Olympic Hockey heats up today.
Sunday's game is the first big test for the US hockey team as they play Canada in a non medal game at around 4:40 pm PST on MSNBC and it'll be intense. The winner gets the much coveted bye in the next round. The day opens with Russia vs the Czechs and finishes with the Swedes playing Finland. All grudge matches. The Canadians and Russians are the big favorites while the U.S. and Sweden are the dark horses, but as many as six teams could bring home a medal.
Mike Milbury, an NBC hockey analyst really was way over the top when he attacked the US team for playing not so great hockey in the Norway game during an intermission. Jeremy Roenick didn't take any of his nonsense, so good for JR.
He was acting like a jackass with his "the US sucks" rants. I hate the Olympic rules for overtime games. In the medal round, they should play until a goal is scored and get rid of the shoot out completely.
And I'm not the only person miffed at Milbury.
Dead Spin has more on his anti-Ovechkin crusade.
Here's the WaPo's Dan Steinberg on the dust up with Jeremy Roenick.
Cap fans aren't happy with Mike, but Crosby did win the Cup last year with Pittsburgh and he certainly is a tremendous player.
I think Mike was much worse to the Americans though because he disrespected many very good NHL players. Let the games begin. Go USA and screw Mike Milbury's negativity.
(Corrected. I read some wrong bio information on Milbury last night. My bad. Here's his correct info. )
Hockey? Really? I've watched Hockey a few times, but I still don't understand it's appeal. A lot like Soccer on Ice. They need to add more ways to score to escape the boredom of watching teams go back and forth endlessly.
Anybody know the results of the Curling competition?
diff then the pro game
the rink is larger...and they dont allow all the hits that occur in the pro game, so there are more penalties....allowing for more scoring ops
they're playing on nhl ice, not european ice
doesn't equal more excitement. This is the problem with sports fans today. A one to nothing pitchers' duel is more exciting than a 15-8 homerun derby. But as with everything else, sports has to appeal to the lowest common denomitator in order to be profitable.
prefer the brief spells of activity followed by tedious seemingly endless pauses of baseball and football. I suppose it gives the announcers time to explain to the fans what they just saw. Hockey is more like basketball, you have to keep up.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
The best thing about hockey is, it's faster than football and they let you carry a club.
After that USA/Canada game tonight? The rapid shots and breakaways were incredible. Rarely are soccer games 5-3, with almost 70 shots on goal, and I've never seen a hockey player flop. I'm not even that big a fan, but I found tonight's game very exciting.
I've seen some stuff, man. And some thangs...
Go Team USA! (w/ Patrick Kane)
Go Team Canada! (w/ three Blackhawks)
I wonder, is Andy K rooting for the Swedewings? :)
Corruption favors the wealthy.
They can score plenty of goals, but the key is Miller in goal..He's got to be a wall.
Curling? hehe...I tried it...Count me out...LOL
Now if the USA gets bounced I'll have to reassess the situation.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Love Olympic hockey, no stupid fighting, up and down action and skill emphasized.
I always preferred the skilled players. It wasn't even so bad when fighting used to be a way to keep the other teams' players honest. But when some teams started wasting a slot on a player just to fight? Ruined the game. I am glad that more teams are getting away from that these days. You may see some players that can and do drop the gloves now, but the good teams don't have a guy anything like that unless the guy can play in the league without having to fight.
Go Canada! This should be one of the best games before the medal rounds start. But there are just way too many teams loaded with enough talent to compete these days to say any team is really a favorite. A lot of teams with talented enough goalies too. Meet up with one of them on a hot night and there can easily be what some would call upsets.
into hockey and basketball, I could care less.
As a matter of fact, I sometimes root for the little country against out lates version of the 'Dream Team' in basketball. Yeah, I guess that means that's it's not that I like rooting for the underdog, it's that I must hate this country...
Pros shouldn't be allowed into the olympics. What a crock.
I'm paying no attention to olympic hockey, because it's just like a 2 week all-star game. And the all-star game sucks.
Wake me up in a couple weeks when the NHL starts playing again and the Red Wings start to kick ass again when Lilja returns.
...was an exercise in class warfare as fought by the upper classes. Professional athletics were, at the time, a relatively new thing. Most professional athletes, whether participating in track and field, baseball, boxing, or any of the other popular sports of that era were from the working class. The Olympics showcased rich boys who could afford to be amateurs.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
and they were looked down upon because of it
most of the athletes from america were working class stiffs...even at the start of the modern day olympics
There were no athletic scholarships, Pell grants or GI Bills when the modern Olympic movement began. The US amateur athletes came from money or had patrons with money.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
although bringing in the pros did bring up the games from other countries
but now they can stop sending the pros
would much rather watch college kids play
and im still pissed that baseball and softball were dropped
Rich folks with nothing but time and money on their hands invented the mythical "Amateur Athlete" which forever hampered the middle class and poor Americans who had to choose or work between pursuing their sports dreams.
