Olympic Semifinals
By Judd Hall
The quarterfinal games showed us that the United States might have been in a let down; while the Canadians wanted to prove they are still the favorites to win the gold. Both teams are alive and kicking in the semifinals. Will we see a rematch? Let’s look at the games.
Finland vs. United States – 3:00 p.m. EST
30 years ago, these two teams faced off in the United States’ miracle run for the 1980 gold medal. Now they’re playing for a chance to make it to Sunday’s finale. Oddly enough, they played about the same on Wednesday to get to this contest.
The Americans were fresh off of a 5-3 upset of Canada when they played Switzerland in the quarterfinals. The United States were dogged by a stingy Swiss defense, anchored by Anaheim netminder Jonas Hiller.
The Yanks weathered the storm and Zach Parise found a way to put in two goals to be the deciding factor in a 2-0 win over the Swiss. What was apparent in this game was Switzerland wore down as the game progressed…no doubt from having to face Belarus the day before.
Finland took advantage of a less-than-stellar Jaromir Jagr to upend the offensively challenged Czechs in a 2-0 triumph. To be fair though, the Finns weren’t exactly lighting up the scoreboard either. Niklas Hagman posted the game’s first goal at the 13:34 mark in the third period.
The Finns also showed some really good chemistry when moving the puck around on the attack. That might not sound like much to some people, but the ability to feel where your teammate is on the ice can make all the difference in a win and a loss.
Miikka Kiprusoff had a tough go of it against the Czech Republic in facing 31 shots on goal, but he did enough to keep a clean sheet. Ryan Miller took on just 19 shots from the Swiss, but the American goaltender put in another solid effort.
I am a tad wary of the Finns considering that they outscored their opponents in this tournament 12-4. But you have to look at who they’ve played in those three wins they’ve had (Belarus, Germany, Czech Republic). Plus, their 3-0 loss to defending champ Sweden was not even that close.
The Americans have played a much tougher schedule in this tourney. Switzerland was not an easy out, Norway was feisty and we all know how good Canada has been.
I don’t like playing a side on this game because that is too close to call for me. This matchup doesn’t favor the United States as much as them facing the Czechs would have. Instead, we should focus on a final score being staying tight and low.
Fearless Selection: Under 4 ½ (+110)
Slovakia vs. Canada – 9:30 p.m. EST
I mentioned that I was leery of taking Slovakia (even though I took liked them as a gold medal darkhorse) after a close win against the Norwegians in the qualification round on Tuesday. Yet they proved me wrong with a 4-3 victory over defending champ Sweden.
The Slovaks jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to Marian Gaborik and Andrej Sekera before Sweden leveled the board with goals from Patric Harnqvist and Henrik Zetterberg. Montreal’s Jaroslav Halak negated the fact that his homeland only took three shots on goal in the third period by stopping nine of the ten SOG he saw to seal the deal.
Canada was already saddened by the fact that the actor that played Boner on “Growing Pains” disappeared in Vancouver. The loss to the United States had most Canadians looking to reading some Sylvia Plath for a pick-me-up.
The team itself used that loss to their Southern neighbors as fuel to rip through Russia to a 7-3 win in the quarterfinals. The Canadians took advantage of Evgeni Nabokov’s shoddy goaltending to surge out to 3-0, 4-1 and then 6-1 leads on Wednesday night. Canada had a reason to celebrate that win since it was just its second against the Ruskies in 11 Olympic battles.
Roberto Luongo had a relatively easy night against the Russians, stopping 25 of the 28 shots fired his way. And oddly enough, you aren’t hearing a soul clamoring for Martin Brodeur to return to between the pipes. That’s probably for the best since Marty is already got his eyes on one of his sister’s brother’s wife.
While Luongo is playing well, but you can’t discount how good the Slovaks are on the attack. Marian Hossa, Marian Gaborik, Pavol Demitra headline a capable group of forwards. They also have a defense anchored by Zdeno Chara. Look for this game to be closer than what public perception is going to expect.
Fearless Selection: Slovakia on the puck line (+2, +130)
vegasinsider.com
What Bettors Need To Know: Men’s Olympic Hockey Semifinals
By ARI BAUM-COHEN
Finland vs. United States
There are many similarities and differences between the Finns and the Americans. Both teams earned a bye to the quarterfinals and both teams won their quarterfinal match 2-0. Both are led by strong goaltending and have been playing the “no respect” card for the whole tournament.
On the ice, their game styles couldn’t be more different. The young, speedy Americans forecheck and create turnovers while the older, slower Fins play a deliberate, puck possession game.
