Battle Of Hudson

It’s been over for a while. But it’s just so hard to type. When you come that close to winning gold against Canada in Vancouver, it hurts. I’m honestly still numb as I write this. But it’s to be expected.  

Sidney Crosby was the ultimate Canadian hero. It was his clutch goal at 7:40 of four-on-four sudden death that broke a 2-2 tie sending teammates and Hockey Canada Place into bedlum- scoring probably the biggest goal in his country’s history since Paul Henderson to clinch a thrilling 3-2 gold medal win over a valiant Team USA. I’ve never been a big fan of Sid The Kid mostly due to the gripes to the stripes and how much he’s shoved in our faces by the league, NBC and Reebok (cool ads). It would be easy to hate him even more but as I stated both on Facebook and Twitter, I just can’t anymore. As was echoed:

BattleOfNewYork

  

I can’t believe it. But I’m no longer going to complain about Sid The Kid. He is class and very unselfish. Good for sport. Ser—ious–ly..

Something like this is pretty hard for me to admit. I’ve always gotten razzed by friends about my insane Sid disdain. But what’s said here about him being class, unselfish and great not good for the sport are all true. There’s no ego whatsoever. He conducts himself like a true gentleman win or lose. And you know he’d have still been there if his team had lost after blowing a two-goal lead unlike another superstar who I’m a huge fan of. Crosby is very similar to The Great One and realizes the enormous responsibility he has to the sport of hockey. That kind of immense pressure is something Alexander Ovechkin will never face. As much as I enjoy the Great Eight, he took a hit this tournament. Even if there’s no crime for not wanting to discuss the quarterfinal egg his Russian team laid.

In the end, Crosby comes out the true winner. As he accurately noted to annoying Joe Micheletti on NBC, his line had gone two games without finishing until the crafty No.87 snuck behind all-tournament selection Brian Rafalski, taking a quick feed from Jarome Iginla and firing before Miller was set to win gold for his country in dramatic fashion. He knew he wasn’t his team’s best player but when push came to shove in the four-on-four 20 minute overtime, there was Sid The Kid delivering the goods. Just a smart read by him keeping the play alive to Iginla, who hadn’t done much this tournament. But more often than not, the best power forward usually comes through and he did because Crosby immediately drove to the net expecting the pass, even firing without looking to stun Miller and a gutsy Team USA that just wouldn’t die.

Eight years later, the gritty Americans pushed Canada to the limit. Even if they caught a huge break when Dustin Brown was offside on Ryan Kesler’s deflection goal that got them back in it. It looked like the Canadians would hold on despite a shaky Roberto Luongo letting out juicy rebound after rebound because his D was rock solid, limiting the pesky USA’s second and third chances.

But in a remarkable period that early on saw the hosts ring two posts and watch Miller stone Patrick Marleau, there was no quit in Ron Wilson’s relentless club who found a way to force sudden death. Who better than Zach Parise to get it tied with only 24.4 seconds remaining by digging out a Patrick Kane shot that deflected off Devil teammate Jamie Langenbrunner, slipping it past Luongo stunning the building. It was absolutely remarkable stuff that made the dramatic conclusion necessary.

Ultimately, Team USA fell short in its bid to upset Canada in hostile territory. Afterwards, a team that nobody gave a shot were presented with silver medals around their necks. As heartbreaking as it was, they did themselves and their country proud. They were second best to Canada who got the golds with fans chanting for their newest hero. The game’s brightest star. There were no losers this afternoon. Today, hockey won.

3rd Star-Zach Parise, USA (tying goal with 24.4 seconds left forced overtime)
2nd Star-Ryan Miller, USA (36 saves in defeat-named tournament MVP)
1st Star-Sidney Crosby, CAN (gold medal clinching goal 7:40 into sudden death)

ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM

G-Ryan Miller, Team USA

D-Brian Rafalski, Team USA

D-Shea Weber, Canada

F-Zach Parise, Team USA

F-Jonathan Toews, Canada

F-Pavol Demitra, Slovakia

Tournament MVP-RYAN MILLER, Team USA

Woohoooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!! Zach Attack comes through tying this unreal gold medal game with 24.4 ticks left!!!!! We’re headed to sudden death. What guts by Team USA coming back from two down against Canada, who controlled the first half on goals by Jonathan Toews and Corey Perry. Hometown Canuck beat opposing teammate Roberto Luongo redirecting a Patrick Kane shot through to get the Americans on the board late in the second.

