USA Vs. Finland
2:00 p.m. CST
LIVE on NBC; in all time zones
I’m not gone yet.
Before we look ahead to a potential rematch between the United States and Canada, we’ll still need to get through what is going to be a very tough game against Finland. It’s far from a toss-up that the United will just get by and move on to the gold medal game, especially when you consider that Miikka Kiprusoff is in the other net. I’m not expecting a Jonas Hiller performance, but the Finns’ up-tempo system combined with their defensive positioning will prove to be a hard game for an American team that has found success in being aggressive down the ice.
Yet we have to have confidence in this team, that what has worked for them so far will continue to work today. They have played more like a ‘team’ than any other country in mens’ hockey in this tournament, as every single player on this roster will stop at nothing to do what it takes to win. It’s what has really seemed to set the Americans apart, and what has driven them this far. They may not be the most talented team in the tournament, they may not have the best team defense, but they’ll certainly give 150% effort from start to finish.
Behind The Net has some interesting numbers up, giving the medal odds for each remaining team. They say that the the most likely matchup is Canada and Finland in the gold medal game, and also state that according to the odds Canada is most likely to win the gold medal over the United States. According to these odds, at this moment, the United States has about a 21% chance of winning gold. Which is a bit surprising.
We’ll have a link to the SB Nation game thread this afternoon.