CAROLINA HURRICANES NEWS CLIPPINGS February 10, 2014

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1 Faulk, Hurricanes teammates searching for gold in Sochi By Chip Alexander February 9, 2014 Updated 11 hours ago Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk has heard all the preliminary horror stories about Sochi: surveillance cameras in hotel bathrooms, stray dogs, manholes with no covers, stuck elevators, dual toilets. There's also a much more menacing threat -- concerns about potential terrorism at the 2014 Winter Olympics. But Faulk headed to Russia on Sunday for his first Olympics with just one thing in mind, playing good hockey and winning an Olympic gold medal for the U.S. Team USA begins preliminary-round play Thursday against Slovakia. For Faulk, that will mean looking across the ice and see his Hurricanes teammate, defenseman Andrej Sekera, as a Slovak opponent. The two have been defensive partners all season for the Canes. For a few weeks in Sochi, they will play for their countries on a bigger stage. "I have buddies in the NHL I play against but this will be different," Faulk said. "The stakes are higher." Faulk, at 21 the youngest player on Team USA, smiled Friday when asked if the two had been chirping about the game. "Not too much," Faulk said. "But if he sits next to me on the flight over, I'll probably have to hear it the whole flight." Four years ago, the Winter Olympics were in Vancouver and the pressure enormous on the Canadians to win the gold medal. They did, barely, topping the U.S. in an overtime thriller on Sidney Crosby's goal. Many believe the pressure shifts to the Russians in Sochi, in their homeland. But Crosby doesn't buy it. "I think the pressure is always going to be there, wherever we play," the Pittsburgh Penguins star said. "I don't know if you necessarily will feel it quite the same when you're not in your home country. It was there every day in Vancouver. When you're in Russia it's a little different. But if anything teams will want to beat us even more since we did win in 2010." Alexander Semin of the Canes again will be playing for Russia and Tuomo Ruutu for Finland. Both forwards were in Vancouver in 2010, Ruutu leaving with a bronze medal. The U.S. has not medaled in men's hockey in an Olympics held outside North America since 1972 and was a disappointing eighth in 2006 when the Games were held in Turin, Italy. Canes defenseman John-Michael Liles was on Team USA -- guided by then-hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette -- in 2006 and said the larger ice surface of the Olympic rink was a problem, as was getting adjusted to the sixhour time difference. "For me, the time change and jet lag was the biggest thing," Liles said. Another problem, he said, proved to be Finland, which topped the U.S. 4-3 in the quarterfinals and ended the American hopes of a medal. "It was a good Finnish team and they took it to us pretty good," Liles said. That's the nature of the Olympic medal round. It can be oneand-done. Run into a hot goaltender or hot team and it can be over quickly. "I think there are a lot of favorites," Ruutu said. "Russia, Sweden, Canada. The U.S. will have a good team. I think teamwork will be the strength of our (Finnish) team. But in any tournament like the Olympics, where one game can decide it, you never know." Ruutu said he will not dwell on the security issues, trusting that a Russian security force of more 40,000 will keep things safe in Sochi. "I look at it as I had one decision to make: to go or not to go. I decided to go," he said. "I will try to let the other people worry about the security concerns. They're the professionals. That's the way I look at it." It has been four years. It's almost time to drop the puck again. The Olympic gold medal will be decided Feb. 23. Crosby said that in the days and weeks after Vancouver, he almost had to pinch himself. Did he really score the "Golden Goal" to win it all for Canada, in overtime? Even for someone who has known little but success in his sport, Crosby said it can be a bit overwhelming. "It's pretty cool to be a part of that and have that moment," he said. "I think every Canadian kid dreams of having that opportunity. But for the last little while I've been thinking about Russia and trying to do our best there." They all will try to do that but only one team wins. Here's a look at the top five favorites in Sochi: United States When Zach Parise scored late in regulation to tie the score in the gold-medal game against Canada in Vancouver, the Americans were convinced they would win in overtime.

