Team Canada

Canada’s hockey teams have always been known for having skilled, hard-nosed Defense, they have also been known for having unbelievable Goaltending, the Canada’s 2010 Olympic Team will have to mirror the past; fortunately Canada has a plethora of talent of which to find the ultimate Goalie and a very intimidating Defense.

Team Canada will need Goaltenders that are skilled, mentally tough, and agile, Canada will also need defensemen with speed, agility, power, skating ability and toughness; with that in mind, which players have the best shot at landing on Team Canada’s Defense?

The Goalies

Martin Brodeur

Nobody has been as consistent as Martin Brodeur; year after year he leads the NHL in almost every category. 2008/09 saw Brodeur go down early in the season with an injury, causing him to miss most of the season, that said, if Brodeur is healthy, he has to be your number one Goaltender.

All the Vesina Trophies, his All-Star appearances, Stanley Cup Victories, an Olympic Gold Medal and the ability to respond in pressure situations, and the ability to move the puck, all combine to make Brodeur my choice as Canada’s number one Goaltender.

Roberto Luongo

Robbie-Lou has had an up and down year in 2008/09; he too has been injured, he too was expected to have better stats, that said, Canada will bring Luongo along in hopes that he can come up just as big as Brodeur when the chips are down.

The reality is, Canada is likely to go with whichever Goalie is hottest, if Luongo is standing on his head, he will be the No. 1 Goalie, if Brodeur outshines Luongo, Brodeur will be the number one Goalie, either way, Canada can’t lose, they are both very good Goaltenders.

Carey Price

Canada always likes to bring along a young stud to observe and feel the pressure of the games, in my mind Carey Price will be that guy in 2010. Sure, Price has struggled, but he plays in Montreal, a hockey hotbed, that comes with it’s own set of stresses that most Goalies never face.

Mentally, I feel he is well ahead of Marc-Andre Fleury, and Price was an All-Star this year, therefore Price gets the nod as Canada’s third Goalie.

Noticeable absences- J.S. Giguere, Marty Turco, Marc-Andre Fleury, Steve Mason.

The Defensemen

Defense is almost always underestimated; team Canada will not make that mistake in 2010. Look for Canada to put an emphasis on puck movement, leadership, experience and toughness.

The opposition will be full of young stars, many of which have great speed and quick releases, Alex Ovechkin, Patrick Sharp, Zach Parise, Evgeni Malkin, Henrik Zetterberg, and a plethora of others all have tremendous skill, Canada will need to be prepared to deal with that speed and skill, good defense will go a long way in controlling these players.

Dion Phaneuf

Phaneuf has had his ups and downs this season, but nobody is questioning his overall talent. Tough, driven, competitive and a decent shot, all adds up to Phaneuf solidifying himself a spot on Canada’s blue line. Canada will look for Phaneuf to take the body and shut down the opposition’s number one line.

Rob Blake

Wouldn’t you love to see Phaneuf and Blake play as a pair? The opposition sure as heck doesn’t, that’s why I think they would make an intimidating pair. Blake is a beast to play against; he makes life miserable for opposing forwards and brings great Veteran leadership qualities.

Blake has tons of International experience, he has been a warrior for Canada, he has won a Stanley Cup before, and he is respected throughout the League. I feel it is important for Canada to have some Veteran presence in the locker room, they need a voice and the younger players need a Veteran to lean on, Blake will fill this role nicely.

Blake is a winner; he will be an integral part of Team Canada’s success.

Mike Green

No need to look up his credentials, how about leading the League in Goals for and points by a defenseman?

Green is a solid player, he will bring youthful exuberance, one of the best point shots in the League, the ability to move the puck up the ice and a bit of grit. Green has scored 14 of his 18 goals on the Power Play, averages 25:30 a night in ice time and has the best shooting percentage (13.6) amongst Defensemen, Green, as they say, is a no-brainer…

Shea Weber

Weber has had an outstanding season thus far in 2008/09. With six of his 14 Goals coming on the Power Play, Weber is another guy that can “Bring it” offensively. Known for his physical game and his tremendous hockey sense, Weber will be a valuable addition to Team Canada’s Defense.

