The mens hockey tournament is considered by Ru sians as the crowned jewel of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. It all begins Wednesday with enormous pre sure on the host team and high expectations attached to the North American squads as well.Sochi 2014Though Vancouver offered one of the most exciting tournaments and exciting finishes in the NHL era of the Olympics, the 2014 Games offer a whole new level of intrigue. With the Winter Olympics on Ru sian soil for the first time, the home team figures to either be the tournaments most motivated team or will be crushed by the expectations.Meanwhile, Sweden, the United States and copyright all seem to have the best chance among other teams to compete for gold along with the hosts.It's going to be a fantastic two weeks of hockey full of twists and turns and the best action we'll see until the Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway. Anything can happen at the Olympics, making for both compelling TV and terrific storylines Olympic Hockey Heres a look at each of the three groups heading into the Olympics, which open Wednesday at noon ET with Czech Republic vs. Sweden. Ru sia2010 Finish: SixthThree Key Players: , Ilya Kovalchuk, Quick Preview: The Ru sian team will be one of the most skilled outfits in the Olympics, but questionable defense is a notable weakne s. Goaltending could be a strong point whether its Sergei Bobrovsky or . If Ru sia scores like they should be capable of with such stars as Alex Ovechnkin, Evgeni Malkin, Ilya Kovalchuk and an ailing , and gets above average goaltending, theyre going to have a chance. The immense pre sure this team is under has to be a factor as well. They carry the heavy weight of a nations hopes. Will it be too much to shoulder? United States2010 Finish: SilverThree Key Players: , , Quick Preview: The U.S. built a team on a foundation of speed and seems to have the offensive firepower to be able to score frequently in this tournament. Eight players have 20 goals or more on Team USAs roster this year led by Phil Ke sel who is among the hottest scorers in the NHL coming into the Olympics. The goaltending situation, whether it is Jonathan Quick or between the pipes, is a strength for the U.S., and it will need to be. The U.S. is young on the blue line, but extremely mobile and will be a tough team in transition. The size this team boasts up front will also be a big advantage throughout the tournament. The U.S. doesn't Greg Gaines Jersey match the depth of some of the other top teams, but it's not far off and is very capable of making a run at the gold medal. Slovakia2010 Finish: FourthThree Key Players: , Marian Ho sa, Quick Preview: Recent injuries to Marian Gaborik and Lubomir Visnovsky put a dent in Slovakias depth, but this is a team that has beaten the odds before. With Zdeno Chara anchoring the blue line and Marian Ho sa leading a forward crop that includes exciting youngstars and Tomas Jurco, anything is po sible, but it is an uphill battle. Jaroslav Halak will have to have the tournament of his life to keep the Slovakians in the hunt late. This team may have some extra motivation in 2014, though, as they play with the late Pavol Demitra in their hearts. He was the leading scorer for Slovakia at the 2010 Olympics and remains a favorite son of his home country even after his death in the tragic Lokomotiv plane crash. This is a team that lacks the depth of talent of others, but will be a tough out for whoever they face in the knockout stage. Slovenia2010 Finish: Did not qualifyThree Key Players: , Jan Mursak, David RodmanQuick Preview: Slovenia may just be happy to be there. Knowing that even winning a single game would be a huge accomplishment, Slovenia is a team with nothing to lose. Highlighted by its brightest star in Anze Kopitar, whose father is the teams coach, the Buddy Howell Jersey Slovenians will play with pride, but are unlikely to pose much of a threat. Jan Mursak has some North American experience and David Rodman was the teams leading scorer in Olympic qualifying, so they will be worth watching as well. Canada2010 Finish: GoldThree Key Players: , , Whoevers in netQuick Preview: The Canadians should be the heavy favorites in Sochi as the defending gold medalist. The offensive fire power and the depth on defense make them the best team on paper. Theres a good mix of old and young with this club, too, and theyll be fast. The most-talked-about position on this team, however, is goalie. Whether its or owning the net for much of the tournament, its not a huge weakne s, but goaltending is where copyright lags behind other countries. The only way copyright doesnt make it to the latter stages of this tournament is if it cant figure out a way through the traps that will be run against them on the big ice or the goaltending is laughably bad. It wont be a cake walk by any means, but this is the best team in the tournament on paper. Finland2010 Finish: BronzeThree Key Players: , Petri Kontiola, Quick Preview: Finland may be glad it is the goaltending