Olympic Ice Hockey

Canada was, and is, the best.

It wasn’t easy. But yet it was.

Canada dominated everyone throughout the 2014 Sochi Olympics and did not trail in a game for one second. Then again, it was a bounce away from losing in the quarterfinals to Latvia.

This probably isn’t the script general manager Steve Yzerman would have written after he selected this team, but no matter—he got the happy ending he wanted and a nation demanded.

When it mattered most, Canada was at its best.

Two days after dismantling Team USA in the most lopsided one-goal victory in hockey history, Canada dispatched an undermanned Sweden in the gold-medal game, winning 3-0 for the nation’s second consecutive gold medal at the Winter Olympics.

Sidney Crosby embodied Canada’s tournament, slowly building to a celebratory crescendo in the gold-medal game when he, and the team, were in peak form. Crosby’s first and only goal of the tournament came on a second-period breakaway that gave Canada a 2-0 lead, which may as well have been a 20-0 advantage.

The Swedes were unquestionably shorthanded and did well to reach the gold-medal game at 5-0 without captain Henrik Zetterberg, center Henrik Sedin and right wing Johan Franzen. But when center Nicklas Backstrom tested positive for a banned substance related to allergy medication before the game, Sweden was so supermodel-thin down the middle that Canada’s gold became a foregone conclusion.

Alas, Sweden could have had all four of those players and it’s hard to imagine it would have meant anything.

Canada started slow and finished strong in this tournament, and much of that had to do with someone unplugging coach Mike Babcock's line blender. 

The Canadians severely out-chanced Norway in a 3-1 win to start group play, yet Babcock blended. They smoked Austria 6-0 in their next game, and yet again, he shuffled. The coach was seemingly trying to ignite Crosby, who had zero goals and two assists in those two games, although he seemed to be his usual magical self, just without the remarkable finish. 

Canada needed overtime to beat Finland and win Group C, but the 2-1 victory again had Babcock intermingling forwards.

He finally settled on his lines entering the Latvia game, a 2-1 nail-biter in which, once again, Crosby was held off the score sheet, but the team as a whole was almost unstoppable. Only this time, Babcock rode his line combinations (save for replacing an injured John Tavares with Matt Duchene on the fourth line) through victories against Team USA and Sweden.

The chemistry was always there with the Ryan Getzlaf/Corey Perry and Jonathan Toews/Patrick Marleau lines, but it at long last became evident in the knockout round with Crosby, Chris Kunitz and Patrice Bergeron.

Canada had just 14 goals in five games (nine coming against Norway and Austria), but it was more than enough for gold.

At the postgame press conference, Babcock offered this: “Does anybody know who won the scoring race? Does anybody care? Does anybody know who won the gold medal? See ya, guys."

Smugness and aloofness about the unimportance of offense when he was a mad scientist in search of working line combinations aside, Canada won this gold medal on the strength of a virtually impregnable defense.

Canada allowed one goal in three knockout round games. The only time a puck found the back of the net was when Latvia ran one of the more innovative trick plays you’ll see in any sport, winning a neutral-zone draw, changing one player on the defensive side of the bench and having another player jump on from the other side of the bench to sneak behind the defense for a goal.

Team USA and Sweden could’ve benefited from that creativity, as Shea Weber, Duncan Keith, Alex Pietrangelo, Jay Bouwmeester, Drew Doughty and Marc-Edouard Vlasic strangled the life out of any and all attackers that feebly attempted to get pucks past goaltender Carey Price.

The play of Canada’s defense is what gave the offense time to jell. Canada allowed 129 shots in six games, an average of 21.5 per game. Price allowed just three out of 106 shots to get past him; he was perfect in his final two starts, stopping 55 of 55 shots.

It’s easy to dismiss Price’s outstanding performance as a product of the defense in front of him, but there’s something to be said about the mental toughness required to make the difficult save in a one-goal contest after minutes, sometimes even an hour, of near-stagnation.

"It was a whole team effort," defenseman Drew Doughty said to Andrew Podnieks of IIHF.com. "A lot of people are going to say, ‘The goalie played unbelievable,’ or, ‘The defence played unbelievable.’ But the forwards were a huge advantage in the defensive end of the game. They backchecked so hard, as hard as they could to get back in position. They didn’t give the defensemen or their down-low center anything. That was the biggest part."

