Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Optimus Prime]

Kessler, Oshie, Backes, Orpik, and Kessel are damn good too.

Good players, No question, had a fantastic "United Nations" preliminary round, but inexplicably vanished in the money medal round.

These guys may become future NHL stars, we shall see. Orpik is well-past his prime IMO.

[Optimus Prime]

Hack...this is all you need to know about hockey.

[youtube]nPsVzVlWGak[/youtube]

[Tony G]

Since a Canadian team hasn't won a cup in 21 years, at least the olympics bring home a prize to our northerly neighbors

[hack]

There's not a lot to know, which is my problem with hockey. It's the same game. Not a lot of evolution to it. A ton more fun to play than to watch, IMO. My kid's in skating lessons this year so I am back on the ice a little bit as well. Thinking of joining a league. Apparently there's on in DC where nobody can skate backwards. I may dominate.

[lineygoblue]

I have no problem with the Canadians winning the Hockey Olympic Gold.

Now ... if they ever win a SUPER BOWL ... its time to declare WAR!!!

[Hannibal]

Hockey has evolved quite a bit, but it is unfortunately in a direction that has made the game significantly less fun to watch. I can't wait until Gary Bettman is finally gone.

[Optimus Prime]

Sweden was lucky these guys imploded under pressure, otherwise they make the final even with a suspect D, IMO.

Russian F Kulemin on pressure in Sochi: 'We just couldn't handle it'
Team Russia was expected to be a huge threat for the gold medal at the Olympic Games. Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted the gold medal in Vancouver, he wanted it even more in Sochi.

With a quarterfinal loss to Finland, the Russians were eliminated. Their dream of winning gold on home soil was over.

Russian forward Nikolai Kulemin told David Alter on Saturday the pressure was too much. "Everybody (was) a little nervous every game, players and coaches. A lot of pressure on us and we just couldn't handle it, probably."

As well as feeling the pressure, Kulemin said fatigue was also a factor. "I think everybody tried hard and gave everything we have and something went wrong. Playing an extra game, we can get real tired."

Kulemin is already back with his NHL club in Toronto. He's focused on moving on with the Maple Leafs and finishing the season well. "I try to focus on what’s here now. The year isn’t finished yet..."

[Optimus Prime]

League revenues have grown from 1/2 billion to nearly 4 billion under GB. The Commissioner actually does the Owner's bidding & I suspect they are very happy with him. 10M in salary a year says so.


Erik Karlsson is a punk-ass bitch. He's never won ANYTHING except a Bronze at the"Worlds" in 2010, actually team Silver is his only accomplishment.

He must be pissed he didn't get an assist on Crosby's goal, although he chased Sid down the ice for nearly 200 feet.

#22 Daniel Sedin (Vancouver), #52 Jonathan Ericsson (Detroit), #55 Niklas Kronwall (Detroit) , #21 Loui Ericsson (Dallas) & #65 Erik Karlsson (Ottawa).

...... all burned by Sid!


How much is a silver medal worth to Erik Karlsson? Check eBay

Ottawa Senators Swedish defenseman Erik Karlsson was clearly gutted after losing the gold medal final of the men’s hockey tournament to Canada.

If you've ever wanted to own a silver medal, now may be time to sign up for a certain auction website.

Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson and his Swedish teammates lost the Olympic men's hockey gold medal game 3-0 to Canada on Sunday, and Karlsson said he isn't planning on keeping his silver medal.

When asked what the medal means to him, he replied:

"You will see when I put it out on eBay.”

Karlsson was named the Olympic tournament's top defenseman and tied for the overall points lead with eight. His four goals were tied for the lead among defensemen.

The 23-year-old said Sweden's showing in Sochi "will be something to look back on with pride one day," but he's not quite there yet, via the Olympic News Service.


How much will that broken stick be going for? The one that almost tookout backup goalie Enroth's eye on the bench.

[Tony G]

Kulemin is already back with his NHL club in Toronto. He's focused on moving on with the Maple Leafs and finishing the season well.

Poor guy! To be Russian and a Maple Leaf? He must have some baaad karma to atone for

[Optimus Prime]

From Jesus' vantage on that fateful gold medal evening in Sochi.

Hank Lindqvist knew that IIHF President & IOC Member Ren? Fasel would be by Team IKEA's dressing room at the 2nd intermission to fit Team Sweden for their Silver medal.

[Optimus Prime]

As global sporting periodicals pay homage.

[Optimus Prime]

[Tony G]

I'll take the Gretzky Lemieux Canada Cup team anytime for my best ever

[Optimus Prime]

Two very different beasts.

1987 Canada Cup - 33 goals scored over the best-of-3 Final, remarkable.

2014 Olympics Team Canada, offensively snake-bitten, outshot their opponents 225 to 105 over 6 games. Puck possession and defensive play were stifling. Back-to-back shutouts in semi & final games. Only 3 goals over 6 games surrendered.


Before NHL players suited up for their home countries at the Olympics, there was something called the Canada Cup, which was kind of a dry-run for what we have going on in the Olympics now. Prior to the start of the NHL seasons in 1976, ’81, ’84, ’87 and ’91, the world’s hockey power nations duked it out for global supremacy. What this usually meant was that Canada and the Soviets would advance to the finals, and hockey would be played at a level rarely seen before or after.

In 1987, Team Canada squad featured -- this is going to disturb you, so steel yourself -- 12 eventual Hall of Famers. Wayne Gretzky played, even by his admission, the best hockey of his life, and the first power play unit consisted of Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Ray Bourque and Paul Coffey. Alas, this unit had a penchant for giving up shorthanded goals, but that’s largely because the Soviet team had a couple of guys -- namely, Sergei Makarov and Vladimir Krutov -- who were every bit as good as Lemieux, and just a tick below the preternatural Gretzky.

Every time the Olympics roll around, I fire up the tapes of that 1987 Canada Cup final, like some kid on Christmas Eve hoping that what he sees in his imagination will become reality come the morrow, or, in this case, right before the puck drop of the U.S. vs. Canada, or Russia vs. Sweden. I wish to see the gold standard reprised, you might say, but we’re talking some long odds on that score, considering what went down at the ’87 Canada Cup.

All three games ended with a score of 6-5. Two went to overtime, one to double overtime and the final game nearly went to OT -- the only reason it did not is because of the most ingenious goal in hockey history.

Every time the Olympics roll around, I fire up the tapes of that 1987 Canada Cup final, like some kid on Christmas Eve hoping that what he sees in his imagination will become reality come the morrow, or, in this case, right before the puck drop of the U.S. vs. Canada, or Russia vs. Sweden. I wish to see the gold standard reprised, you might say, but we’re talking some long odds on that score, considering what went down at the ’87 Canada Cup.

Gretzky, though, was something else. He would call this game the finest he ever played. It went to double OT. Estimates have Gretzky, a center, logging close to an hour of ice time. He becomes incontinent on the bench from exhaustion and its assorted maladies. No matter -- he enabled Lemieux to score the series-tying goal. One of the coolest victory celebrations ever ensued. Huzzah.

http://olympics.si.com/olympic-ice-hockey/2014/02/16/sochi-olympics-1987-canada-cup

[Optimus Prime]

Putin "celebrates" the 3-1 loss to Finland as Russia is bounced from the tournament.