustments to blitz the Finnish team and come away with a victory? An even better question: Will the Finns muster enough quality chances to solve the mighty Ryan Miller? Entering Friday’s contest, Miikka Kiprusoff (.946) and Ryan Miller (.944) own the two best save percentages in the tournament.

The Finns don’t exactly blow you away with their skill, but they have three balanced scoring lines as well as three offensively inclined defensemen — Sami Salo, Joni Pitkanen and Kimmo Timonen.

The Unites States should win this game. They have the physical advantage, the skill advantage, and by a tiny margin, the goaltending advantage.

If the game remains close, Finland’s ability on the powerplay could become a factor. They have perhaps the most confident five-man unit in the tournament. Teemu, Saku, Olli, Sami and Kimmo comprise the first unit, and while those five names aren’t as scary as the Russian super-squad (who were largely ineffective despite their name power), they are especially adept on the powerplay. For a young American team that plays constantly on the edge, it will be essential for their survival to maintain composure against the Finns.

Check out our Team USA Olympic Hockey Line Combinations.
Check out our Team Finland Olympic Hockey Line Combinations.

This website uses IntenseDebate comments, but they are not currently loaded because either your browser doesn't support JavaScript, or they didn't load fast enough.