2 "We felt like the ice was tilted in our direction and we had a lot of good momentum," Parise said. "Unfortunately we all know what happened." Crosby's goal won it for Canada and Team USA had to settle for silver. But the U.S. made its mark in Vancouver. "Obviously the U.S. team is not going to sneak up on anyone this time around," said defenseman Jack Johnson of the Columbus Blue Jackets, a member of the 2010 team. "But the U.S. should have as good chance as anyone and will go into it expecting to win the gold medal. That's the bar now that's been set." Parise, of the Minnesota Wild, is the U.S. captain and there's offensive firepower with Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks, Phil Kessel of Toronto and others. The goaltending should be solid with Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings, Ryan Miller of Buffalo and Jimmy Howard of Detroit. There are questions about the strength at center. There also are some young faces on the back end -- Faulk, John Carlson of the Washington Capitals, Kevin Shattenkirk of the St. Louis Blues. "I think we'll be a hard-working team with great goaltending," Parise said. "That's going to be our strength -- goaltending, and just being a tough team to play against." Canada Just look at the names on the roster: Sidney Crosby, Ryan Getzlaf, Jonathan Toews, Shea Weber, Duncan Keith, Corey Perry it's like an NHL All-Star team. There will be no team in Sochi that can match the talent level of the Canadians, even without the injured Steven Stamkos. The question for Team Canada is whether the goaltending can hold up. Roberto Luongo of the Vancouver Canucks held up in net in 2010, and Carey Price and Mike Smith make for a nice-looking threesome of goalies. But Olympic pressure is like no other. Hurricanes captain Eric Staal played for Canada in 2010, returning with a gold medal. He wasn't chosen this time, but believes Canada is the team to beat in Sochi. "They're definitely favored," he said. "In a short tournament like that, you've got to come together at the right time and you've got to play a team game. If (the Canadians) do that, they have enough skill and talent to get the job done." Russia Gold, or else. That pretty much sums it up for Team Russia. Spend $50 billion to hold a Winter Olympics and the home country is expecting golden results. And probably no more so than in men's hockey. Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, the NHL's leading scorer, has been pointing to Sochi for four years. When the NHL at first balked about allowing its players to continue competing in the Olympics, Ovechkin said he would be going, with or without permission. The Russians fell flat in Vancouver, losing 7-3 to Canada in the quarterfinals. But with Ovechkin, Pavel Datsyk, Evgeni Malkin, Ilya Kovalchuk and others from both the NHL and KHL, with the home-ice fan support and under the gaze of president Vladimir Putin, they could be hard to beat in Sochi. Finland It didn't help that Finland had to make last-minute replacements for Mikko Koivu (Minnesota Wild) and Valterri Filppula (Tampa Bay) because of injuries. But there's much to like about the Finnish team, and not just that ageless Teemu Selanne is making his sixth Olympic appearance. Goalie Tuukka Rask (Boston) has won a Stanley Cup and can steal games. There's good depth at forward and the defensive corps has a nice blend of experience and youth. The Canes' Ruutu competed for Finland in 2010 and will be joined in Sochi by a former Canes teammate, forward Jussi Jokinen. The Finns were bounced from the Vancouver Games by Team USA, losing 6-1 in the semifinals, but topped Slovakia to take the bronze medal. Sweden The Swedes will have Henrik Lundqvist in goal. That's a good start toward gold. The New York Rangers goalie loves the limelight and should be able to handle the pressure. Around him will be such NHL standouts as Henrik Zetterberg (Detroit), Erik Karlsson (Ottawa), Alex Steen (St. Louis), Nicklas Backstrom (Washington) and Oliver Ekman-Larsson (Phoenix). Sweden, the Olympic champion in 2006, expected to have the Sedin twins -- Henrik and Daniel -- in the lineup in Sochi. But Henrik, the captain of the Vancouver Canucks, had to pull out because of a rib injury. Sweden was upset by Slovakia in the quarterfinals in That stung. It won't be a surprise if the Swedes are playing for gold this time.

