Ed. Note: Live discussion at SBNation.com for the game can be found here: http://www.sbnation.com/2014/2/20/5429784/canada-usa-hockey-gold-medal-winter-olympics-live-score-updates
After a day that saw the home team’s Olympic run come to an end, the second-lowest ranked team come somewhat close to pulling off a monumental upset, and two blowouts, our final four is set in the men’s bracket. Finland and Sweden will play on Friday morning, and the USA and Canada will go at it on Friday afternoon, with the two winners competing for gold on Sunday. However, today the men’s tournament has a day off.
Which is fine, as the big-ticket event for the day today is on the women’s hockey side of things. After an appetizer of a game with Switzerland and Sweden competing for the bronze medal, the focus will be on USA vs. Canada for the gold medal. The two teams have already played once in the tournament, with Canada taking a 3-2 win in the round robin stage, but with the two countries being way far and away the best teams in the women’s tournament, this matchup for the gold was pretty close to a foregone conclusion from the start.
Yesterday’s Games
Sweden 5, Slovenia 0
Brief Recap: Slovenia hung close with top-seeded Sweden for 40 minutes, going into the third period down just 1-0, but (arguably) the tournament’s biggest underdogs saw their magical run come to an end as Sweden poured on four more goals in the third. Sweden had four different goal-scorers, including Daniel Sedin for the first time of the games.
Flyer Watch: None
Finland 3, Russia 1
Brief Recap: The home team ended up getting stonewalled by Tuukka Rask and the Finns, who moved on after scoring three goals in the game’s first 27 minutes and getting Semyon Varlamov pulled from the net. After the game the Russian coach had a really uncomfortable press conference and it was amusing.
Flyer Watch: Kimmo Timonen is your Last Flyer Standing in these Olympic games with this win, and he played 17:06 and had a nice set-up on Finland’s third and final goal to pick up an assist.
USA 5, Czech Republic 2
Brief Recap: USA jumped out to an early lead thanks to Ondrej Pavelec being really bad, scoring on a couple of sharp-angle goals, and kept the Czechs at an arm’s length the rest of the way to easily advance. Phil Kessel scored his fifth goal of the tournament, which is tied for the most of any player in it.
Flyer Watch: Jakub Voracek’s Olympics came to an end as he put one shot on net and took one minor penalty in 14:50.
Canada 2, Latvia 1
Brief Recap: An upset that seemed about as close to an impossibility as could be coming in to the game looked like a real possibility in this game, as Latvia matched an early goal from Canada and rode an absolutely unbelievable effort by goalie Kristers Gudlesvkis about as far as they could. Alas, it was not to be, as Shea Weber scored the difference-maker on a bomb of a shot from on a power play with just under seven minutes remaining. Gudlevskis stopped 55 of 57 shots in the game.
Flyer Watch: None
Today’s Games
Switzerland vs. Sweden (Women’s Bronze Medal Game)
Time: 7:00 a.m.
TV: NBC Sports Network
USA vs. Canada (Women’s Gold Medal Game)
Time: 12:00 p.m.
TV: NBC
Enjoy.