capitol of the world right now as they have the best trio in the Olympics. Theyll need Tuukka Rask to be great in this tournament to have any chance. Losing and in the span of 24 hours hurts the scoring depth badly. It puts a lot of responsibility on KHL forward Petri Kontiola to shoulder a heavy offensive burden, while veterans like Teemu Selanne, Kimmo Timonen and will have to lean on their experience to help the always scrappy Finns compete. This squad is in tough to be in the mix for gold, but theyve seemingly always found a way to hang in to the late stages of these Olympic tournaments. Norway2010 Finish: TenthThree Key Players: , Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, Patrick ThoresenQuick Preview: The Norwegians may have an honest shot at improving on their 10th-place finish from Vancouver. Mats Zuccarello has really come into his own as an NHL player and could be a good source of offense along with 2010s top scorer Patrick Thoresen. The goaltending will obviously be key as well as Norway goes with a very young trio of Lars Haugen, Lars Volden and Steffen Soberg. Taylor Rapp Jersey Norway should be happy if they can get into a favorable qualifier and maybe sneak in the backdoor to the quarterfinals. Its a tall order, but they have a lot of top-level international experience on the roster this time around and will have their eyes on an upset. Austria2010 Finish: Did not qualifyThree Key Players: , , Quick Preview: The best Austria could likely hope for in this tournament is an upset over Norway in the preliminary round, but that may be asking a lot. They do have some proven NHLers including Thomas Vanek, who will likely play a ton up front. Austrias accomplishment came in just making the Olympics, so anything else at this point is a bonus. Expect them to get a big boost from having Vanek and Michael Grabner in the lineup, which is something the Austrians dont often have the advantage ofin international tournaments. It still probably will be a tough couple of days for this club. Sweden2010 Finish: FifthThree Key Players: , , Quick Preview: Looking to erase a disappointing fifth-place finish in 2010, the Swedes will have to go for gold without and Johan Franzen, which represent two big veteran lo ses. That said, Henrik Lundqvist has the potential to steal some games for this team and he has a solid defense in front of him. Theres skill and speed throughout the lineup, making Sweden one of the top competitors for the gold medal in 2014. Theyll need a few of the younger players to step up to fill the void left by Sedins offense in particular, but this roster is built with the ability to succeed on big ice. Theyll be dangerous, especially if Lundqvist has his best. Czech Republic2010 Finish: SeventhThree Key Players: , , Quick Preview: The Czechs have a lot of experience Eric Dickerson Jersey on this team, but there is valid concern that they left too much offense home by not adding and to this roster. Theyll lean on old standbys Jaromir Jagr and Petr Nedved some, but will need to get a lot out of younger players like , David Krejci and . The biggest factor in the Czechs competitivene s, however, is goaltender Ondrej Pavelec, who has been le s than stellar in the NHL this season, though has shown some moderate improvement after a coaching change in Winnipeg. Will they have enough scoring to get by? Its a big question and they have to answer quickly with the opening game against Sweden. Switzerland2010 Finish: EighthThree Key Players: , , Quick Preview: The Swi s could be one of those teams that is underestimated and pulls off a few surprises. After advancing all the way to the gold-medal game at the last IIHF World Championship, the Swi s have some momentum and theyll have a better roster in the Olympics (though so will everybody else). Jonas Hiller is the X-factor as he has been playing solid hockey for the NHLs best team this season. Meanwhile, Roman Josi was a star at the Worlds last year and is budding into a terrific NHL defenseman. There will also be a lot of responsibility placed on the shoulders of the promising Nino Niederreiter, who also stood out in last years World Championship. The Swi s will need some stellar goaltending and a lot of luck to make a deep run, but they should at least be a tough out once the tournament goes to the knockout stage. Latvia2010 Finish: TwelfthThree Key Players: , Sandis Ozolinsh, Kristers GudlevskisQuick Preview: Led by interim head coach Ted Nolan, Latvia is up against a tough task in Sochi, but they have some young talent to lean on. Theyll also be hoping for some guidance from experienced stars such as Sandis Ozolinsh, who will play in his third Olympics and has remained solid in the KHL with Dynamo Riga. It will be interesting to see how much they lean on Tampa Bay goalie prospect Kristers Gudlevskis, who did well in World Championship play last year. Getting past qualifying would be a surprise, but Latvia has a fair amount of international experience on this roster.
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