VANCOUVER — That sound you heard? That was a nation exhaling.
That other sound you heard? That was Canada taking another deep breath. After taking out two days of frustration on Germany, burying that outmanned team 8-2 yesterday in the preliminary round of the Olympic hockey tournament, Team Canada now faces what was supposed to be its sternest test — two rounds early.
Yes, it’s the Russians. The top two teams entering this tournament will square off in a quarterfinal match that promises to be part hockey game, part soap opera, part gladiator match.
“It’s going to be crazy,” Russian forward Sergei Fedorov said after yesterday’s practice. “The fans will cheer for Team Canada. They will get great support.
“They are under pressure … playing in Canada. It’s not easy, but they have experienced guys, and they’ve been through a lot. They are a very, very strong team.”
So is Russia, led by Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. Canada’s GM, Steve Yzerman, spent plenty of time before the tournament lauding Russia as the favorite — but that was when he and everyone else expected this to be a showdown for the gold medal, not the right to advance to the semifinals.
“Well, one of us would have had to go through the other to win this,” Sidney Crosby, the Canadian captain, said. “It’s a little earlier than maybe people expected, but that’s OK. We’ll be ready for them, and they’ll be ready for us.”
Russia has dominated Canada lately, including knocking Team Canada out of the 2006 Olympic tournament with a 2-0 win, also in the quarters. Canada last beat Russia at the 2005 IIHF world hockey championships with a 4-3 victory.
After spending two days in a cloudy funk, courtesy of a bitter 5-3 loss to the United States, yesterday’s romp was just what Canada needed, especially after switching goalies. Roberto Luongo was sharp, if not flawless, and the offense was scary at times. It’ll need to stay that way starting at 7:30 tonight.
“I think what we needed was for everyone to step back and take a deep breath and just play another hockey game,” Canada coach Mike Babcock said. “Once we did that, it freed us up to play, and for the most part I was pleased with what I saw tonight.”