Yzerman also said to IIHF.com: "It’s the most impressive, the greatest display of defensive hockey."

The defense set the table for the offense, and the offense delivered against Sweden.

Crosby, Toews and Kunitz, all of whom entered the gold-medal game with as many goals in this tournament as the terrifying Sochi mascot bear, finally got on the scoreboard.

Toews, whose line with Marleau and Jeff Carter neutralized Team USA’s top line in the semifinal, banged home a perfect pass from Carter in the first period.

With the game technically still in doubt in the second period, Crosby raced down the ice on a breakaway and beat Henrik Lundqvist with a silky smooth backhand move.

Kunitz, perhaps the most questioned decision in Olympic history that didn’t involve figure skating judges, beat Lundqvist in the third period after numerous close calls during his first five games.

Canada is always the best team on paper. At the 2014 Sochi Olympics, it was also the hardest-working team. It was willing to continue pushing forward when the goals weren’t coming despite playing on ice that appeared to be continuously tilted at a 45-degree angle toward the opponent’s net.

Lesser teams may have let the frustration get to them or had a lapse at a crucial moment, perhaps a player cheating for that elusive goal that led to a goal for Team USA or Sweden that turned the tide for good.

Instead, Canada stuck to the game plan from the puck drop vs. Norway to the final horn vs. Sweden and used a suffocating defense to breathe life into an offense that never wavered in its belief that the goals would come.

"This team was totally dedicated to keeping the puck out of our net," Price said to IIHF.com, "and we really had a relentless work ethic. We did it, we’re so excited and looking forward to getting back home."

Winning this gold medal wasn’t easy, but Canada sure made it look that way.

That's what makes—and made—Canada the best.

Dave Lozo covers the NHL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @DaveLozo.

Maybe that summer ball hockey wasn't such a bad idea after all.

Team Canada's gold medal at the 2014 Sochi Games men's hockey tournament was unprecedented. These games weren't being played in Salt Lake City, Utah, or Vancouver, B.C.—the North American sites of its two previous gold medals in the last four Winter Olympics.

It wasn't supposed to have that same kind of success on the bigger ice surface, which changes tactics from the tighter confines of NHL-sized arenas. Canada fell flat in Turin during the 2006 Olympics, where it missed out on a medal altogether.

In Sochi, Team Canada proved it could play on any surface, against any opponent, and commit to the style of game necessary to be the best in the world.

The gold medal Canada claimed in a 3-0 win over Sweden that never seemed in doubt might not have the same sort of luster that comes with winning on home ice in Vancouver four years ago, but it's a much greater achievement.

In fact, the 2014 gold-medal performance is Canada's greatest hockey achievement at the Olympic Games.

The last Canuck team to win it all on international ice was also the same one to win back-to-back gold medals, when the Edmonton Mercurys claimed the gold in 1952 in Oslo, Norway.

With an uncertain goaltending situation featuring Carey Price and Roberto Luongo as the top options, talk before the tournament pegged Canada as the most talented team everywhere but between the pipes, and that's typically the worst spot to show weakness.

But Price was up to the challenge—aided by a team that was committed to doing what it had to in front of him to ensure it could stifle offenses more experienced and dangerous on the ice surface that features 15 extra feet in width and a blue line much closer to the net than the NHL design.

The result was just three goals against in six wins in Sochi. Canada never even trailed for a minute in the tournament. Let that thought sink in for a few minutes: The world's best offensive players used defense to win the Olympic hockey tournament.

With shutouts over Sweden in the final and the U.S. in semifinal, the Canadians didn't even allow a goal in more than 164 minutes following the first period of the quarterfinal against Latvia—the longest shutout streak of Price's career.

Price was rewarded with the title of Best Goalkeeper thanks to his tournament-best .972 save percentage and 0.59 goals-against average. He was quick to credit the players in front of him.

Jonathan Toews, who opened the scoring Sunday, also credited the team's dedication on the CBC broadcast:

I think anyone knows the talent and ability this team has. I think huge credit goes to our commitment to playing the team game and the will to win. People were doubting whether we could score goals in the tournament. It’s easy for a group like that to go press and try to create offense and get away from our game plan. But we stuck with it every single night, and here we are on top of the podium. It feels pretty good.