Dan Boyle

Think the Tampa Bay Lightening would like this guy back? Boyle has had a career year in 2008/09, to date he is fourth in scoring amongst Defenseman with 39 points, 13 of them goals, is regarded as one of the best puck-movers, and averages over 24 minutes a game.

Boyle will be 34 next year, which will make him one of the Veterans on this defense corps.

Jay Bouwmeester

Leads the League in ice-time with 27:16 minutes per game. If you are listening to the trade rumors it would seem as if every team in the NHL would love to have Bouwmeester, he’s tough, agile, one of the best skaters in the entire game, and while prone to the odd mistake, he is able to make up for that in recovery speed.

Bouwmeester might just be the best defenseman at catching the opposition after he’s made a mistake, possibly the best back-checker in the game. Bouwmeester will be here, book it!

Chris Pronger

The seventh Defenseman is a tough call, depending on the way Canada wants to go I see them selecting either Chris Pronger or Scott Niedermayer.

If they figure they need more toughness Pronger will prevail, if they want more leadership and puck-moving, and IF Niedermayer is willing to play, they will go with Niedermayer.

Either way, it’s a great pick for Canada, they are both tremendous talents, capable of playing heavy minutes and capable of performing in any role.

Noticeable absences: Brian Campbell, Dennis Wideman, Sheldon Souray, Brent Burns...

There you have it, my picks for Canada’s last defense. In all likelihood, my picks will not be perfect, but there is definitely a great template to work from here. Disagree with my picks? Got something to say? Hit the comment box and get your two cents in...

Since Wayne Gretzky, the National Hockey League (NHL) has been on the hunt to find the next big Canadian superstar. Though they seem to have found him in current Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, the question of whether there is just too much pressure being put on our country’s young hockey stars to perform has been put forth for good reason.

Crosby, who was drafted first overall by the Penguins in 2005, is currently in his fifth NHL season and already holds a more impressive resume than the majority of players within the league who’ve played a lot longer than he has.

Crosby is the youngest player in history to be named full captain of a hockey team, the youngest to be voted onto an All-Star team, the youngest to win the Art Ross Trophy, and the youngest to win a Lester B. Pearson Award, the list goes on.

The Coal Harbour native is also a shoo-in to represent Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and he’s without a doubt the most hyped up Canadian hockey player since Eric Lindros, another player who entered the NHL with similar unrealistic expectations.

Lindros, dubbed “The Next One” in reference to Gretzky’s moniker “The Great One”, was picked first overall in the 1991 NHL Draft by the Quebec Nordiques after an amazing junior career, as well as a surreal amount of fan and media build-up.

But “The Big E” was promptly traded from Quebec after refusing to play for the team in a move that sent him to the Philadelphia Flyers for an arsenal of players, picks, and cash.

This move proved just how highly coveted Lindros was when he was drafted, and the amount of losses that teams were willing to go through in order to pick him up.

But as most of us know today, Lindros never reached his full potential because of on-going injury problems that would plague him throughout his career. He retired in 2006 with a total of 865 points.

So with the disappointment of Lindros nearly 15 years earlier, Canada looked to Crosby as its saviour and the NHL saw this as the perfect opportunity to market the living daylights out of its new found poster boy.

Crosby—still a kid himself—had to grow up fast under the limelight and immense pressure that followed him everywhere he went.

But despite everything, Crosby has performed admirably and even led his team to the Stanley Cup Finals last season, before getting knocked out by the Detroit Red Wings.

However, Crosby took the team the farthest it had gone since the team won the Stanley Cup in 1992, under the leadership of Penguins’ icon Mario Lemieux.

Setting the bar so high meant Pittsburgh fans would expect even more this season, and though Crosby’s 2008-2009 campaign can’t be labeled a failure by any stretch of the mind, it’s been somewhat bittersweet.

Crosby’s numbers still rank amongst the top in the NHL, but with the Penguins in danger of missing the playoffs completely, all eyes are again on “Sid the Kid” to lead this team through this difficult time.

Fans are looking for Crosby to shoot the Penguins back into the post-season success they enjoyed last season.