Canada had two goalposts early in the third which could’ve sealed it. One bounced off Ryan Suter past Ryan Miller but off the lucky left post. The Buffalo goalie who’s been the best man in net all tournament then robbed Patrick Marleau on the doorstep extending his right pad. Ron Wilson pulled him with over a minute. The miracle took place after Luongo muffed a Joe Pavelski shot leading to sustained Team USA pressure. Off a Kane shot in the slot with both captain Jamie Langenbrunner and Zach Parise in front, it deflected off Captain America and Luongo to Parise, who swept the puck in leading to an amazing tying goal celebration.

Fifty years ago today, Team USA won gold. Twenty years later, the Miracle On Ice team went all the way. Now, it’s 30 years later with another zero in the year. Is it meant to be? We’ll find out in what should be a riveting conclusion to an amazing tourney.

Clearly most of the hockey world’s attention today will be centered on the US-Canada Gold Medal showdown at 3 PM on NBC, a rematch of a first-round game where the US beat the favored Canadians 5-3. However, this time around Canada will be starting local boy Roberto Luongo in net and not Martin Brodeur. Luongo has won all four games he’s started in the Olympics while Brodeur was subpar in the earlier loss to the USA after Canada needed a four-round shootout to beat Switzerland. Of course Team USA has plenty of local representation with captain Jamie Langenbrunner and Zach Parise (who’s heated up in the medal round) of the Devils and the dynamic PK tandem of Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan from the Rangers but for one more afternoon at least, team lines can be blurred.

With Finland’s come from behind win against Slovakia to take the Bronze last night, the third US-Canada showdown (including the Canadien women beating the US women’s team) of these Olympics is all that’s left of what’s been a great fortnight hockey-wise. I’ll leave the preview and recap of the showdown and the whole tournament to Derek…what I want to talk about is not the chaos that will descend on Vancouver this afternoon just before the closing ceremonies but rather about the chaos that will accompany the return of the last quarter of the NHL’s regular season.

For those of us that won’t stop watching hockey once the final whistle blows in the Gold Medal match, there’ll be a new meaning to the word ‘whirlwind’. Between the lifting of the trade freeze at midnight tonight and the actual end of the NHL trade deadline Wednesday at 3 PM there should be a flurry of activity. Especially considering GM’s have had two weeks to talk and negotiate deals while the majority of NHL’ers were getting some deserved rest from the hectic schedule. I wouldn’t be surprised if more deals took place in the twelve hours after the freeze gets lifted than in the twelve hours before the trade deadline. After all, what’s maybe one game between now and Wednesday really going to change for anyone? Everyone’s already had ample opportunity to take stock of whether they’ll be buyers or sellers.

Much to my surprise I found out the trade freeze wasn’t a total roster freeze and the wheels have already started in motion locally, with the Rangers claiming Alex Auld off re-entry waivers from the Stars after the Stars’ acquisition of Kari Lehtonen before the deadline to back up (and eventually challenge) Marty Turco. Both the Rangers and the Devils made huge preemptive strikes just before the roster freeze, with the Rangers getting Olli Jokinen and the Devils’ blockbuster trade for Ilya Kovalchuk.

Will any of the local teams do more? I’d imagine the Rangers will do something, within cap constraints given they’re in their annual spring chase for the playoffs. While the Sabres were struggling just before the break, having Ryan Miller play as well as he has for Team USA during the Olympics bodes well for them down the stretch, though it can be a double-edged sword having him play six games during the Olympics to go along with his normal heavy schedule. That’s one of the reasons I’m glad Brodeur lost the Team Canada job, though I don’t really expect the three or four games he doesn’t play now to make a difference in the end since he’ll probably play 77 games for us anyway. Still, losing his job and maybe seeing Luongo win the gold in much the same way he won the gold after Curtis Joseph got roasted in ’02 will provide him with a chip on his shoulder for the rest of the season.

All’s not well with the Devils in any case, not only has the team nosedived since New Year’s but the injury bug remains a factor since Paul Martin is still recovering from his broken arm in late October. Apparently the Devils had to re-break the arm in late December when it didn’t heal correctly and he still doesn’t have enough strength in it to shoot pucks. Tentatively he’s targeting March 10 against the Rangers (the Devils’ home return) as a comeback date but who knows anymore?

So defense remains an issue and having a centerman that can win faceoffs and play some two-way hockey is also a concern. I wouldn’t put it past Lou Lamoriello to do another deal or two now that he tipped his hand with the Kovalchuk acquisition. If he does decide to trade for a defenseman though, please Lou – just deal with Minnesota (or nobody at all) assuming any of their better d-men are even on the market. At least the Wild d-men know the system, it seems as if anyone else we acquire has trouble acclimating to the team in time to really contribute during the season. There is at least some good news on the horizon with the return of gritty winger David Clarkson on Tuesday in San Jose after his own long absence from the lineup.