3 Canadiens send Hurricanes to Olympics break with 4-1 loss By Chip Alexander 8, 2014 RALEIGH With three games at home before the break for the Winter Olympics, the Carolina Hurricanes were looking to make a move. They did, but in the wrong direction. The Canes dropped two of the three games at PNC Arena, falling 4-1 Saturday to the Montreal Canadiens in a game that had few highlights for the home team. Drayson Bowman scored a second-period goal for the Hurricanes, who lost Tuesday to the Winnipeg Jets. Goalie Anton Khudobin made a few nice stops. But that was about it for the Canes, who did little to excite a sellout crowd. The Canadiens got 31 saves from goalie Carey Price and a pair of goals from David Desharnais, using their counterattacking speed to beat the Canes down the ice and taking advantage of some lax play by Carolina. We had some guys who played really well and played hard, but we didn t have everybody on board and that doesn t cut it in this league, Canes coach Kirk Muller said. It was disappointing because some guys didn t bring their A game here tonight. Muller was quick to note the Canes fourth line Bowman, center Riley Nash and winger Tuomo Ruutu was their best. None of the other three lines did much, and the top line of Eric Staal, Alexander Semin and Jiri Tlusty was generally outplayed. The Habs ( ) played much of the game without forward Max Pacioretty, who has a team-leading 26 goals and will be a member of the U.S. Olympic team in Sochi. Pacioretty suffered a lower-body injury driving the net in the first period as Canes defenseman Brett Bellemore bodied him into the post and dislodged the net. Pacioretty was helped off the ice. The Canadiens said after the game the injury was believed to be a bruise and that Pacioretty would not miss the Olympics. It was the final game for both teams before the NHL s Olympic break, which begins Sunday. The Canes ( ) do not play again until Feb. 25 and will not be back at PNC Arena until March 7 as they will resume the season with five straight road games. Bowman s goal, on a bullet from the top of the right circle, gave the Canes a 1-0 lead in the second. But the Habs answered with two goals in 85 seconds late in the second as Desharnais scored off the rush and Ryan White banged in the rebound of an Andrei Markov shot. It happened pretty quick, Bowman said. That kind of swung the momentum in their favor. When Desharnais scored again off another well-executed rush about six minutes into the third, the Habs led 3-1. And there would be no stirring Canes comeback this time as Brian Gionta added a late empty-netter. On New Year s Eve, the Hurricanes trailed the Habs 3-0 entering the final period but scored four times on Price, then won 5-4 in overtime. That ended a five-game winless streak for Carolina and spurred a January surge and a move up in the Metropolitan Division standings. But Price, who will play for Canada in Sochi, shut out the Canes with 36 saves in Montreal on Jan. 28. He was quick, smooth and effective again Saturday, twice denying Bowman in the third period with glove and pad saves. We had some good chances, I thought, and he definitely kept their lead for them, Bowman said. Canes defensemen Justin Faulk and Andrej Sekera, and forwards Alex Semin and Tuomo Ruutu all leave Sunday for Sochi. The Habs will have seven players competing in the Olympics. We wanted to get those two points before we left, Faulk said. We didn t have the effort or the drive that we needed. In a game like that, especially before the break, we needed to leave it all out there. It didn t go our way. We didn t get it done. Canes Posted by Chip Alexander on February 8, 2014 The Canadiens scored twice late in the second period, wiping out a 1-0 Canes lead. David Desharnais scored off the rush with 2:08 left in the period and then Ryan White off a rebound with 42.7 seconds left as the Habs pushed ahead 2-1.

