The stage is set for one tournament, and the medal round is almost set for the other.

Let’s check in.

Women’s Tournament

Bronze Medal Game: Sweden vs. Switzerland – An effort most valiant

Whoever wins this game, it will be a triumph regardless for both sides.

As I’ve been talking about all tourney, Sweden’s return to prominence means that they’ve already gotten to the 2nd base camp for respectability. They’re here. Their investments are paying off. The seeds have become plants have become players have become stars. Tre Kronor’s Damen team is back. All they gotta do is cap it off with a win, then it’s medals for everybody, center circle wipe, cue John Williams.

On the other side, Switzerland. Or more accurately; Alina Muller.

Alina Muller, pride of the Fleet and of the Swiss, is one of the least appreciated parts of this Olympics simply because she is the best women’s player to ever come out of that country, and her countrywomen are making that point abundantly clear. She leads the team in goals, points, assists, and accounts for an embarrassing amount of their offense in general. She somehow got them here.

By all accounts, Sweden should win this game in a walk. There’s just no way that Alina Muller can harness all the combined scoring powers of three of her other teammates to somehow win a Bronze Medal. That’d just be silly…

…But weirder things have happened to Swedish hockey teams in International tournaments.

We will only know when they start play.

Gold Medal Game: USA vs. Canada – A final stand

There was only one real outcome for this tournament.

It was this exact game.

It will only be close by one woman’s intervention. Even then, it’s going to be a crowning of a new era for the sport.

The Women’s game has of course evolved over time. But it has evolved so much faster and so much harder in two places; Canada and the USA. Both teams are at the peak of their powers given effectively unlimited money in comparison to their compatriots to build and build and build and it has paid off; having trounced just about everybody they could’ve played, and the natural conclusion of this tournament should be these two teams.

In theory.

In practice, this is the United States’ game, and Canada is at best a 2nd tier participant. Might even be a step or two below if not for MPP being otherworldly as per seemingly usual…but the world is changing around this team, and this player.

Marie-Philip Poulin got her start in the CWHL back in 2007. Back then, Canada’s women’s team was the envy of all. Her first olympics was in 2009. She is now the only player on her first olympics to have a career. All others gave up the ghost around 2017, if not sooner. She’s all that’s left. What’s left is a bunch of repeats from an admittedly winning squad in 2022, and they are all much, much older and slower than her. They’re good, don’t get me wrong…but showing up as the oldest team in the tournament has drawbacks if you’re not thinking about adding some hot young talents for the future. Switzerland almost got their insanely risky strategy to work after a 2nd try. They got pumped by the Americans in group stage. They had lineup struggle and coach pouting. Sarah Fillier and Julia Gosling are a start in the right direction, and they’re definitely making their case to return if their powers continue to grow. Daryl Watts has once again been a major shot in the arm, but how many Olympics does she have left?

Once again, it falls to MPP to do what she’s always done. Be Captain Clutch. Her greatest test awaits her.

The USA women’s program meanwhile, has never labored under the impression that every time they came up short was just the natural order of things. They have only ever labored to get better, and better. And better. They’ve stumbled, let’s not act like they’re a perfectly run team (that 2022 team says hi), but the ethos of this squad is clear; the old guard shepherding the new guard into dominance. Hilary Knight’s long watch as Ms. America will come to an end, and in her place come Abbey Murphys and Caroline Harveys and Hannahs Bilka. The niche they carved out will blossom into something far more than the version they played.

A storybook ending awaits for someone. It’s either a last hurrah in proud defiance of the odds; for one of the greatest Women’s hockey players ever to solidify herself as a living legend, or the last hurrah in jubilation of another legend’s international career come to an end; complete with a “Happily ever after” if it all finishes according to plan.

This is the only way it could ever go.

I am so glad we get to watch this sport.

Men’s Tournament

Semi-Final Game 1: Canada vs. Finland – Battle Highs

Both teams have gotta feel good coming out of quarterfinals in the way that they did.

They both got a serious test in ways that maybe they weren’t expecting out of the gate from teams that traditionally they’ve made mincemeat out of at Olympic contests. Canada had it taken to them by Czechia, who pulled out all the stops they could to even keep pace with the onslaught of Red and White, and Finland had to put up a comeback win just to put the Swiss away for good. Both sides recognize that they got a good look at what happens if they show up disorganized for even a little bit of the game they participate in; things could get hairy in a hurry.

So now! Fresh off of two OTs, both of these teams are relative unknowns to one another. Sure, Team Finland is probably looking at a one way ticket to the Bronze Medal game to face either the States or Slovakia, at least on paper and especially given how hard it was for them to come by offense before some actual heroic shifts from Sebastian Aho and Miro Heiskanen got them back in a game they shouldn’t have been behind in.

But…one could probably say the same of Canada, who got a terrifying look at what happens when Jordan Binnington only brings his B+ game to the tourney, and it isn’t pretty. An objectively worse Czechia took them to Overtime and every foe they play from here on out is only going to be better than Czechia. Even with the best in the world playing with the best in the world, they still have to contend with Hockey Canada’s deficiency with developing goaltenders and it’s ugly consequences. They’ve risen above once…but if it happens again, can they do it twice?

On Friday, we get our answer.

Semi-Final Game 2: USA vs. Slovakia – Old Wounds

Team USA and Slovakia have an…interesting history.

While no, Slovakia is not in any immediate threat of dethroning the States in the overall series, the Slovaks have picked up, at just about every level of the international game, the extremely annoying talent of beating the USA in games the USA should walk away from handily. Did it in Worlds, Did it at the World Juniors, Did it at the Olympics. Sure, there aren’t a lot of NHLers in those previous tournaments…but the Team USA hero hockey thing is built in it seems, as the program seems intent on driving it’s own fans crazy with how feckless they can play, especially in games that by all accounts should matter to them. This has been an issue from jump, regardless of the final score, and Slovakia is in the unique position of having everything to gain and nothing to lose.

They are in the unique position of forcing Team USA to care the entire time because they are in the rare position of catching teams that are on paper better than them and absolutely humiliating them. Go ask Germany how much fun playing this team is.

Team USA has not exactly impressed me and a lot of fans in the same ways they have in previous olympics; they simply refuse to make the smart calls with their players, and get burned on it only for hero hockey to save the day once again. This time however, the team looks as mortal as any other nation, and it is entirely Bill Guerin’s fault. The dynamism that this squad should have just does not translate.

It is up to these enormously talented NHLers to rise above whatever malaise this team seems to exist in and force their way into the Gold Medal game.

Nothing less will do. Because Slovakia is more than happy to take this spot if they’re not interested.

Kraken in the Tournament

• Finland
  • Whoo boy, it’s gonna be a helluva test for Eeli Tolvanen and Kaapo Kakko. Tolvanen has 1 point in 4 games, and Kaapo Kakko has 4 points in 4 games.
• Germany
  • Unfortunately, Philipp Grubauer’s tournament comes to a close against Slovakia, and he finishes the tournament with a .912 SV% through 4 games.
• Denmark
  • Oscar Fisker-Mølgaard, whom I neglected to add to the last check in and for that I am very sorry, finished his tournament in the qualifier round. He played pretty well, all things considered, and tied for 2nd in points on the team with 3 points in 4 games.

Torrent in the Tournament

• USA
  • Hilary Knight, Alex Carpenter, Cayla Barnes, and Hannah Bilka all play for a Gold Medal today!
• Canada
  • Julia Gosling also competes for gold!

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GO

FOR

GOLD

LET’S

GO

SUOMI

LET’S

GO

FINNS