The summer ball hockey was a strategy employed by head coach Mike Babcock at August's orientation camp. The team wasn't allowed to get on the ice because of insurance reasons, but Babcock knew he'd have to ingrain the style of play necessary overseas into his players' minds early.

Turns out it was a pretty effective teaching tool.

But more impressive than his coaching tactics was the way the players stayed true to those teachings. Talent takes you only so far, as the United States found out with a disappointing finish that saw it miss out on a medal four years after making it to overtime in the gold-medal game against Canada in Vancouver.

With three gold medals in the last four events, Canada has established itself as the dominant force of NHL-era Olympic Games. The first team to go undefeated in the tournament since the Soviet Union in Sarajevo in 1984, Team Canada also became the only repeat champion since NHL players joined the fun in 1998.

With so many great teams gracing Canada with gold in the past, it would be tough to suggest this one was the best it has ever iced.

As a team, though, it accomplished the most.

It wasn't the easiest ride, nor did it ever feel like they were at peak performance, but for the third time in four tries this century, the Winter Olympic gold medal in men's hockey is returning to Canada.

Carey Price stopped 24 shots, and the attack lit up the lamp once in each period, as Canada cruised to a 3-0 victory over Sweden in Sunday's gold-medal game in Sochi. 

From start to finish, this game encapsulated the Canadians' dominance.

The Canadian defense ran their shutout streak to nearly 165 minutes in Russia, with Latvia carrying the distinction of the last team to find the back of the net. Jonathan Toews, Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz spread out the goals evenly, and no Team Canada player had more than one point.

It was a team effort through and through, indicative of the Canadian spirit pervasive throughout these Games.

The 2010 gold medalists, Canada are the first repeat champions since the Soviet Union captured gold in both 1984 and 1988. Canada, who won the first four Winter Olympic golds, have the most of any country with nine tournament victories.

But no matter their dominance, this hardly felt like a normal Olympics for the Canadians. Repeat golds weren't something that happened in the modernized, NHL-featuring Olympics. Famously, Canada failed to even win a bronze medal at both Nagano in 1998 and Turin eight years later.

This motivated group made sure that never happened.

Neither Canada nor Sweden had lost a game heading into Sunday, which guaranteed one of the pair would become the first unbeaten Olympic champions since 1984. As noted by Dan Marrazza of NBC Olympics, this was the first time since 1928 the Canadians went through an entire Olympic tournament without a loss or tie:

Price, the unwavering superstar for Canada in these Games, was again spectacular. Despite the Swedish roster being ravaged by injuries, their goal-scoring opportunities were numerous, and their players were motivated to bring home another gold. They last earned the top honor in 2006 in Turin.

A single sequence in the second period highlighted Price's excellence. With Sweden desperately trying to tie the game at 1-1, a strange, knuckling deflection near the net looked almost certain to get past him and into the net.

But as he has throughout his time in Sochi, Price did the near-impossible, leaping through the air and snatching the puck with his glove. His time in Sochi ended with only three goals allowed in five appearances.

Not long later, Crosby was picking up a Swedish turnover, deking Henrik Lundqvist on a breakaway and sneaking a puck through the right side of the net to give Canada a 2-0 lead.

The Sochi Games paled in comparison to Vancouver for Crosby, who became a national hero with his overtime goal to defeat the United States. Steady and composed as always, though, he was in the right place at the right time to help lead his country to victory.

That second goal was a crippling blow for a Sweden squad that could have used some luck Sunday.

Already considered a heavy underdog, the already injury-riddled Swedish roster suffered another critical absence that surprised many before the game. Though listed on the active roster, Nicklas Backstrom failed to appear for the pregame skate and was a late scratch.

Per Larry Lage of The Associated Press via Yahoo Sports, Swedish Olympic Committee spokesman Bjorn Folin said Backstrom tested positive for a banned substance "in an allergy medication that Backstrom has taken for the past seven years."

Playing on the top line with Daniel Sedin and Loui Eriksson, Backstrom joined Henrik Zetterberg, Henrik Sedin and Johan Franzen as a list of stars who were either lost to injury in Sochi or didn't take part in the Games.

With much of their goal-scoring prowess sitting at home or on the end of the bench, Sweden was bound to attempt a conservative approach. 