4 The Canes had taken a 1-0 lead on Drayson Bowman's score with 14:18 left in the second. Bowman rifled a shot from the top of the right circle as Tuomo Ruutu screened Habs goalie Carey Price. The Habs suffered a key penalty in a scoreless first. Forward Max Pacioretty, who has been named to Team USA for Sochi, was hurt as he drove the net with 7:30 left in the first. Canes defenseman Brett Bellemore drove Pacioretty into the post and Pacioretty dislodged the net with a heavy collision, then fell to the ice in pain. Pacioretty, who leads the Habs with 26 goals, was helped off the ice with a lower-body injury and did not return to the game. Anton Khudobin started the game in net for the Canes and played his 17th consecutive game. Price, who shut out the Canes 3-0 on Jan. 28, was in net for the Habs. The Canes nearly scored on a first-period power play as Eric Staal redirected a shot and the puck glanced off the post. Price also made a nice save on a shot by Drayson Bowman after the power play. A shot by the Habs' Rene Bourque early in the game forced a review. Khudobin made the stop with his right pad, but the Habs kept poking at the puck. The Canes killed off a Mike Komisarek boarding penalty late in the first. Komisarek was in the lineup replacing John-Michael Liles, who suffered a lower-body injury Friday against Florida. After Bowman's goal in the second, his first since Dec. 27 against Pittsburgh, the Canes had a power play and chance to add to the lead. Andrej Sekera forced Price into a good stop with an outside shot and Elias Lindholm had an open shot in the slot but with high with his attempt. Desharnais scored after the Habs caught the Canes out of position and countered quickly. White's goal, his second of the season, came after a shot by Andrei Markov that was weakly defending by Alex Semin and had White fight for position in front of the net. The Rise of Justin Faulk Monday, / 10:00 AM / Tracking the Storm By Michael Smith It was a summer Saturday morning in southern California, the second day of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft being held at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The Carolina Hurricanes would be making the seventh pick of the day, the 37th overall, and they had their eye on someone, someone they didn t even think would be available for the taking in the second round: American-born defenseman Justin Faulk. He was in our first round, and I m going to guess somewhere in and around 20, Hurricanes President and General Manager Jim Rutherford recalled. Needless to say, the Canes were downright giddy to have a shot at picking the U.S. National Team Development Program stand-out. Especially our scouts because they go to see the guy all the time and get excited about certain players, but once we got into the second round, they were keeping their fingers crossed, Rutherford said. The second round began with five forwards going off the board. As it got closer and closer, it was like, ah, he s probably going to go to this team or the next, Rutherford said. But he fell to us. Florida had the 36th overall pick and selected a defenseman but not Faulk. It s like, Oh boy, is someone going to take our guy? Rutherford said. Sometimes the player falls to you, and sometimes they don t. In this case, we lucked out. When the Canes were on the clock in the second round of that summer Saturday morning in southern California, they had an easy decision, if you could even call it that. As soon as [Florida] announced their pick, there was no hesitation to get his name on the slip and up to the front, Rutherford said. It was a big accomplishment to get drafted, but at the same time, I wasn t looking ahead too much. I had seen and heard plenty of experiences. There are quite a few hockey players in Minnesota, guys that had been drafted and things didn t work out, said Faulk, who was in LA for the draft. It was the next step, and there was a lot more work to be done to get me to the point I am now. I was just talking to my old buddy Martin Madden (a former scout with the Hurricanes and now the Director of Amateur Scouting with Anaheim), and he told me that I spoiled his day today (the Ducks chose five picks later), said Tony MacDonald, the Canes director of amateur scouting, on June

5 26, We were concerned we might miss out on him at seven, but we caught a break and were able to take him. In Faulk, the Hurricanes got a then-18-year-old blueliner who was mature beyond his years. In the next three years alone, Faulk would win a college national championship, compete in the AHL playoffs, participate in an NHL All-Star Skills Competition and have a shot at winning a gold medal with the U.S. Olympic squad. He was and is so mature, Rutherford said. He s just one of those people who is well-prepared for his job and life. A very impressive character. Today, Faulk is one of the youngest U.S. Olympians to play on the men s hockey team since the NHL began sending its players to the tournament in The 21-year-old also comprises one half of the Canes top defensive pairing, regularly