IIHF World ChampionshipDiscuss International Tournaments like the WJC, Olympics, and World Cup, as they take place, or discuss past tournaments. performances.
Seeding:
Group A: Russia (1), Slovakia (6), USA (7), Slovenia (18)
Group B: Finland (2), Canada (5), Norway (8), Austria (15)
Group C: Czech Republic (3), Sweden (4), Switzerland (9), Latvia (11)
Neither do I. When we play you guys I either see a decent U.S. win or we get absolutely blown out by you guys. The three of us dogging it out for two spots while Canada gets the walk makes me sick.
Neither do I. When we play you guys I either see a decent U.S. win or we get absolutely blown out by you guys. The three of us dogging it out for two spots while Canada gets the walk makes me sick.
If I recall correctly bye into the QF occurs for the three group winners + best second placed team?
Basically means Finland will be the best second placed team as they have Norway and Austria. We on the other hand have Slovakia who will be a lot more difficult to run up a score against just like Pool C has Switzerland who are part of the big 8.
If I recall correctly bye into the QF occurs for the three group winners + best second placed team?
Basically means Finland will be the best second placed team as they have Norway and Austria. We on the other hand have Slovakia who will be a lot more difficult to run up a score against just like Pool C has Switzerland who are part of the big 8.
I believe you are correct. Three byes and the team with the most points and tiebreakers is Goals for.
Yah I'm with you. I've already assumed Switzerland's going to piss people off. They are fun to watch and as far as I'm concerned they've got the talent to be put into the same category as the rest of us. That's a solid a grouping too though with the Czechs and the Swedes.
Hopefully I'll be able to get my ass there. Looking up ferries from Varna to Sochi otherwise I gotta shell out the dough for a flight or drive for two days.
Top 3 and the second best record go through. However 5 vs 12 6 vs 11 7 v 10 8 v 9 for qualifying games. So basically the best teams should win their qualifiers and the top 8 will probably be in the qaurters so slovakias, russias and americans will all be there. However like in 2010. Canada had to qualify in and then it was can vs rus in the quarters. So yes SLO USA AND RUS will all qualify but expect to see a can vs rus or can vs usa or swe vs slovakia something like that in the quarters again.
I don't get the complaining about groups. Those getting an easier time have it because of past performance. It's earned. All teams have benefited from stronger and weaker groupings in the past. Norway has jumped considerably in the past few years because of it. In the end, every top team will get to play a weaker team to get to the quarters, be it in group play or the crossover. What they do with it is up to them.
What are Slovakia's chances of getting through their group with a beatable quarter final opponent? My GF is a Slovak, and seeing as how rubbish my national team is I'm going to be supporting hers...
For big countries the problem is not to get to the QF but, like in Vancouver, the teams from qualification playoffs have likely to play back-to-back games. Well, it wasn't a problem for Canada and Slovakia as they were able to win their QF games. Another problem is that because there are so few group games, it's very probable that there will be QF games like Canada vs Russia also in Sochi.
I liked the system used in Torino but on the other hand this current system gives more weight on group games. If a team loses even one game, it may have to qualify for playoffs one day before the playoffs. For that reason I wouldn't place my bet on the team with best players material. If it's difficult to get star power working properly in NHL during regular season, it's even harder to make it click in three group games in olympics. Teams from NA have very little time to get used to big ice and it's an advantage for European teams. The situation was just the opposite in Vancouver. Teams with players who have long history of playing with each other have the advantage of having possibly quickly a good chemistry.
I guess Finland would like to meet Canada in the first game, because that might be the moment when Canada is at its weakest, but likely the FIN-CAN game will be the last game in the group.
What are Slovakia's chances of getting through their group with a beatable quarter final opponent? My GF is a Slovak, and seeing as how rubbish my national team is I'm going to be supporting hers...
Very unlikely. To get a favourable QF draw, they'll need to win their group which probably isn't going to happen. I think the most likely result will be the same as Vancouver and will have to go through one of Sweden, Canada, Russia or the USA to get to the semis again.
Interesting, I believe I heard somewhere that Team Canada's summer camp will be actually held on Labor Day weekend, Aug.30-Sept 2 in Calgary. Anybody else hear anything more concrete?