“They’re a puck possession team,” Ryan Getzlaf told Heather Loney of Global News before the game. “Anyone who’s played against the Swedes knows that they like to have the puck and move it around. We’ve got to do much the same as we did (against the United States).”

Heading into the third period, it was apparent the Swedes were gassed by the effort they exerted in the first 40 minutes. Canada took their turn at a puck-possession style, holding for good shots and peppering Lundqvist whenever they saw fit.

Lundqvist performed admirably, stopping 33 shots, but it wasn't enough.

Kunitz rocketed a slap shot at the 9:04 mark in the third period past the Swedish goaltender, all but wrapping up the gold medal. It had to feel like a triumphant moment for Kunitz, the Penguins winger who had undergone a surprising amount of criticism since his selection.

As Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News pointed out, one side of the splintering selection had to feel good about themselves Sunday:

What this means for both sides ultimately remains unclear.

Changes can and will come from these countries' rosters in four years, and perhaps even structural changes to the Olympics. Clamoring by NHL teams to have their players banned from Olympic competition only continues to grow louder following the glut of injuries in Sochi.

Commissioner Gary Bettman has said a decision could come later this year on whether NHL players are allowed to compete in 2018. If they are, Sweden and Canada will certainly be among the medal favorites. If not, the entire hierarchy of Olympic hockey will be altered.

For now, NHL players are wearing Olympic medals around their necks and look quite happy. And for the second time in as many trips, the country most famous for their hockey prowess made their home fans proud.

Follow Tyler Conway on Twitter:

Follow @tylerconway22

Despite strong starts to their respective tournaments, both the men's and women's hockey teams struggled late for Team USA. Canada proved to be each team's toughest competitor.

The women lost to Canada in the gold-medal game, and their loss was particularly disappointing given their effort in the contest. Throw in how easy it was for them to get there, and it's safe to say that the fans were expecting a little more from the top players on the team.

The men lost to Canada in the semifinals and then to Finland in the bronze-medal game, and both performances were subpar. They failed to score a goal in either game, losing 1-0 to Canada and 5-0 to Finland.

Each squad featured strong performances from individual players, but it's the players who didn't show up to Sochi that impacted the outcome of both teams.

Men's

Patrick Kane

Arguably the most disappointing player for either team, Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane was not the leader on offense that Team USA expected he'd be. Per Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times, Kane described how it felt to perform so poorly:

No excuses. I wasn’t good enough. I wasn’t good enough to help the team win a medal. Obviously, I was expected to do a lot more. When you come over here and put up zero goals and four assists in six games, that’s not the numbers you want to see. Definitely disappointing.

Kane did not put up great numbers in the tournament, though it was hard to fault his hustle and will to win. One of his assists happened to be the one that set up Joe Pavelski in the exciting game against Russia, and he did total 19 shots on goal in six games.

Kane was out there working hard every game—he just didn't have the numbers to show for it.

There's still plenty of international hockey left in the 25-year-old, and he'll more than likely find himself in South Korea in 2018 for the next installment of the Winter Olympics. Of course, he'll be hoping to leave there with better results and a gold medal.

Zach Parise

Prior to Team USA's 5-2 win over the Czech Republic, Minnesota Wild star Zach Parise had been held scoreless in the tournament. He scored his first of the tournament on a second-period power play against the Czechs, but that proved to be the only scoring he would do—seeing as the next two contests were shutouts against Canada and Finland.

As the captain of Team USA, Parise was given high expectations for Sochi. He was the third overall scorer in the 2010 Vancouver Games, and that was the same type of play that was needed from him in Sochi.

Parise has to shoulder some of the blame as the team's captain. He finished the tournament with just one point. His team was expected to medal, but the loss to Canada was so deflating that it came out flat in the following contest against Finland. That eliminated it from medalling.

Parise played hard and played tough, but he didn't have the results to show for it. Team USA needed him in the latter contests of the tournament, and he didn't really show up.

Women's

Jessie Vetter

Jessie Vetter had some strong games and some poor games in net for Team USA, but her performance in the final game against Canada was disappointing. With no NHL to turn back to, that last performance is unfortunately what she'll be remembered for until the 2018 Games.

Canada was held scoreless for 56 minutes, 34 seconds, at which point Team USA held a 2-0 lead and appeared to be on its way to a gold medal.