matching up against opponents top lines and skating in all situations. To date this season, Faulk has posted 22 points (3g, 19a) in 57 games, and he leads the team in average ice time per game with 23:50. He s been asked to take on a lot of responsibilities, and we expect a lot from the two of them, but they ve performed, head coach Kirk Muller said. He s got a lot of room for growth in there, and he wants to get better. That s great. I expect a lot from him. I don t look at his age as much as I do his ability. He s still learning the game in this league, and there are still areas of improvement. He s at his best when he plays with a bit of an edge. He can be consistent at strings of time, and I d like to see him continue to do that, assistant coach Dave Lewis said. He plays against the other team s best players all the time, and he is rewarded by the U.S. Olympic team in being selected. So that s a great honor for such a young guy. Faulk hails from South St. Paul, Minn., and began playing organized hockey at the age of six. He was on ice skates three years earlier. It s kind of a big thing. There are a lot of kids growing up that are playing hockey in Minnesota, Faulk said. It s good. You ve got good numbers and a lot of kids doing it. As prevalent as youth hockey has been and continues to be in Minnesota, it s no cheaper to play than it was years ago. Faulk is involved with the BH23 Foundation, a charity in memoriam of a late brother of one of Faulk s hockey buddies that seeks to make the game of hockey possible for all children regardless of financial situation. We try to raise money for kids who can t afford to play hockey. Lucky enough, in my first year doing it, some of the money went to kids from South St. Paul, where I grew up, Faulk said. It s definitely nice to be able to help support people who can t afford to buy hockey gear. It s not as cheap as just picking up a basketball or a football or something like that. It s an expensive sport. To help families participate and get kids involved is huge. Faulk said his mother has been the biggest influence on his career, as his dad passed away when was just seven years old. I think it just kind of caused me to grow up pretty fast. It was definitely a tough experience dealing with that, he said. I have an older brother, too, and I know it was pretty hard on him. When you don t have that figure around when you re young, there are certain things you have to take into your own hands. Your mom can only do so much for you, and she definitely did as much as she could for me and my brother. It got pretty tough on her at times. There were times when me and my brother had to do things on our own and just grow up in an expedited fashion. High school hockey in Minnesota is essentially Friday Night Lights on ice. The near-18,000 seat Xcel Energy Center is an annually packed barn for high school tournaments. Additionally, high schools have recently followed in the footsteps of the successes of the NHL s Winter Classic and Stadium Series to now host outdoor games. Faulk played for South St. Paul High School in , earning honorable mention all-conference honors after notching six goals and 15 assists (21 points) in 26 games as a sophomore. It was a lot of fun playing high school hockey, Faulk said. That s the big thing there in Minnesota. You had some schools trying to say that football was the sport, but we all know hockey was the sport in Minnesota. Though Faulk would leave after his sophomore season to pursue an opportunity with the U.S. National Team Development Program, he had teammates and friends who didn t want to leave behind the atmosphere. I had some buddies that wouldn t leave because they wanted to play high school hockey. It s a big deal, he said. Some schools draw better than others, but it s a big deal. You d get a good amount of fans, so it was fun. A 10-hour, 643-mile drive east of South St. Paul is Ann Arbor, Mich., the home of the residential U.S. National Team Development Program. Faulk would spend the next two seasons there, attending a local public high school and living with a billet family. Faulk had already planned on playing in the United States Hockey League (USHL) but felt that the USNTDP would be better for his development since it wasn t as business-focused. I always wanted to kind of leave for some reason. That was just my thing. To go to play junior hockey was something I wanted to do. When that opportunity came, I was set on leaving, Faulk said. In the U.S. program, I know they re not too worried about pulling in the big dollars. We got about 100 people at each game, and 50 of them are scouts, so they probably walk in for free. I m pretty happy with my decision. Like leaving Minnesota to play hockey as a teenager elsewhere, attending college was always part of Faulk s plan, as well. The popularity of college hockey in Minnesota follows