The original Greek Olympics had both pros and amateurs, but you're right the revived Olympics starting in 1912 were rich folks, not particularly toned and nothing like
http://www.infotainmentnews.net/wp-content/up...
Or
http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/uploa...
They were more like
http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/uploa...
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
n/t
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I was just about to correct that.
Should've remembered, it was the year before Dracula was published.
But wasn't it sporadic at first?
Here's the third link I wanted:
http://www.casey.vic.gov.au/doclib/fEx3G725_1...
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
They skipped 1916 because of WW I, though.
IIRC, it was Athens in '96, Paris in 1900, St.Louis in '04, London in '08 and Stockholm in '12 before the break. The Games resumed in Antwerp in 1920.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
when Olympic hockey only allowed professionals from the East Block. Much fairer.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
And the scores are: Japan: 9.2, Canada: 8.9, Sweden: 9.1, East Germany: 6.9...I'm on the fence about pros in the Olympics - I see both sides. But, if the overall goal is for a country to send their BEST athletes, I don't see the fact that athletes that are good enough at their sports to make a living at it should be disqualified simply for that reason. Plus it seems to hard to enforce - what clearly defines "pro?" The Soviets clearly were sending seasoned pro players pre-1992 in hockey and basketball. Heck, some countries even got by gender requirements! But, I still think boxing is totally non-professional, so, there you go. Maybe incorporate a "Ringer Rule" in team sports and allow only a certain percentage of pro players.
I've seen some stuff, man. And some thangs...
While I do agree that Mike Milbury needs to check himself before... JR wrecks him, I do have to point out that Mike actually appears to be American.
I'm just tired of seeing and hearing about Crosby CONSTANTLY. The guy could so nothing all tournament and still get all the credit. I wonder how many viewers would know that Heatley was the leading scorer for Canada without having to check an impartial source.
At the NHL level the Golden Boy is constantly shown up by some Russian dude... no worries, the NHL doesn't notice.
against Switzerland Thursday, so he HAS done something. Sorry you are tired of seeing and hearing about Crosby, but he is a hard-working, well-spoken and humble young man who stays out of scandals and the spotlight and gives back to the community -- which is what a lot of Canadians are like. Canada and the Pittsburgh tri-state area love him, with good reason: he captained the 2009 Stanley Cup champions. Ovechkin is a showboat who has yet to be on a Cup team. His time may come soon enough, but he has to go a long way to match the character of Sidney Crosby.
We Nova Scotian's are very proud of our soft-spoken, hugely-talented hometown boy. He lets his skills and ability do the talking for him.
Much like Mario before him. Hope everyone on both sides has an AWESOME game....
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For the positive comments and also to Nova Scotia for producing such an excellent player, but more than that, such a wonderful human being. As a Penguins fan, I have so enjoyed watching Sid the Kid play. Here's to both the USA and Canadian teams in tonight's matchup!
... some of us really like to just see people do their best. Period.
As I've said before... its a beautiful game, when its played right ...
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sorry. as a canuck myself i can't let the mario comment stand. that dude is the height of poor sportsmanship. his massive ego led him to return from retirement and completely disrespect the captain of his own team, a team he was part owner of. i watched him beak off at his team mates because he wasn't handed the puck, despite the younger, better player, his own captain jagr actually scoring. great player but a true dick.
Um, John, Mike Milbury is American. He's from Massachusetts. Can't tell by his accent?
I confused some bio information...Thanks. I corrected....
and crossed the two up. :-)
Trading him to Boston was one of the worst trades the Rangers ever made.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_Middleton
Detroit traded Adam Oates and Paul MacLean to St. Louis for an ancient Bernie Federko and (meh) Tony McKegney. Federko retired at the end of the season and I think the Wings traded McKegney for a Darryl Sittler rookie card.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
that most of us just aren't interested in puckey, I mean hocket.
I seems the IOC is afraid the poor, frail dears might hurt their uterus, or other some other unmentionable womanly parts.
The real reason they're not having the event is that women are OUT JUMPING THE MEN!
HOW GREAT IS THAT!!!
IOC Assholes!
Take it down a notch, buster. There's already enough opinionated blowhards in your industry.
"We will find fulfillment not in the goods that we have, but in the good we can do for each other."
Robert F. Kennedy
In the medal round, they should play until a goal is scored and get rid of the shoot out completely.
Get rid of the shoot-out, PERIOD!! Even in the NHL. What contrived garbage!
Bring back tie games and award no points to anyone in case of a tie.
