Olympic Games

[blazindw]

Glad to see you are enjoying yourself.

I've got blazin's back; he rocks the Red Wing hard and I strongly second his Crosby loathing.

Today's WaPo highlighted the irritation on the part of the sapsuckers at yesterday's Finland match when they didn't get the chance to boo the USA.
Yes, they're quite the model of pious good sportsmanship, aren't they?

And blazin'? How'd you like Hossa's ongoing imitation of a potted plant?

Hossa's imitation of a potted plant continues in Academy Award form...performance of the year, haha.

Canada:hockey is like USA:basketball x 10. When we lost at basketball, you saw how we reacted...for most of us basketball fans, it was like the world was coming to an end. If Canada loses at hockey, the world does end for them. Here's an example of how gonzo they are: On New Years Eve, over 12 million watched a junior hockey game on TV...that's over 1/3 of the country watching a junior hockey game on New Years Eve!

[Deslok]

Well, I teach with a bunch of Canuckistanis here, and we're going to be gathering at 5am on Monday morning(which, thankfully, is a day off) to watch the game on a big screen, so we darn well better win. For anyone who watched, how did the Canadians look in the 2nd and 3rd periods vs Slovakia. The US-Finland and Canada-Russia matchups I thought were determine more by how badly the losing side played than how well the winning side did. I saw the first 10-15 minutes of the Canadian semi and was rather impressed as they really seemed to impose their will on the Slovakians. But when I came back after being out, it turns out it was a close game at the end. Any thoughts on how things will bear out? My main thought is that if we can survive the first 10 minutes, when the crowd and the Canadian team will be pumped with emotion, if Miller can stonewall them for that long, it could get into their heads a bit. But I do worry about a quick start.

[InSpades]

I find it highly amusing that a lot of people in the US are mostly excited about this matchup not because they love hockey, but because they know Canada loves hockey and would love to see them lose because of how crushed they would be.

That's definitely me . I was also rooting pretty hard against the Canadian women's curling team yesterday. For those who missed it... the Canadian's totally choked away a gold medal. In the 10th end all they had to do was keep Sweden from scoring 2 (and Sweden had no rocks in the house going into their last 2 throws) and failed. Then Canada had the hammer in the extra end needing to just score 1 obviously but the Swedes outplayed them and left Canada with a reasonably tough shot to win and they missed.

So ya... definitely not a big hockey fan but would love to see the meltdown that Canada has if they lose twice to the US and come away with the silver medal.

[Acymetric]

You got me twisted...I LOVE hockey and love Olympic hockey. Growing up in Michigan, I went to Canada more times than I can remember (I was just there last weekend) and truly adore the place. That said, this is country vs. country and I'm an American! I'm excited about this matchup because it's the best matchup the Olympics could possibly hope for: the two biggest rivals in the sport. Sure, other factors enter the equation, like Crosby being something I can't mention with the profanity filter, the fact that hockey=religion for Canada, the fact that we have the youngest team in the Olympics and us even being in the gold medal game was considered out of the equation from the start, etc. But first and foremost, it's the two premier nations in the sport playing for national pride and it's the best hockey rivalry in the world. You gotta love that.

Sorry, quoting you probably wasn't the best choice. I wasn't saying that you were, I was just sort of providing a follow up of to your excitement with a comment on the general public (or at least the general public I've been around). Absolutely no intention on my part to question your love for hockey!

[NSDukeFan]

You got me twisted...I LOVE hockey and love Olympic hockey. Growing up in Michigan, I went to Canada more times than I can remember (I was just there last weekend) and truly adore the place. That said, this is country vs. country and I'm an American! I'm excited about this matchup because it's the best matchup the Olympics could possibly hope for: the two biggest rivals in the sport. Sure, other factors enter the equation, like Crosby being something I can't mention with the profanity filter, the fact that hockey=religion for Canada, the fact that we have the youngest team in the Olympics and us even being in the gold medal game was considered out of the equation from the start, etc. But first and foremost, it's the two premier nations in the sport playing for national pride and it's the best hockey rivalry in the world. You gotta love that.