The truth is that Crosby is alone, even while playing on team with young stars like Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal, he’s still expected to be the Gretzky-like player everyone wants him to be.

Which is quite frankly ridiculous to start with.

Gretzky’s prime was when he played for an Edmonton Oiler team that averaged over 400 goals a season—compared to the Penguins accumulating about half of that over the last few seasons.

Gretzky also played in an NHL that hasn’t been the same since—so enough with the Crosby-Gretzky comparison already.

Whether you love him, or hate him, or you’re somewhere in between, it’s common knowledge that Crosby is an amazing talent and it’s simply unfair to ask so much of anyone, be it a rookie or veteran.

At 21, Crosby has still got a great deal of hockey left to play, and even though he’ll most likely never catch up to Gretzky in points—neither will anyone else.

If he doesn't catch Gretzky, that doesn’t mean that he’s not one of the best damn players that the Great White North has ever produced.

On 5 July 2006, on a play just like the one in the picture, Corey Koskie's life changed.

While trying to catch a foul pop, Koskie overbalanced, fell backwards, and hit his head on the Miller Park turf. Dazed, Koskie left the game and was shortly diagnosed with a concussion.

As those who have suffered a severe concussion can attest, the worst part often comes long after the brain has stopped swelling. Koskie recovered from the concussion quickly, but was laid up with post-concussion syndrome.

The problem with PCS is that it can be very difficult to set a time table for your recovery. For some people, the symptoms subside quickly and they move on. For Corey Koskie, weeks became a month, became the rest of the 2006 season.

Throughout the 2007 offseason, Spring Training period, regular season, and playoffs, Koskie felt like he was on the brink of coming back. But for every day he went through feeling good, there were others he spent feeling dizzy and disoriented.

2007 became 2008, and slowly, 2009. Koskie hasn't seen so much as a pitch on a major league field since his injury, now nearly three years past.

Yet, when the Twins arrived at camp, they found a familiar face hanging around the back fields. Koskie was welcomed with open arms by the team that he first played for. But even before the Twins signed Joe Crede, they didn't exactly have a place for a third baseman, especially one who still may not be healthy.

Fortunately for Koskie, the world's premier free agent expo is going on this season. Even though he was left of Team Canada's provisional roster, Koskie kept trying to convince the powers that be to let him play.

Saturday night, Koskie got the break he was waiting for. When Team Canada's final roster comes out later this week, Corey Koskie will be on it. While this doesn't guarantee him playing time, there isn't a player on the provisional roster who is the clear favorite.

Only time will tell if Corey Koskie can get back to the majors after a protracted layoff, but without the World Baseball Classic as a stepping stone, the road back would be much more perilous.

It is exactly one year until Team Canada begins playing their first game in the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Tournament. While it's still 365 days away, it's not too early to begin predicting who will grace the Team Canada jersey and make the roster.

Goaltenders: This was an easy selection. It's hard to say that Luongo will not be named the starting goaltender for Team Canada come November/December 2009, but he will be there in front of his home fans and Vancouver faithful.

1. Roberto Luongo

2. Martin Brodeur

3. Marty Turco

Defensemen: The old guard of Scott Niedermeyer and Chris Pronger must make way for the up and coming elite such as Dion Phaneuf, Dan Boyle, and Jay Boumeester. Younger and faster skilled defensemen are required for a short Olympic tournament where the tempo and intensity is far greater than any NHL game I have witnessed.

1 Dion Phaneuf

2. Jay Boumeester

3. Dan Boyle

4. Brian Campbell

5. Shea Weber

6. Mike Green

7. Chris Pronger

8. Scott Niedermeyer

Forwards: Vincent Lecavalier, Jerome Iginla, Joe Thornton, and Shane Doan all provide veteran leadership and have been involved in Team Canada Olympic teams in the past.  They will need to share this experience with newcomers Sydney Crosby, Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, and Jonathan Toews. Not to mention, those four veterans are having excellent seasons with their respective teams.  Eric Staal and Jason Spezza were left off the 2006 Olympic team, but if they start off the 2009-2010 season on a hot streak they should be included on this roster.