6 in the path of the prevalence of youth and high school hockey, and Faulk wanted to be a part of that. Growing up in Minnesota, the big thing is college hockey. I was a big fan of Minnesota-Duluth, and I ended up committing to go to college at the same time that I decided to go to the U.S. program, Faulk said. Why I think it was right for me is because it s a whole other experience. I had two years at the U.S. program living with a billet family and playing games like that. It s a whole other aspect of life at college. No one is around parents, it s all young guys and young girls hanging out and you get that social aspect in life that s also needed at times. I definitely am extremely happy with that decision, Faulk continued. We won the National Championship, so obviously the hockey part was good, but meeting those guys and getting in that lifestyle of reaching out and meeting new people [was also good]. In junior, you re around your college buddies all the time. I have friends from Duluth that didn t play hockey; girls or guys, you become friends with all these people that come from anywhere. That experience was huge for me, and it s something I wouldn t trade for anything. On the ice, Faulk experienced tremendous success in his first and ultimately only year at Minnesota-Duluth. En route to the Bulldogs capturing the national championship, Faulk led team defensemen in goals (8), assists (25) and points (33). He also led all NCAA rookie defensemen in scoring and set a school record for scoring by a UMD rookie blueliner. Weeks later, Faulk would make his professional hockey debut with the Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League (AHL) postseason. He skated in 13 Calder Cup playoff games, posting two assists. It was definitely different. It s a different style of play. I didn t get hit as much. In college, you had a bunch of work out freaks that practice with each other for a week, and then they get to Friday and Saturday, and they re sick of killing their teammates, so they finally get to hit someone else, Faulk said of the transition. It was a different experience, and it was definitely fun to jump right in. I think I made a pretty smooth transition. There were definitely some games that were better than others. Months later, Faulk would make the final cut in training camp and begin the season with the Hurricanes, completing his journey from college hockey to the highest level of professional hockey in just a year. I talked to Rod Brind Amour during the playoff run, and he even said that for my game, he thought the NHL would be easier. The players are better here and things are faster, Faulk said of the transition from the AHL to the NHL. I like to play at a good speed like that. Playing with good players definitely made it easier. I always knew they d be in the right spots, so it made for a very easy transition. Though just 21 years old, Faulk already has a wealth of international experience under his belt, as he began competing internationally for the United States when he was 16 years old. In 2010, he scored the gold medal-winning goal against Sweden in the IIHF World U-18 Championship in Belarus. In 2011, he finished second among team defensemen in scoring (4 points) and helped Team USA capture the bronze medal at the World Junior Championship in Buffalo, NY. Most recently, Faulk participated in the 2012 and 2013 World Championships, leading American defenseman in points in both tournaments and winning a bronze medal in I understand how teams play on the big ice. I understand the style of play on the big ice and how it may vary from NHL-size because of the opportunities I had earlier in life, Faulk said. It s definitely something I m looking forward to being able to put to use, hopefully. Having already played on an international-sized rink, Faulk knows what to expect, which may work in his advantage. I think it s easier to go from smaller ice to bigger ice because you have a little bit more time with the puck; when you go from big ice to small ice, you don t realize how tight the boards are and you get cramped a little bit, Faulk said. He has that big ice experience and that big ice pressure. I m sure he ll adapt and play fine and play well, Lewis said. The one thing you hope is that he has a good tournament and comes back healthy. Though he's faced extensive international competition, the 2014 Winter Olympic games will mark the biggest stage yet for Faulk. It will be such a great experience with such high competition, Muller said. It will be a major playoff-like experience. I m excited for them. It s a great experience to be able to represent your country, and you ll be playing against the best players in the world on the biggest stage that there is, Lewis said of his top defensive pairing. I m excited for them. The thing I wish is that they come back healthy. Faulk s career as many other athletes journeys has been about progressively taking the next step, though he s done it arguably more expedited than others. As a 21-year-old, Faulk will now have a chance to capture a gold medal with Team USA on the world s biggest stage. And then, perhaps his next step is a Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes. Yes, and yes, Faulk said with a smile.