Will the Islanders trade? Probably, though they don’t have a lot of vets on their team with any value. Maybe they convince someone to take Martin Biron but being a third-stringer on a team that’s not making the playoffs again doesn’t lead teams to beat down your door. Around the rest of the league, the biggest name I hear involved in rumors is the Panthers’ Tomas Vokoun and teams like the Blackhawks (who could use an upgrade from Cristobal Huet and a more veteran presence to complement Antti Niemi) may well be agressive in trying to acquire the top-shelf Czech goalie.

One thing’s for sure…there won’t be any time to be sad over the end of the Olympics, no matter the result of this afternoon’s game. Though most teams don’t get back into action until Tuesday, Detroit and Colorado do resume the NHL schedule tomorrow night at 9 PM. That, coupled with the flurry of trades still to come should make for a quick transition back into the NHL season before the stretch drive.

If you caught the frantic finish, that was something else. Who ever would’ve believed that Canada up three against Slovakia with 20 minutes left wasn’t a lock for the gold medal game Sunday versus Team USA? Sure. They held on by the skin of their teeth, eeking out a 3-2 win over the feisty Slovaks who just wouldn’t quit despite no Marian Gaborik the final period. Insert Ranger fire alarms in 5…4…3…2…1.

For 50 minutes, Slovakia still trailed by the same three-goal margin that made the Canadians look like a shoe in for NBC’s dream match-up. Then things got interesting when Roberto Luongo allowed a clunker to pinching Lubomir Visnovsky, whose close backhand slipped past the Vancouver netminder with under nine minutes left. Suddenly with more jump than they had the first 40 in which they only tested Louie nine times, the more confident Slovaks won all the battles. Not shockingly, they took more shots (12 or 13) in the unpredictable third no one saw coming.

Especially a bunch of confident Canadians who chanted, “We Want USA, We Want USA,” with under 10 minutes to play. Even when their country still tried to attack, Jaroslav Halak made the stops and his D led by Zdeno Chara transitioned the puck through the neutral zone without a problem. Suddenly, Marian Hossa, Pavol Demitra, Ziggy Palffy, Michal Handzus, Jozef Stumpel and Tomas Kopecky became dangerous. A couple of nights removed from one of the most heartless performances ever against the same loaded roster, here was a persistent team who exemplified what these Winter Games are about.

The stronger commitment continued to pay dividends when Handzus batted a loose Richard Zednik backhand wraparound out of mid-air past Luongo, stunning everyone wearing Canadian colors. Two goals in less than three and a half minutes had cut it to one with still four and change left. No longer were there any chants other than “Go Canada Go, Go Canada Go,” by some antsy red and white fans who had to be dying at the thought of possibly being taken to sudden death.

Slovakia did everything in their power to get it tied, even forcing Luongo to come up with a couple of tough stops from in tight on Hossa. It all came down to the final 60 seconds which were just as wild and crazy as one would expect. Maybe too much so for Canada, who couldn’t get out of their zone.

With Halak on the bench for an extra attacker, a couple of excellent keeps including one by Visnovsky gave them their big chance to force four-on-four overtime. A give-and-go was worked to Hossa, whose low shot from the right circle caromed off Luongo to Demitra with three ticks remaining. Earlier, Louie’s teammate was stoned twice on a loose scramble. This time, with Roberto dead to rights, his shot didn’t go. Somehow, the sprawling hometown favorite kept it out along with maybe an assist from the crossbar as time ran out, leaving Demitra heartbroken.

The veteran who’s been banged up a lot this year had nothing to be ashamed of as did any of his ‘mates with many on their final tour as he referred to it. They’d given Canada everything they could’ve wanted. When the two countries shook hands in still the finest tradition, Demitra and Luongo shared a laugh before the accomplished center and his proud team saluted their sticks to a relieved crowd. Canada did likewise to grant them their wish.

USA vs Canada for all the marbles. The greatest scenario NBC could’ve ever dreamed of. Who ever would’ve believed our country would be the only one left unbeaten looking to run the table and beat their North American rival twice for gold? Eight years ago, they took it on our home soil in Salt Lake. Now, the Americans have a chance to turn the tables in hostile territory much the way another Ron Wilson-led squad shocked Canada in 1996. Only this is much bigger.