A shot ricocheted past Vetter for a score, though, and that's when the floodgates opened. Ed Willes of Canada.com breaks down the following goal, Vetter's first big mistake of the game: 

With [Shannon] Szabados still out of the net, Vetter made her first mistake of the game, bobbling a centring pass/shot by Canada’s Rebecca Johnston which Poulin pounced on like a cobra and snapped in for the tying goal. Canada, which hadn’t scored a goal in almost 57 minutes, now had two in two and a half minutes.

Vetter was then beaten on a third goal later in overtime—the goal that gave Canada the 3-2 win.

Hilary Knight

Hilary Knight was largely successful in the tournament, though the overtime penalty she was whistled for against Canada was a major reason for her team's loss. She, however, thought it was a bad goal, according to Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo! Sports: “I didn’t touch her. She fell. It was a bogus call. But it doesn’t rely on one call. We had plenty of opportunity,” said Knight.

Even though she tallied an assist in the game, she had nothing to show for herself after firing six shots on goal. Only a few of her shots were quality attempts, while others appeared as if she were pressing.

The 24-year-old from Palo Alto, California was a key reason why this team made it so far in the tournament. She led a potent offense through several strong international opponents. She cracked under pressure, however, in the final game of the tournament.

She'll be ready for the 2018 Games in South Korea. Her entire tournament wasn't disappointing, but the end result was.

Follow me on Twitter: @kennydejohn

Coming off a silver medal in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, the U.S. Olympic hockey team came into the 2014 Winter Games with its eyes set on gold. 

It fell short of that goal and missed the podium entirely. After a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Canada in the semifinal, Team USA found itself unmotivated and outmatched in the bronze-medal game. It was shut out 5-0 by a Finland team that was more than happy to take out its difficult loss to Sweden in a semifinal. 

The shutout loss marked an all-time low in USA hockey history according to ESPN Stats & Info:

An end to the Winter Games as heinous as the one that Team USA submitted in its final two games is the kind that would rightfully have a player officially thrown off his game. Unfortunately for these players, there's no time for that. 

With the NHL season dropping the puck once again on Tuesday, Feb. 25, there's no time for players to allow the disappointment to seep into their NHL play. 

Here's a look at three players who really don't have time to sulk about their disappointment in Sochi. 

Patrick Kane

As one of the NHL's most electric offensive players, 25-year-old Patrick Kane was expected to be a superstar for USA hockey. Instead, he simply couldn't find the net when given the opportunity in Sochi. 

He left the Games with no goals and just four assists for the Red, White and Blue. The difficult part to stomach was that his minimal output wasn't for a lack of opportunity. Twice against Tuukka Rask, Kane had penalty shots that he would usually capitalize on but came short. 

Kane clearly took the losses hard, too. He wasn't shy about taking responsibility for his poor showing, per Chris Kue of the Chicago Tribune (subscription required):

No excuses — I wasn't good enough to help the team win a medal... I was expected to do a lot more. When you come over here and put up zero goals and four assists in six games, it's not the numbers you want to see. Definitely disappointing.

Kane won't have much time to dwell on it, though. The Blackhawks are tied with the St. Louis Blues for the lead in the Central Division and will be relying on Kane to add to his team-leading points total of 63 upon his return to the Windy City. 

Zach Parise

Much of Team USA's problem against Finland appeared to be motivation as there are few reasons why a team that was good enough to get to the bronze-medal game in the first place would get blown out like the U.S. did. 

Of course, the lack of motivation ultimately reflects poorly on the captain of the team. In this case, that would be Parise. It's a fact that isn't lost on the Minnesota Wild winger. He categorized the performance as "embarrassing":

Parise will need to come back to NHL play ready to make an impact immediately, though. His Minnesota Wild are clinging to the last seed in the Western Conference right now.

Teams playing the Wild in the coming weeks would love to take advantage of the fact that Parise and fellow Wild and Team USA teammate Ryan Suter are both coming off the physical and emotional toll of a disappointing Olympics showing. 

Dan Bylsma

OK, so Team USA coach Dan Bylsma is not a player. But that doesn't mean he's not going to have to bounce back after the disappointing letdown in Sochi. 

After all, it was the Americans' effort down the stretch of the final game that was so appalling. Part of that blame for a lack of motivation has to go to the coach. Bylsma was unable to inspire the team to give any better effort when the team went down 2-0, and things got out of hand quickly. 