I haven't read through this thread, but have to agree that this is the best matchup for the Olympics, with two huge rivals. I remember very fondly where I was in 2002 after Canada won the gold and the whole country celebrated. Streets were jammed for hours afterwards with people just driving up and down the streets honking their horns, yelling and cheering. Keep in mind that these Olympics have been even more watched and more followed here, with more patriotism, US beat Canada in the preliminaries, both teams have had dominant games in the lead-up (Canada vs. Russia and USA vs. Finland) and there is definitely huge excitement for the game.

[phaedrus]

Here's an example of how gonzo they are: On New Years Eve, over 12 million watched a junior hockey game on TV...that's over 1/3 of the country watching a junior hockey game on New Years Eve!

So what? More people watch March Madness than watch the NBA Finals, too.

And it's wrong to equate Canadian hockey losses with recent USA basketball embarrassments. There have always been other good hockey nations. The USA has had NHL teams since the very beginning, and today 24 out of 30 teams are in the States. Canadians have consistently made up about 60% of NHL players for a long, long time. We've had some big international victories, namely '72, '87, and '02, but Canadians understand that hockey is an unpredictable game - I mean, the Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in '06 - that a hot goalie can outweigh any talent discrepancy, and that international tournaments are as much about the ability to find team chemistry in a couple of practices as anything else. I expect Canada to win in a good game today (further extending our overall victory in the gold medal count) but if we lose, I won't question whether Canada is better at hockey.

[phaedrus]

Glad to see you are enjoying yourself.


Today's WaPo highlighted the irritation on the part of the sapsuckers at yesterday's Finland match when they didn't get the chance to boo the USA.
Yes, they're quite the model of pious good sportsmanship, aren't they?

What in the world is unsportsmanlike about booing a team you despise?

[weezie]

Read the comments leading up to mine. Apparently, we (USA) are supposed to only feel free to cheer for our country if we are personally active in the sport full time, either as a player or fan.
It's all in the above.

[A-Tex Devil]

Good game you dirty syrup sucking dudley doright lumberjacks. Good game.

[phaedrus]

Good game you dirty syrup sucking dudley doright lumberjacks. Good game.

Whew, now I can refocus on the second-most talented, classy, handsome, and likeable team in sports, Duke basketball.

[InSpades]

I like how all the canadians now point to winning the most *gold* medals when their original goal was to win the most medals . It was "Own the Podium" not "Own the very top of the Podium". The US managed to win the most medals ever by any country which is quite an accomplishment (not that winning the most *gold* medals ever isn't also quite an accomplishment). I'm assuming there are now more medals available to win which is why these records are being broken?

[phaedrus]

I like how all the canadians now point to winning the most *gold* medals when their original goal was to win the most medals . It was "Own the Podium" not "Own the very top of the Podium". The US managed to win the most medals ever by any country which is quite an accomplishment (not that winning the most *gold* medals ever isn't also quite an accomplishment). I'm assuming there are now more medals available to win which is why these records are being broken?

Indeed, congrats on having the most second- and third-place finishers (for the second Olympics in a row, no less). But it does leave me wondering who had the most fourth-, fifth- and sixth-places.

[blazindw]

I like how all the canadians now point to winning the most *gold* medals when their original goal was to win the most medals . It was "Own the Podium" not "Own the very top of the Podium". The US managed to win the most medals ever by any country which is quite an accomplishment (not that winning the most *gold* medals ever isn't also quite an accomplishment). I'm assuming there are now more medals available to win which is why these records are being broken?

Not necessarily. The record was set back in '02 by the Germans (36) which was also when the U.S. won their most medals before this year with 34. I don't think there are more events, but we had some spectacular performances in events that we weren't even considered to be in the hunt for a medal (nordic combined, hockey) and in events where we haven't won in a long time (bobsled).

[Duvall]

Indeed, congrats on having the most second- and third-place finishers (for the second Olympics in a row, no less). But it does leave me wondering who had the most fourth-, fifth- and sixth-places.

It would probably be easier to tell if they gave flowers and large hunks of metal to the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-place finishers.

But they don't.

[blazindw]

So what? More people watch March Madness than watch the NBA Finals, too.