1. Vincent Lecavalier

2. Jerome Iginla

3. Sydney Crosby

4. Eric Staal

5. Joe Thornton

6. Jonathan Toews

7. Shane Doan

8. Rick Nash

9. Dany Heatley

10. Jeff Carter

11. Mike Richards

12. Ryan Getzlaf

Alternates: Corey Perry, Jason Spezza

Coach: Mike Babcock

It's still a year away, but the pressure is on. From the selection process until the time they hit the ice on Feb 16th 2010 versus Switzerland. The lucky players that get chosen to represent their country will feel the pressure, but the glory of winning the Gold medal on their home ice will certainly be worth it.

Canada is the second of an eight-part series previewing the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Other team previews can be found here: Russia | USA | Sweden | Czech Republic | Slovakia | Finland | Mexico (Satire)

Vancouver is only the second Canadian city to host the winter Olympics, and the desire to bring home gold is more than ever. They will also bring an extraordinarily talented roster into the games.

The pressure will be at the highest possible level for the home team. And Canada has the skill to respond. A team that has many Olympic veterans will be mixed with the tremendous younger players.

This team heavily disappointed in Turin. Can anyone stop them this year?

Forwards

First Line

C Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

LW Dany Heatley, Ottawa Senators

RW Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames

Second Line

C Joe Thornton, San Jose Sharks

LW Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning

RW Marc Savard, Boston Bruins

Third Line

C Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim Ducks

LW Rick Nash, Columbus Blue Jackets

RW Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

Fourth Line

C Mike Richards, Philadelphia Flyers

LW Jason Spezza, Ottawa Senators

RW Shane Doan, Phoenix Coyotes

Analysis

This is a very deep roster, and there are still players out there that could easily be in the lineup. Crosby was left off the national roster in 2006 to much scrutiny, but he will center the top line alongside the goal-scoring prowess of Iginla and Heatley.

The second line has nearly as much offensive talent as the second. Joe Thornton is one of the best passing forwards in hockey, and he will have Lecavalier and Savard to dish to.

This is a sin for a third line. Getzlaf, Toews and Nash are in no way third liners, but here is where they are in a roster this deep. They are all terrific young players that will be very entertaining to watch once they take the ice.

The fourth line will combine two defensive minded forwards in Doan and Richards. Spezza will be the offensive balance to the line. Wait, this is a fourth line?

Backup options

Simon Gagne, Philadelphia Flyers; Eric Staal, Carolina Hurricanes; Jeff Carter, Philadelphia Flyers; Brendan Morrow, Dallas Stars; Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche.

Defensemen

First Pairing

LD Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim Ducks

RD Chris Pronger, Anaheim Ducks

Second Pairing

LD Mike Green, Washington Capitals

RD Dion Phaneuf, Calgary Flames

Third Pairing

LD Dan Boyle, San Jose Sharks

RD Jay Bouwmeester, Florida Panthers

Analysis

Every one of these guys could be a candidate for the number one defensive pairing. The top two have been forces on the Canadian blueline for some time now, and even though they are aging, they have aged like fine wine.

The second pairing is most intriguing. Mike Green is nearly a forward, and Dion Phaneuf is one of the most powerful hitting machines in the game.

The third pairing puts two more elite players together in Boyle and Bouwmeester. Boyle will bring an offensive cannon while Bouwmeester is much more comfortable playing defense. He can also shoot the puck when needed.

Backup options

Shea Weber, Nashville Predators; Robin Regehr, Calgary Flames; Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks. If Niedermayer decides to hang up the skates, Regehr would be most likely to step in because of his defensive presence.

Goaltenders

Starter

G Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils

Backup

G Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks

Analysis

Brodeur, despite being hurt, is the starter for Team Canada until proven otherwise. He is the only goalie with a gold medal on his resume. Luongo is also a tremendous goalie and should see some playing time, since he is at home in Vancouver.

Backup options

Jean-Sebastian Giguere, Anaheim Ducks; Marc-Andre Fleury, Pittsburgh Penguins

Coaching

Head coach

Ken Hitchcock

Final Outcome: Silver Medal. Defeated by Russia 7-5 for the championship.