Can the sizzling top line of Zach Parise, Paul Stastny and captain America Jamie Langenbrunner continue to dominate as they did earlier today combining for half the club’s six tallies? Will two-goal scorer Patrick Kane get the better of Chicago ‘mates Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook? Can muckers Ryan Malone, Dustin Brown, David Backes, Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan continue winning the battles in the trenches like they have all tournament long? Will Bobby Ryan burn his Duck teammates Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Scott Niedermayer? Can Ryan Kesler get the better of Louie? Will Brian Rafalski’s magical Winter Games continue alongside Ryan Suter? And can Ryan Miller continue to prove that just maybe he’s the best goalie in the game by outperforming both Martin Brodeur and Luongo?

All these questions and more won’t get answered until 3 ET/12 PT Sunday at Hockey Canada Place. And like the rest, we can hardly wait. Drop the puck already!

Thus far, it looks like the much anticipated USA/Canada rematch for Olympic gold is in line. After the Americans dominated Finland with a six goal first period barrage including five in 5:54, the host Canadians lead Slovakia 3-zip after two periods. They’ve outshot the Cinderella 21-9, getting goals off the sticks of Patrick Marleau, Brenden Morrow and Ryan Getzlaf.

All three have come via simple North American style plays. Three point shots from D with the opening deuce in the first both via redirects by Marleau (video review confirmed) and hit machine Morrow, who’s suddenly his country’s most visible player. The third came with under five to go in the second when Getzlaf whipped a backhand rebound past Jaroslav Halak for a power play goal, cashing in an undisciplined Richard Zednik hold of the stick 200 feet away.

When called upon Roberto Luongo has stopped everything one by one as Canada’s D has limited the skilled Slovaks, who have overpassed. Marian Hossa and Marian Gaborik have had chances but were unable to get them on net. Down three, former Islander Ziggy Palffy had the best opportunity off a turnover but his five-hold try on a mini-break was shutdown by Louie.

Unless Slovakia can produce a miracle of their own, it looks like USA/Canada will vie for gold eight years later. But this time in Vancouver and not Salt Lake. If it comes off, can the Americans return the favor? Still one more period left before it becomes official.

One more game to decide who will meet Team USA for Olympic gold. Will it be the expected Canadian/American rematch from Salt Lake ’02 or can the true underdog Slovakia continue their great run? Few gave them a shot against defending champ Sweden. Hey. That was one we actually had. Go figure.

Obviously, Jaroslav Halak has to be huge for his country to stand a chance tonight. He’ll need plenty of help from one of the Games’ best Marian Gaborik, who looks all the way back from his bad hip.The Great Gabby has finished all tournament while Marian Hossa along with savvy vets Pavol Demitra, Richard Zednik, Jozef Stumpel and Ziggy Palffy have all played superbly as has two-way pivot Michal Handzus and Miro Satan. As expected, Zdeno Chara has been a tower of strength anchoring an overlooked blueline that includes Lubomir Visnovsky, Andrej Sekera and Milan Jurcina. Hell. Even Andrej Meszaros has been okay. Can they pull another shocker?

It’s coming up next.

Team USA scores SIX on flat Finland chasing Miikka Kiprusoff (4 GA on 7 shots) while getting next pair in 15 seconds on poor Niklas Backstrom. The six goals are the most in a period since 1964 versus Germany.

Total Domination! Never seen anything like it? This was even more stunning than Canada’s blitz of Russia. Parise, Langenbrunner, Rafalski, Kane, Malone and Stastny all with at least two points. Unbelievable!

A lot was made out of Alex Ovechkin not discussing Wednesday’s Russian humiliation to the mainstream media. What really could he have said other than, ‘We sucked?’ After a performance like that in the national spotlight, I probably wouldn’t care to talk either. Word to the wise. Too many journalists out there think they’re entitled to everything. Bottom line: The Great Eight had a miserable night and one he’d rather forget. Just watch his snarky reaction to a Russian camerawoman who screams, “No. No. No. Please! Please,” exiting Canada Hockey Place courtesy of PetePRose:

Judging from the looks of his female entourage, it seems Ovechkin had something entirely else on his mind. Sometimes, it’s hard to remember that these athletes are human (insert cheesy Human League 80’s music here). In other words, even Ovechkin can have a bad day. You don’t think he was embarrassed along with his mismatched KHL Russian teammates? That look on Ilya Kovalchuk in an entry yesterday spoke volumes. Still can’t believe the audacity of Joe Micheletti asking Ovie how he felt. How was he supposed to feel?!?!?!?!?! His team didn’t even show. Between Mich’s homeristic Ranger work on MSG and this, what a major league buffoon!