And it's wrong to equate Canadian hockey losses with recent USA basketball embarrassments. There have always been other good hockey nations. The USA has had NHL teams since the very beginning, and today 24 out of 30 teams are in the States. Canadians have consistently made up about 60% of NHL players for a long, long time. We've had some big international victories, namely '72, '87, and '02, but Canadians understand that hockey is an unpredictable game - I mean, the Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in '06 - that a hot goalie can outweigh any talent discrepancy, and that international tournaments are as much about the ability to find team chemistry in a couple of practices as anything else. I expect Canada to win in a good game today (further extending our overall victory in the gold medal count) but if we lose, I won't question whether Canada is better at hockey.

That wasn't the point. The point was 1/3 of the entire country, on the biggest party night of the year, was watching a junior hockey (high school-age kids, for all those not hip to hockey lingo) game. And also, I wasn't trying to equate USA Basketball losses to Canadian losses. I was trying to describe how nuts Canadians are about hockey and used that as an example to try to illustrate it.

P.S. Did it really have to be Crosby that won it? My hate for that kid has soared to intergalactic levels. I congratulate two ultimate Red Wings, Stevie Y and Mike Babcock for their leadership. And, lastly, Ryan Miller was a monster. I knew he was good, but he was absolutely more than that. He was legendary between the pipes. USA has nothing to hang their head about, we weren't even expected to medal in hockey. Brian Rafalski, Zach Parise, Patrick Kane, the entire team deserves the ultimate praise for their play over the last two weeks on behalf of their country.

[blazindw]

Indeed, congrats on having the most second- and third-place finishers (for the second Olympics in a row, no less). But it does leave me wondering who had the most fourth-, fifth- and sixth-places.

The Canadian government spent CAN$115 million on their "Own the Podium" effort. The U.S. government spent USD/CAN$0 on their "Smash the Podium Record" effort.

[DukieInKansas]

It would probably be easier to tell if they gave flowers and large hunks of metal to the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-place finishers.

But they don't.

This made me laugh out loud. Good response.

[NSDukeFan]

That wasn't the point. The point was 1/3 of the entire country, on the biggest party night of the year, was watching a junior hockey (high school-age kids, for all those not hip to hockey lingo) game. And also, I wasn't trying to equate USA Basketball losses to Canadian losses. I was trying to describe how nuts Canadians are about hockey and used that as an example to try to illustrate it.

P.S. Did it really have to be Crosby that won it? My hate for that kid has soared to intergalactic levels. I congratulate two ultimate Red Wings, Stevie Y and Mike Babcock for their leadership. And, lastly, Ryan Miller was a monster. I knew he was good, but he was absolutely more than that. He was legendary between the pipes. USA has nothing to hang their head about, we weren't even expected to medal in hockey. Brian Rafalski, Zach Parise, Patrick Kane, the entire team deserves the ultimate praise for their play over the last two weeks on behalf of their country.

Since I live in Halifax, I certainly have to be a Crosby fan and of course, as a Canadian, as well. He certainly is a great player, though he made very little impact in the game today until the end. You are right USA has nothing to hang their heads about as they were fantastic in this tournament and, I believe, the youngest team in the tournament. The only guys that would not be expected to be around for 2014 would be Drury, Rafalski and maybe one other, I think. Along with winning the Juniors this year, the future looks very bright for US hockey.
What a great game, and if I was a little younger and didn't have a young family, I would definitely be out partying right now along with the rest of Canada.

[NSDukeFan]

I like how all the canadians now point to winning the most *gold* medals when their original goal was to win the most medals . It was "Own the Podium" not "Own the very top of the Podium". The US managed to win the most medals ever by any country which is quite an accomplishment (not that winning the most *gold* medals ever isn't also quite an accomplishment). I'm assuming there are now more medals available to win which is why these records are being broken?

No doubt USA had an amazing Olympics and did better than what Canadians expected would be the number of medals needed to be the overall winner. I don't think anyone is claiming Canadians did better than Americans, but can you blame us for celebrating most golds, since we were not going to win overall medals? The Olympics were a great celebration of patriotism for us and a resounding success in every way, even if USA dominated the total medals. Great games.

[Verga3]

Kudos to Bob Costas and Al Michaels for entire flavor of the closing ceremonies coverage and the vignettes. Very respectful and warm comments for our Canadian hosts combined with some terrific pieces on our USA and other wonderful athletic performances/emotional moments that all graced this Olympics. I cannot imagine a warmer, better host country ever. Congrats, Canada!