After seeing that Petey Williams of TNA was released yesterday, and finding out about WWE's interest in Robert Roode, whose contract with them is expiring in April.

 This collided with the thoughts I was having a few days ago about factions and how they can have a major role to play in Wrestling.

Most of us will remember Team Canada from TNA a few years ago, and now seeing that two of its former members are on their way out of TNA, it could actually turn out to be very worthwile for the WWE to come in and steal its rivals group.

When you look at the possible members, you can see how they can rule throughout the WWE. Christian Cage, who recently made his surprising return, could be the leader, the guy who will go after the World Title's, as it's seen now he truly is a "Main Eventer". 

Then onto the women of the group, Nattie Neidhart, Maryse or Gail Kim, who would obviously go after the Woman's Champions or the Divas Championship.  Next we would have the Cruiserweight of the group, if you will. 

If they bring back the much needed Cruiserweight Championship, we could see Petey Williams, the Canadian Destroyer take over the division, which would be probably WWE's most exciting, now with Low Ki or his new WWE name "Kaval" coming in. 

And lastly, the Tag Team Division, Robert Roode who has done wonders in TNA with Beer Money inc, and maybe one of the young guys like DH Smith who is waiting for a big push from WWE, or TJ Wilson if the new Hart Foundation thing doesn't work out.

It would seem a very good idea having a new faction in the WWE, because I loved the NWO growing up, and even DX, I think factions are the way to go in wrestling, because for years in the WCW it was over with the fans and in the WWF/WWE, they too were over with the fans, and still are.

Would it be good to see a Canadian group come in?, not like the old "Un American's"

This has been an Assasin's Article

Vancouver, 2010. We've been hearing about it since the Turin Olympics ended, and with a year to go Canadians from coast to coast are preparing themselves for either one of the country's greatest sporting spectacles, or a disaster for our own Olympians who, sometimes, crack under the pressure at home.

Canada has yet to win a gold medal on its own, and with the nation's appetite for hockey glory, there is more pressure than ever on Steve Yzerman and his selection committee. Hopefully Yzerman has learned from the success he experienced at Salt Lake in 2002 and the mistakes made by the selection committee in 2006.

Although Canada might have sent one of its most talented teams ever to the 2006 Turin Games, the team lacked many of the qualities that both the Finnish and Swedish teams had—a balanced scoring attack, a gritty energy line, and puck-moving defensemen. Perhaps Yzerman may take these few suggestions to form a well-rounded team.

Looking toward 2010, Canada has at its disposal a plethora of talented, offensively gifted, puck-moving defensemen, something it was sorely lacking at the 2006 games, with only possibly two members from that 2006 squad returning—Chris Pronger and Jay Bouwmeester.

Pronger's size will be a major factor at the 2010 games, and his leadership and winning attitude will be valuable for any Canadian defense. Bouwmeester's skating and puck-moving abilities (really the only one in 2006 who could move the puck out of his own end) are assets that this team needs this go around.

In addition to Bouwmeester and Pronger, Dan Boyle, who was foolishly left on the previous reserve roster in lieu of Bryan McCabe, will finally get to showcase his puck-moving talents. Brian Campbell, Shea Weber, and Dion Phaneuf should round out the other defensive spots, with perhaps Mike Green playing in a power-play-based role.

This means that Adam Foote, Rob Blake, Wade Redden, Robyn Regehr, and Bryan McCabe will not be invited back by Steve Yzerman.

Canada's lack of scoring and chemistry at the 2006 games were a deep concern then, and questionable moves made by Quinn and Gretzky hurt the team. Was it really the right thing to bring the Tampa trio of Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards, and Martin St. Louis?

Was it right to keep Jason Spezza on the reserve squad when his talents best suit him for the bigger ice surface, especially with his teammate and friend Dany Heatley on the team?

Was it the right idea to bring a "shut down" unit of Draper and Maltby instead of an energy line? Would you rather have guys that would run around the ice hitting everything that moves like Nieminen and Ruutu did for the Fins or Holmstrom and Pahlsson for the Swedes or "defensive specialists" assigned to stop the other team's best unit instead of creating energy and opportunity?