From an NHL perspective, the sight of Bylsma coming up small when it matters most isn't a new sight. His Pittsburgh Penguins were swept in the Eastern Conference finals last season after being bounced 4-2 in the opening round as the No. 4 seed in 2012. 

Now Bylsma will take the reigns of his Penguins team that is once again atop the Eastern Conference. The question now becomes whether his failures in the big moments of the Olympics were simply an extension of his inability to win when it matters most or a mere coincidence. 

Either way, much like the rest of Team USA, Bylsma is going to want to put this performance behind him. 

Gold again for Canada.

Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews and even Chris Kunitz scored as Canada dominated Sweden 3-0 to win gold for the second straight Olympics.

Carey Price made 24 save and did not allow a goal over his final two starts of the tournament.

This one was over before it started, as Sweden center Nicklas Backstrom did not play because of a reported migraine headache, although Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo Sports said Backstrom was out after failing a drug test.

That left Sweden without its three best centers—Backstrom, Henrik Zetterberg and Henrik Sedin—due to injury either during or right before the Olympics.

Here are the final grades and analysis for this contest:

Final analysis

Team Canada

Chris Kunitz-Sidney Crosby-Patrice Bergeron: Kunitz scores, Crosby scores, the line as a whole was very productive. After five games of chances that never resulted in goals, Crosby came through in the biggest game of the tournament.

Jamie Benn-Ryan Getzlaf-Corey Perry: They had one shift in the third period where they used finesse and power to generate a wraparound chance for Perry. They were a physical force over the final two games against Team USA and Sweden.

Patrick Marleau-Jonathan Toews-Jeff Carter: Once they scored in the first period, this one was all but over. Toews had a goal and Carter used his speed to nearly score in the third.

Patrick Sharp-Matt Duchene-Rick Nash/Martin St. Louis: Only Canada could lose John Tavares and not have it matter. They combined for five shots.

Duncan Keith-Shea Weber: They concluded a nearly flawless tournament with a nearly flawless gold-medal game.

Jay Bouwmeester-Alex Pietrangelo: Another yeoman's effort for the pairing. Outside of getting fooled on a trick play against Latvia, it was an outstanding showing for these two at the Olympics.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic-Drew Doughty/Dan Hamhuis: Doughty nearly scored his fifth goal of the tournament but hit the post instead. 

Carey Price: He barely had to work in most of his games, but when he did, he was almost perfect. He ends the Olympics with back-to-back shutouts.

Special teams: They went 0-for-3 on the power play. Shameful. Take the gold away from them.

Team Sweden

(Their lines and pairings changed throughout the game, but these are the ones that started)

Daniel Sedin-Jimmie Ericsson-Loui Eriksson: The absence of Backstrom hurt them big time. Their top line was invisible. Ericsson moved to lower lines after the first period but it didn't matter.

Alexander Steen-Patrik Berglund-Daniel Alfredsson: This trio stayed together for nearly the entire game. It did not matter, even when Steen took shifts with the top line.

Gabriel Landeskog-Marcus Johansson-Jakob Silfverberg: Landeskog and Silfverberg combined for six shots. 

Carl Hagelin-Marcus Kruger-Gustav Nyquist: Nyquist hit a post in the first period, and that was about as close as Sweden would come to scoring the rest of the game.

Alexander Edler-Erik Karlsson: Kronwall moved up with Edler for the third period, which was the equivalent of moving around the silverware after the Titanic hit the iceberg.

Jonathan Ericsson-Niklas Kronwall: Ericsson was a train wreck, committing a ghastly turnover on Crosby's goal and getting caught out of position on Toews' goal.

Niklas Hjalmarsson-Johnny Oduya: They were at the game, definitely. I saw them.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson/Henrik Tallinder: Ekman-Larsson played 7:19 in the third period after sitting the first 40 minutes. That's like starting to take vitamins after you learn you have a terminable disease.

Henrik Lundqvist: Nothing he could have done in this one. The Kunitz goal was through a screen, Crosby beat him on a breakaway and Toews redirected a perfect pass from in tight.

Special teams: They needed a power-play goal in the worst way in this one, but could not find it.