OK, all you shoot-out loving hockey "fans"---commence profanity.
than the shoot out but not a bad idea to keep playing until a goal is scored in the medal rounds but then what's the sense / logic ? The shoot out is completely fair unlike the NFL coin flip and sudden death over time .
look, i understand wanting the best, but jeez....i would much rather watch college kids playing
now that the soviet union is no more, no one has the advantage of playing together for years
both nba and nhl players should be banned from the olympics
oh, and if curling is allowed to stay in the olympics the summer games should add bowling and shuffle board
and if xgames events stay in the winter, the summer games should add skateboard halfpipe, as they already put in bicycle motocross
and what is the best event of the winter? skeleton....those people are insane
watching guys from my own country I'd never seen on Hockey Night in Canada, playing against Swedes, Russians, Finns, on this HUGE ice surface, totally different game,...International Hockey use to mean something ... now ...
bah ... Crosby is from my home town ... but really who cares except the hype-merchants?
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The Winter Olympics are meant to showcase winter sports. I'm not sure where the notion came from that said sports must be physically dangerous in order to be a sport, but it simply isn't the case.
Curling is an ancient game of strategy that requires precision, hand-eye coordination & physical flexibility to do well. It's also notable (together with the other, "Scottish Game"), for its emphasis on camaraderie, which includes the requirement that the players police themselves - no referees, umpires or judges.
If you don't understand why curling is a Winter Olympic event I would suspect you've never tried your hand at the Roar.
Did you watch the world juniors?
Hasa Diga Eebowai
. . . let alone the octupi.
Corruption favors the wealthy.
Wow, these two teams really do not like each other. It is very heated out there. Another benefit to Olympic hockey is no fighting. These guys are really, really pissed and neither can throw a punch. Went to watch a hockey game and a hockey game broke out!
Radix Omnium Malorum Avaritia
Because trading punches is nothing compared to a nasty spear, a BC-two-hander, a quick high stick under the visor behind the play...
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Someone from Russia just got away with a high stick to the mouth. The Czech's are playing great defense and are lucky the Russians have already missed two open nets. They look pretty tough to beat. Great hockey with U.S. Canada yet to come
Radix Omnium Malorum Avaritia
Slovakia did it.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Good that means it'll melt the ice and they will half to put the game on hold.
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
I'm alread not sold on the players we chose,excluding Stamkos was idiotic, but Miller can win a game all by himself, and our two goalies have been shaky for awhile.
But you have more than enough talent to win it all.
So I wasn't the only one who noticed that Milbury and JR seem to be arguing for the sake of arguing with each other? Every time JR opens his mouth, Milbury jumps all over him and won't let him finish. At least that's what it was like at the beginning of the telecasts--I wonder if someone told them to tone it down...it seems a bit less nasty now.
Mike Milbury:
"Yeah, but isn't the score right now Sundin 1 Olympic Gold, Gretzky none? Doesn't it come down to winning?"
Must be true.
Argh!! Deciding medal standings by testing to see which team is luckiest or maybe has the best goalie. Very Stupid.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
I don't mind them so much in regular season league games- what's a few minutes to award an extra point during an 82 game season? and it sure beats a sister-kiss!- and I can even concede it in the group round of a tournament, but when you're talking about the knockout phase it's horrible. Same goes for soccer tournaments.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
They could decide the game with a quick round of darts or maybe even a coin flip.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
JR, please stop whining. JA get your nationalities straight before you commence whining.
I'm a Caps fan and Ovechkin is my guy. However, if you love the game, you have to respect talent in your opponents. Crosby is an exceptional player and a good leader. His Penguins teammate Malkin is also a superb player, and currently on Team Russia with Ovechkin. It's ludicrous to knock either Crosby or Ovechkin - they're two of the best players out there, and it's early in their careers. Just enjoy some great hockey. (It's nice to see Jagr out there, too.)
Neither Crosby or Ovechkin spends 60 minutes on the ice for their teams.
As much as I loved Stevie Yzerman, Brendan Shanahan and Sergei Fedorov scoring goals on the top two lines as the Wings started winning Stanley Cups again in the '90s, I also loved the chippier players like Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby and Doug Brown, who played superb defense and often scored some very important counterstrike goals.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Thats another reason I like watching the pro's in Olympic hockey, it brings back the former pro's playing for their country. Sergei Federov was out there too (poor Jagr got knocked on his arse by Ovechkin and the result was another Russian goal. I was pulling for the Czech's in that one)
Radix Omnium Malorum Avaritia
Maybe he's actually OK but Milbury comes across as a jerk , my humble opinion . I definitely get the impression that Roenick and Milbury are not pals . Canada vs. USA , should be a good game . I'd like to see a lower ranked team pull of an upset and win the Gold .
Go Canada!!!!!!! (sorry John)
...... :)
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Why must you break my heart again? :(
Oh well, at least our curlers are still aces.
Good game. Dominated in faceoffs, goaltending, power play and skating. See you in the medal rounds. USA odds on favourite for hockey gold.
Some of the rapid-fire action was just spectacular.
I've seen some stuff, man. And some thangs...
Nicely done!
hockey is supposed to be a team sport. this canadian has no time for the nhl all star wankfest.
Oh, yea. Ryan Miller baby. Canada still has the best team, but it became a lot harder for them now.
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