Up front, Jarome Iginla, Shane Doan, Lecavalier, Rick Nash, Heatley, and Joe Thornton should be automatics to return to the Olympics. Iginla, who would make an ideal captain for this unit, brings the leadership and gold medal standards that this team should aspire to.

Lecavalier and Thornton are two of the NHL's premier talents, and their skill set, along with the new "Captain Canada" Shane Doan should all play significant roles for the team. The presence of Nash and Heatley along the left wing stabilizes potentially their top two scoring units, Heatley being the defensive liability out of the two.

In addition to the six returning forwards, Canadian hockey will be ready for its youth movement, with a few alumni from the 2005 World junior Champion Canadian team becoming significant players for the team.

Sidney Crosby, of course, will be one of the go-to players for team Canada, as well as its top offensive talent. A potential unit of Crosby centering Iginla and Nash could be that top scoring unit that the country lacked in 2006.

Ryan Getzlaf also figures to be a prominent figure on one of the top lines, with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter both potentially playing a role on any potential energy line. Richards has established himself as a top two-way centreman in the NHL, and both he and Carter play a prominent role on the Flyers' penalty kill. In addition, they both have deadly accurate shots and a knack for scoring around the net.

Outside of the four alumni from the 2005 World Juniors, Dallas captain Brenden Morrow should be given a role on the team. His style is much the same as Ryan Smyth, who played an important role on many Canadian international teams in the early 90s, and played a prominent role on the Salt Lake team. Team Canada would needs someone who can take abuse in front of the other team's net, a la Holmstrom, and doesn't mind getting dirty in the corners.

With two forward spots remaining, Yzerman should take a long hard look at both Marc Savard and Patrick Marleau as roster fillers. Savard has been a revelation this year in Boston, demonstrating for once a capability to play in both ends of the rink, and being one of the NHL's premier setup men.

Savard has played with Iginla, but could potentially be a setup man for guys like Heatley, Morrow, and Doan. Marleau's usefulness is much the same as Mike Richards. Marleau plays a solid game in both ends of the rink and is a constant short handed goal leader every year. Marleau has speed and intelligence and a chemistry with Joe Thornton that is almost unmatched anywhere in the league.

In goal, the decision should be pretty simple, with Roberto Luongo taking the reigns from Martin Brodeur as Olympic goalie. If Brodeur does accept a secondary role with the squad, he could get playing time in the opening round against potential hockey powerhouses such as France, Kazahkstan, or Latvia. Luongo should get the bulk of the playing time however.

As for the third goalie, Canada should gear toward 2014 and invite Carey Price or Steve Mason to gain valuable experience from two of the world's greatest.

Yzerman has many tough decisions to make, yet the focus should be on the team aspect of this club and not on the potential star power available.

Dustin Tokarski

Gold-medal winning Team Canada goaltender Dustin Tokarski started off the World Junior Championship by facing less-skilled teams and did not face many shots. Therefore, he wasn't teasted early. 

However, the first test he face was Team USA. In that game, he looked rather shaky allowing three goals on nine shots in the first 12 minutes of play. However, his team bailed him out for his mistakes. And he finished the night allowing four goals on 27 shots. But many times, he looked shaky and required assistance from his defense to block shots. 

Next, it was the semi-final matchup against the Russians. Each time Team Canada scored a goal to take the lead, they saw it erased as Tokarski let the lead slip four times. A miraculous goal by Jordon Eberle with Canada 5.4 seconds away from elimination gave a new life to the Canadians. 

After a 10-minute scoreless overtime, the game was to be decided in a shootout and Dustin Tokarski had to be sharp. The first Russian shooter hit the post and Tokarski made a save on the second shooter to take the win for Canada. 

Going into the final game agaisnt the powerful Swedes, the question on everyone's minds was the young goaltender's to bounce back as goaltending had to be far superior and played a key role against the Swedish attack.

Many people, from media to fans, felt unsure and there was a lack of confidence about Tokarski that surfaced in the preceding days of the final. However, Team Canada coach Pat Quinn did not look back on his decision to stick with Dustin Tokarski.

As the game started, Canada gained an early lead and Dustin Tokarski seemed strong and steady.