No Finnish
Finland has scored only two goals in its last two games – and one was an empty net goal.
Offensively, Niklas Hagman leads the Finns with three goals. NHL stars Teemu Selanne, Mikko Koivu and Olli Jokinen have combined for one goal during the tournament.
Though Team USA barely clipped Switzerland in the quarterfinals, they were able to generate a significant amount of scoring chances. If not for Swiss goalie Jonas Hiller’s spectacular performance, the Americans would have cruised to an easy victory.
Miller Time or Kipping it real?
Goaltenders Ryan Miller and Miikka Kiprusoff are two of the NHL’s best, and they have been showcasing their skills during the Olympics.
Ryan Miller was the main reason the United States was able to beat team Canada. He has a 1.25 goals against average, and a .944 save percentage.
Kiprussoff has been almost as good with a 1.33 goals against average and a .947 save percentage.
Winning strategy
The Americans will need to use their speed and forechecking ability to generate turnovers and create scoring chances. The Americans’ first line of Paul Stastny, Jamie Langenbrunner and Zach Parise will have to play as well as they did against Switzerland, and Ryan Miller needs to continue his consistent play.
The Finns will need to continue to play their puck possession game and keep generating scoring chances and drawing penalties. The Fins have scored seven of their 12 goals with the man-advantage and are executing power-play opportunities at 31.8 percent.
Slovakia vs. Canada
Despite odds of more than 80/1 to win gold before the tournament started, the surprising Slovakians have already defeated the Russians and Swedes, ranked No. 1 and No. 3 by the IIHF.
Canada came out firing against a Russian team en route to a 7-3 victory. TSN hockey expert Bob McKenzie described the first period as “without question the most emotionally-charged, dominant 20 minutes of Olympic hockey I have seen played by a Canadian team against a quality opponent since the NHL started going to the Olympics in 1998.”
Role-ing over
Canada is the clear favorite, but they also must face the pressure of playing on home ice against a Slovakian team that has embraced the role of underdog.
"We will be playing a Canadian team with a lot of confidence," Slovakian defenceman Lubomir Visnovsky told TSN. "They also have big pressure. For us it's a lot of fun and we've got a lot of confidence."
The Slovaks know they will have to hang in the game early on and hope for the best.
“Right now they are the best team out there," Slovakian forward Marian Gaborik told reporters. "They will come at you hard in the first period. The most important thing is the first 10 or 15 minutes.”
Underdogs = Under, dawg
Team Canada has four lines that can score. In fact, they managed seven goals without Sidney Crosby registering a point.
If Slovakia is going to compete, they must execute their gameplan: play defense, control the puck and lean heavily on Jaroslav Halak.
“We are playing a simple game. We are not doing anything bad in our zone and everything is working," Slovak forward Ziggy Palffy told reporters.
Netting a win
Roberto Luongo has been Canada’s best goalie in these Olympics, but has yet to deal with the pressure of a close game.
For Slovakia, Jaroslav Halak will have to stand on his head.
"He's the biggest player for our hockey team. He plays unbelievable," forward Marian Hossa told reporters. "Hopefully he can keep his form and we can help him out."
One key stat: Jaroslav Halak is 7-0 for the Montreal Canadiens this season when facing 40 or more shots in a game.
Friday's Best Olympic Hockey Bet
Slovakia (+500) vs. Canada (-1000, 6)
When Team Canada fell 5-3 to the Americans this past Sunday, setting up a qualification game against Germany, many hockey fans north of the border were worried about the level of play from their national team.
However, that extra contest against the Germans, which Canada won 8-2, has been a blessing in disguise for the host nation and played a big part in the team’s 7-3 bashing of the Russians in the quarterfinal Wednesday night.
“We were slowly boiling and once the puck dropped to start the game, we were ready and we were firing,” Canadian forward Eric Staal told the Toronto Sun. “We got that goal right away to get it started. We had a lot of passion. The atmosphere was unbelievable. It was a lot of fun out there.”
The game with Germany allowed Canada to play with its lineups and improve its chemistry heading into the medal rounds. Against Russia, the Canadians jumped out to a 6-1 lead at one point in the second period, getting great production from its “Ducks” line, featuring Anaheim’s Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, who also teamed with former Ducks defenseman Chris Pronger for six total points among them.
Now, Canada tests its might against Slovakia, which edged Sweden 4-3 in the quarterfinals. Pavol Demitra and Marian Hossa, who both had three points in that win, lead the Slovaks’ attack that has been pouring in the goals in their past three games – totaling 14 goals in that span.
Hockey fans should expect more fireworks from both sides in Friday’s semifinal showdown.
Pick: Over 6