This is it. The culmination of the men's ice hockey tournament in the 2014 Sochi Olympics will take place Sunday in a clash of the titans between Sweden and Canada. Each of these teams have already made a gold-medal case for themselves, and now they will get their chance to earn it on Day 16.

Sweden has been extremely dominant, winning each of its games in regulation throughout the tournament. A deep offense and stellar goaltending has been its recipe for success.

Canada has yet to lose a game either, riding some of the best goaltending seen in the Olympics to the gold-medal contest.

This is a matchup that should not be missed. Let's take a look at the event's viewing information followed by the game's outlook and a prediction of what may ensue when these two powerhouses take the ice on Sunday.

Viewing Information

What: Sweden vs. Canada: Men's ice hockey gold-medal game

Where: Bolshoy Ice Dome

When: Sunday, Feb. 23

TV Time: 7 a.m. ET

Channel: NBC

Live Stream: NBCOlympics.com

Outlook

The Swedes have overpowered their opponents throughout the 2014 Olympics. Whether their wins have resulted from impenetrable goaltending, unrelenting offense or a mix of both, they have reached the gold-medal game in decisive fashion.

During the preliminary rounds, Sweden tormented a very strong Group C, scoring 10 goals and allowing five over its three games played. The team only seemed to get better as the tournament moved along, scoring seven goals and allowing just one in its two playoff contests.

Henrik Lundqvist has been a revelation for the Swedes, starting all five games in net while allowing six goals but making an astonishing 117 saves over that span. His performances have netted him a save percentage of .951 for the tournament.

The team's deep offense is also one of its strong suits. The Swedes have scored 17 goals throughout the tournament, but each line has been very deep with 10 different players finding the back of the net.

Sweden's hottest player has been Erik Karlsson, an attacking defender who has scored four goals on 17 shots, accumulated four assists and has a team-high plus/minus rating of plus-five.

After the Swedes' semifinal win against Finland, Karlsson spoke of the team's stout defense during an interview with Corey Masisak of NHL.com:

I think [Friday] we played really, really well [defensively]. I think it won us the game [Friday]. We were really sound in the neutral zone and the defensive zone and took away their speed as much as we could. We really didn't give them any of the quality scoring chances that we've been giving up earlier in the tournament. [Lundqvist] has been playing unbelievable for us as well. In that part we feel pretty confident.

If that same defense shows up in the gold-medal game against Canada, the Swedes could find themselves with gold around their necks in short order.

Team Canada has plenty of star power; however, it simply has not been able to put it all together like the Swedes have.

Like Sweden, Canada thrives on defense. Its goaltending has been some of the best in the 2014 Olympics. Led by Carey Price, Canada has only allowed three goals throughout the entire tournament. Impressive.

Price allowed three goals on 82 shots, stopping 79 for a save percentage of .963. Roberto Luongo also saw some time in front of the net, making 23 saves for a perfect save percentage of 1.000.

This stellar goaltending allowed Team Canada to shut out the United States in the semifinals for the Americans' first goalless game since 1976. Thanks to that great goaltending, the Canadians have yet to find themselves behind at any point in the 2014 Olympics.

Offense has been a bit of an issue for Canada, however.

During the preliminary rounds, Canada went unbeaten, scoring 11 goals and allowing just two. However, they have had two close calls in the playoffs, beating Latvia by a score of 2-1 and the United States 1-0.

Simply put, the Canadians will need to muster some more offense if they are to take the gold medal from the Swedes.

After Canada beat the United States in the semifinals, forward Jonathan Toews looked to the future during an interview with ESPN.com, saying, "We didn't score a lot of goals, but we didn't have to. The next game will follow that work ethic. We can check, we can work our tails off, and we can make things real tough for the other team."

That has been the theme for Canada throughout the Winter Games.

If the Canadians can rally their offense and apply pressure to Lundqvist and the Swedes, they will have a great shot at earning men's ice hockey's top honors in Sochi.

Prediction

We are already well aware that both of these teams boast extremely good defenses. This should certainly be a low-scoring game that comes down to the final minutes. A blowout either way seems almost impossible.

However, this contest will all come down to which team finds a way to generate some sort of offense against its opponent. Going into this matchup, that team would be Sweden. It has been the most well-rounded team of the tournament, and that will carry the Swedes through to earn them the gold medal.

Sweden 3, Canada 2