He was indeed spectacular throughout the game making 39 saves on 40 shots, many of them brilliant. He was specially the best penalty killer of Team Canada which was shorthanded seven times.

His performance proved that mental strength plays an important role and can change anyone's game. Many even said that he built on his performance in the shootout in order to bring his A-game and beat Sweden. 

Jaroslav Halak

While Carey Price is sidelined by a lower-body injury, the Montreal Canadiens made the call to backup netminder Karoslav Halak to take over the starting duties. Halak, who has always put up excellent performances which made people say he was destined to be a No.1 goaltender has gone through rough times in his past two starts.

Against the New Jersey Devils, the Slovakian netminder was beat twice on nine shots in the first period. He equally looked bad on the goals because they were weak shots should've been captured. After allowing another goal in the second period, he was pulled to make way for Marc Denis.  

In his previous start against the Florida Panthers, Halak let in two goals in the first period on 14 shots. The Montreal Canadiens offense then bounced back to score four unanswered goals and limit the opposition to five shots on goal through all of the second period. In third period, the Habs saw 4-2 and then 5-3 leads erased away by the Panthers. Halak was beat three times on 12 shots and that forced the game into overtime.

The overtime was scoreless and the game went to a shootout. Halak appeared to be a transformed goaltender in the shootout making himself look big and tall and stopping all three shots. Although one player missed the net and another hit the post, Halak made one important save and ended up getting the win. 

After two lacklustre performances, Montreal Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau has decided to go with Jaroslav Halak in goal tomorrow when the Habs visit Madison Square Garden for a date with the New York Rangers. 

We all have seen the potential the 23 year old goalie has and he sure does not lack talent or skill. It has just been a hard two games. However, the media and fans of the Habs have been on a rage wanting him sent down to the AHL or even traded. Tomorrow would be Jaro's turn to rebound and prove that he still has winning capabilities. 

Hence as a comparison, Dustin Toakrski's path through the World Juniors could be set as an example for Halak to get inspiration. We'll have to wait and see until tomorrow if the Habs' back-up goaltender answers the call and delivers what is required of him and gain back the confidence from everyone. 

What do you think? Will he conquer the attacking Rangers? Would he be shaky again for a third time in a row? We'll all find out tomorrow!

Canada wins it's fifth consecutive gold!

I don't think you people across Canada really know how big this IS!—but

Tavares pulls his weight and Esposito shows the way!

The Swedes were no real threat since we managed to keep them to the outer perimeters, ever on their power plays.

Good job Team Canada, you really deserved this one!

But let me try to put things into perspective.

In what other friggin' tournament (or other world) do you Canadians think it is OK to run over the opposing goalie not once, but twice, three and four times?

You were lucky you played the "chicken swedes", or there would have been some serious blood on the ice.

Don't ever try that again. Ever.

Secondly, when are you Canadians going to stop trying to intimidate the officials? I mean—it worked real well here in Ottawa—but—isn't it getting old?

Third (and this might sound like sour grapes) but you Team Canada were unbelievably friggin' lucky.

You should have lost against the US (how many seconds before the penalty expired did he come in?!)

You really stood NO chance against Russia and the rest of that game was nothing but pure coincidence and luck! (And please don't claim anything else!). C'mon, 5 seconds to go.

But hey, I am the first to admit—a real good team IS lucky—so again, congratulations Team Canada, you deserved it!

And what else I admire in you—you never give up.

But we meet again some day.

Until then.

Let me start by saying that was a great comeback at the end.  I'll continue by saying that if there hadn't have been an extraordinary series of flukes at the end the game would have ended 5-4 Russia. 

If the Russian player had not gone for the empty net instead of just skating out or flipping the puck down, if he didn't miss the open net, if the Russian defense wouldn't have cleared just one more of Hodgson's multiple stupid no-look behind the back passes to no one in the slot in the final minutes (I counted three and couldn't understand why he was out there in the first place with the game he was having), if the Russian defender who stopped Tavares' backhand flip shot would have gloved it to the corner instead of bobbling it right to the Canadian forward's stick, etc. 