As for Mad Mike who foolishly referred to the Ryccku’s effort as “Eurotrash,” it is what it is. In this space 24 hours ago, we advocated firing him. But as Battle originator Steve Lepore noted in a well thought out PuckTheMedia entry, that would be overreaction. In retrospect, Mike Milbury should face fine/suspension from NBC. At least they sent him home early after his harsh words even left Jeremy Roenick speechless. I’ll just echo what’s been said about his controversial persona which emulates Don Cherry. FanHouse’s Adam Gretz and Puck Daddy’s Seah Leahy had even more on Mad Mike, who even had a run in with a Caps’ Blog Box blogger who crossed the line following a Milbury dig at Ovechkin in a game he came back to score a hat trick in defeating Sidney Crosby’s Pens in overtime.

 PensHead’s Allison has a different outlook entirely on the Russian defeat to host Canada.Who can blame her? She’s a Pengwhine’s fan. 😉

Although i was cheering for Russia last night i really hoped they wouldn’t win gold. A few days back i shared my point of view with MouthFullOfTang and today i will share it with you. So why if i was cheering for Russia i wished them no gold? Well, as a wise man once said … “I did it for the Pens!”

With today’s semifinals starting at 3 ET with Team USA taking on Finland while Canada battles Slovakia in the night cap, can we put the other night’s chaos behind us already? It’s time.

Congratulations to the Canadian women’s hockey team on taking Olympic gold in Vancouver, defeating Team USA 2-0 at Hockey Canada Place earlier tonight. They dominated from start to finish that included a record 18-0 rout of Slovakia in prelims.

Unlike the semis where both countries won big to reach the highly anticipated final, at least this one was competitive. The difference was two first period goals from Marie-Philip Poulin. The 18 year-old scoring hero beat American netminder Jessie Vetter twice in a 2:55 span on identical shots both to the glove side. That was plenty for surprise starter Shannon Szabados, who stopped all 28 to record the shutout in front of rabid Canadian fans. A great atmosphere which also included supportive Americans rooting on Team USA, who settled for silver against their nemesis.

A huge key to Canada’s gold medal victory was their strong penalty kill which blanketed Mark Johnson’s women, who took the collar in six chances. That included a pivotal five-on-three early in the second. They moved the puck around nicely but couldn’t do what it took to beat a razor sharp Szabados, who didn’t find out she was starting until before the game in place of ’02 Salt Lake hero Kim St. Pierre. It didn’t matter as the first-time Olympian stood up to the challenge and pressure by using a lightning quick glove to stop the Americans in their tracks.

“I looked up in the stands and saw a sign that said, ‘Proud to be Canadian,’ and that’s what I am today,” an emotional Szabados said after her pumped up team piled on top when the buzzer sounded making them champs again. “My teammates were unbelievable today. We played a great game, and this is an incredible moment.”

Canada’s team defense made it tough for the USA to generate the kind of quality chances needed to get back in the game. Despite that, they led in shots by five (23-18) after two periods yet still trailed by a deuce. Johnson’s club threw the kitchen sink at their biggest rival in the third, taking risks to try to get back in it. However, Szabados remained unflappable making a nice glove save on Julie Chu’s high shot ticketed for top shelf.

The extra pinching by D led to plenty of Canadian opportunities. But Vetter (27 saves) was superb, making quite a few sparklers from in tight to give her country a chance. Her goaltending was exceptional. Unfortunately, her teammates that included long-time representative Angela Ruggiero couldn’t slip one past Szabados, who also plays on a men’s college hockey team in Alberta.

Getting tournament MVP was top finisher Meghan Agosta, who set an Olympic record with nine goals. The outstanding 23 year-old from Windsor, Ontario earned a primary on Poulin’s important insurance marker that came off a faceoff win. In ’06, she was also part of Canada’s gold medal Torino team- winning gold and two silvers in three world championships as well.

This was also likely the final swan song for legendary Hayley Wickenheiser, who received the loudest ovation during a classy medal presentation that saw bronze handed out to Finland with each player introduced and also given flowers. Not surprisingly, the 31 year-old who’s arguably the greatest women’s hockey player ever has been a vital part of all three Canadian golds (’02 Salt Lake, ’06 Torino, ’10 Vancouver). If it’s the end, what a tremendous careeer, which would conclude with a bow.

As for the rivalry that reduced quite a few American players to tears before they received their silver medals with great chants of, “USA, USA” from the crowd. Szabados summed it up best.

“This rivalry will never end. It will keep going and going.“

Canada’s still on top.

If that doesn’t sum it up, I don’t know what else would. Ilya Kovalchuk looks ready to cry. It’s really a sad sight.