Very unlikely. To get a favourable QF draw, they'll need to win their group which probably isn't going to happen. I think the most likely result will be the same as Vancouver and will have to go through one of Sweden, Canada, Russia or the USA to get to the semis again.
They have very good goaltending and defence, so who knows... maybe they'll surprise somebody!
They have very good goaltending and defence, so who knows... maybe they'll surprise somebody!
Cannot wait...
Definitely. As hard of a group as the Slovaks have been handed, it's still probably best for them. They have the ability to fly under the radar and have a very good chance at causing an upset or two.
Very unlikely. To get a favourable QF draw, they'll need to win their group which probably isn't going to happen. I think the most likely result will be the same as Vancouver and will have to go through one of Sweden, Canada, Russia or the USA to get to the semis again.
Very unlikely. To get a favourable QF draw, they'll need to win their group which probably isn't going to happen. I think the most likely result will be the same as Vancouver and will have to go through one of Sweden, Canada, Russia or the USA to get to the semis again.
In the first round Slovakia likely plays against USA and has the home ice advantage. I think it favours Slovakia, because they've used to play on big ice, a lot of players know each other well etc. Team USA players get together few days before the first game surely they're not at their best as a team in the first game.
Anything can happen in one game and I think Slovakia has quite good chances at winning USA in this case. Russia has very good offensive players, but we'll see how they play together in Sochi.
I'm not saying they aren't, but I still wouldn't consider Slovakia a favourite by any means against those 4 nations.
Quote:
Originally Posted by roto
In the first round Slovakia likely plays against USA and has the home ice advantage. I think it favours Slovakia, because they've used to play on big ice, a lot of players know each other well etc. Team USA players get together few days before the first game surely they're not at their best as a team in the first game.
Anything can happen in one game and I think Slovakia has quite good chances at winning USA in this case. Russia has very good offensive players, but we'll see how they play together in Sochi.
I don't think the larger ice is going to be that big of an issue for the Americans. In my opinion it gets overplayed as a deciding factor between European and North American countries. But I'm with you on everything else.
The three group system really is awkard but at least it keeps things kind of interesting and keeps people guessing who is going to play who in the knock out stages.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dynamo81
If I recall correctly bye into the QF occurs for the three group winners + best second placed team?
Basically means Finland will be the best second placed team as they have Norway and Austria. We on the other hand have Slovakia who will be a lot more difficult to run up a score against just like Pool C has Switzerland who are part of the big 8.
Run up the score? Given that Russia has lost to them the past two Olympics shouldn't they first just be worried about simply beating them.
I don't think the larger ice is going to be that big of an issue for the Americans. In my opinion it gets overplayed as a deciding factor between European and North American countries. But I'm with you on everything else.
Not to mention hat the US has a system that's equally efficient on small and big ice.A lot of the players have been brought up via the NTDP and it shows how on all levels they move the puck so well from their own end up the ice with lost of small passes.
It's a shame that neither Denmark nor Germany (even more so) made it to the final tournament, but it will be refreshing to see Austria and Slovenia compete against the best teams in the world. Had they not qualified, guys like Thomas Vanek and Anze Kopitar would yet again watch the tournament on their TV.
The three group system really is awkard but at least it keeps things kind of interesting and keeps people guessing who is going to play who in the knock out stages.
Run up the score? Given that Russia has lost to them the past two Olympics shouldn't they first just be worried about simply beating them.
That is my point, for a team to be the best second place team they will need to run up the score against someone in the top 3 of the pool which won't happen in that pool.
lol at you thinking I'm that ignorant to take shots at Slovak Hockey.
To be honest, I don't see Canada having a "walk" as a positive. We need some adversity - that is when we gel.
KevyD, long time!
I understand the point of wanting some adversity but realistically having the top seed going in is the best road you can hope for. It could hurt this Canada team but I think if you ask any of the teams they would rather the higher seeding. for example Sweden and chasing around the Swiss and Czech forwards on the ice won't be fun. It'll be interesting to see and I'm not sure, do we get a reseeding of the teams after the first round or are the original rankings how the next round is run?