You get the point.  Exciting finish but also very lucky.  

So that brings me to the issue of how things got to that point at all.  Anyone else watching the game would have probably noticed that Canada's only good forward line was Kane's.  Sorry, but no other line had any jump in their step, they all made soft passes, didn't really create anything offensively, and pretty much looked like they expected to just breeze through this one. 

I'm not going to rip into Hodgson because every player has a bad game or two  but I honestly would have benched him for the last seven minutes of the second if I was coaching just to make sure he understands that at this level he needs to compete a little harder every shift of every game.  He wasn't the only one either and I won't even get started on how poorly I thought Hickey played basically the entire game but it should be noted that a lot of guys just weren't in it tonight.

 Looking at how the game progressed, how pressure was applied by each time, what sort of scoring chances came up, etc, you really need to ask how this game was at all close.  Canada really had better chances when they were deep in the zone, once the Canadian defense was really setup Russia had some okay chances but definitely weren't dominant so it's sort of surprising that they scored five goals.

 I think two of them really should have been stopped and the fifth probably should have been as well but that was an absurdly poorly play by the defense so I won't fault the goalie completely.  One could argue that whoever was telling the Canadian defenders to try and pick off passes and miss in the neutral zone, resulting in odd-man rushes, 10 seconds after scoring a goal is the culprit. 

The Canadian D made similar stupid plays in the first against the US which I blame for two of the first three US goals so that's maybe a fair argument.   

I expect a lot of old Leafs fans won't like what I think the real issue is.  In my honest opinion I don't believe Pat Quinn is coaching this team at all.  I think he feels it's fun and he's having a good time behind the bench but the team has not improved (have actually gotten far worse from a systems perspective) as the tournament has progressed. 

Further to that he hasn't rewarded good play or made any adjustments for poor play from anything I've seen.  It seems more like TSN has told him who his top lines are and he's just stuck with that the whole way through even if it doesn't make any sense to do so.  He's still playing Hickey's line as his first defensive pair but they aren't playing that way at all. 

Really, I would have taken Hickey off the ice after the first time he showed that he was going to put as little effort into shutting down players in this game as he did in the game against the US.  He's a good player but he's trying to do too much offensively and that's not what they need him to do in a lot of situations.  It's up to Quinn to deal with that and make sure his players are playing the role they need to for the team, not just for themselves. 

In a single elimination game you don't let a guy give the puck away that many times and give up that many odd-man rushes and still consider him to be on your top D line.  At least, not if you are actually coaching the team.  Same goes for how Hodgson played this game.  Kane's line was making a ton happen and Hodgson was just turing the puck over and making soft plays.  But there was no decrease in ice-time or any notable repercussions for playing so poorly in such an important game.

I thought the top two lines tonight were just standing around and trying plays that were far to fancy against even a reasonably solid defensive team.  Also not big on the goalie selection.  Two of those goals definitely should have been stopped along with a few in the US game.  I hope he picks it up against Sweden.

 I really do not believe that Quinn takes this tournament seriously enough to be able to coach it.  I think all of his decisions were made during tryouts (there are my No. 1 lines, this is my No. 1 goalie) and he hasn't effectively done anything to improve the team or adjust to their play.  Maybe in a seven game series you can do that but single elimination is a different animal.  

I'm sure a lot of people will disagree with my assessment.  But can anyone honestly say that Sutter would have allowed Canada to play as poorly tonight as they did?  And if they started to slack off does anyone believe he would have just sat back and watched it?  I don't. 

I think he would have shuffled lines, benched players, and said "If you aren't going to play hard for this team every shift you aren't going to play at all."  That's the type of team leadership we need to keep winning this tournament, not sitting back and assuming we'll be okay slacking off because we're wearing the maple leaf.  

This team has a lot of potential but they'll need to focus it against Sweden.  Here's hoping they get their act together before Monday.  Or at least that Quinn wakes up and realizes that a coach isn't just someone who stands behind the bench and reads comics or does whatever he's been doing to kill time without ever looking at what his players are doing. The only thing stopping us from getting five in a row in complacency, not lack of talent. But that doesn't make it any less unacceptable if we lose.