7 Going for Gold Sunday, / 12:00 PM / Tracking the Storm By Mike Sundheim The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi are underway, and four members of the Carolina Hurricanes -- Justin Faulk (USA), Alexander Semin (Russia), Tuomo Ruutu (Finland) and Andrej Sekera (Slovakia) will be in Russia to take part in the world s most important international ice hockey tournament. Here s a quick guide to men s hockey at the Olympics to get you ready for puck drop on Feb. 12. How to Watch: Every game of the Olympic men s hockey tournament will air live on NBC s family of networks. Though there are games that start as early as 3:30 a.m. ET, all three of Team USA s round-robin games have 7:30 a.m. ET start times on NBCSN. Kyle Hanlin put together a nifty, printable version of the broadcast schedule that will look great on your bulletin board. Tournament Format: The Olympic tournament expanded to 12 teams this year, and will begin with round-robin group play. The three group winners and the top second-place team earn automatic spots in the Olympic quarterfinals on Feb. 19. The remaining eight teams will play in qualification games on Feb. 18 to earn spots in the medal round. The Olympic semifinals will take place on Feb. 21, with the bronze medal game on Feb. 22 and the gold medal game on Feb. 23. Here are the groups for round-robin play: Group A Group B Group C Russia Finland Czech Republic USA Austria Sweden Slovakia Canada Latvia Slovenia Norway Switzerland Our Olympians: Four Hurricanes players will represent their countries in Sochi, and three of the four will skate against each other in group play. Michael Smith and CanesVision are creating a terrific series of features on our four Olympians, which will post to CarolinaHurricanes.com starting on Monday. All four have extensive international experience. Justin Faulk, USA: The Minnesota native has been competing for the United States internationally since he was 16 years old. He scored the gold-medal winning goal for Team USA at the 2010 U-18 World Junior Championship in Belarus, and helped the U.S. win bronze at the 2011 World Juniors in Buffalo. Most recently, Faulk was the leading scorer among American defensemen at the 2012 and 2013 IIHF World Championships, winning bronze in 2013 in Stockholm. Let s hope Faulk and his teammates can get some good mojo without doing anything crazy to their salads. Alexander Semin, Russia: This will mark Alexander Semin s 10th major international tournament for host Russia, and his second Olympic Games. The Krasnoyarsk native helped his country capture gold at the 2008 IIHF World Championship in Quebec City and the 2012 IIHF World Championship in Helsinki. Semin also earned medals at the 2002 U-18 World Junior Championship (silver), 2005 IIHF World Championship (bronze) and 2010 IIHF World Championship (silver). Winning Olympic gold in his home country would surely make Alex even happier than being featured in a Forslund Focus. Tuomo Ruutu, Finland: Few international players have a resume of success to match Tuomo Ruutu, who has earned medals in all 10 major competitions he has been a part of. A native of Vantaa, Finland, Ruutu will compete in his second Olympics after earning bronze with Hurricanes teammate Joni Pitkanen in Vancouver. He finally added gold to his medal collection in 2011, scoring six goals to help Finland win the 2011 IIHF World Championship in Slovakia. In case you didn t know, Tuomo is kind of a big deal in Finland. Andrej Sekera, Slovakia: Andrej Sekera s will look to continue his breakout season wearing the (really cool, anthem-bearing) sweater of his native Slovakia in Sochi. It will mark Sekera s second Olympics his Slovakian team came just short of the medal stand in 2010, falling to Ruutu s Finnish squad in the bronze medal game. Sekera captained Slovakia at the 2006 World Junior Championship, and also represented his home country at the 2004 U-18 World Junior Championships, the 2005 World Juniors and the 2008, 2009 and 2010 IIHF World Championships. Heavy Medal: Four Hurricanes players went to the 2010 Games in Vancouver, and all four returned with medals: Eric Staal (Canada-gold), Tim Gleason (USA-silver), Tuomo Ruutu (Finland-bronze) and Joni Pitkanen (Finland-bronze). Only three other Hurricanes players have won Olympic gold medals since NHL players began competing in the tournament in 1998: Sami Kapanen for Finland in 1998 (bronze), Tom Barrasso for Team USA in 2002 (silver) and Frantisek Kaberle for the Czech Republic in 2006 (bronze). Rules: There are several rules differences between the Olympics and the NHL, the most important of which is the size of the ice surface. Both the NHL and the international rinks are 200-feet long, but the international surface is 15 feet wider, adding 300 square feet to the ice surface. The Score s Justin

8 Bourne wrote an excellent piece explaining why (ice) size matters. Other rules variations include: No-touch icing: There is no race to the hash marks like the NHL s hybrid icing. As soon as the puck crosses the red line, play is blown dead. Stay out of the crease: Sabres fans may (or may not) appreciate that a goal does not count if a player or his stick enters the goal crease. The only exception is if a defending player interferes, forcing the offensive forward into the crease. Major penalty: All major penalties come with an automatic match penalty, including fighting. No trapezoid: Some goalies would like to see the noplay trapezoid behind the net in the NHL eliminated. Those goalies will be happy in Sochi. Canes vs. Canes: We don t know whether Justin Faulk will be trying to lay a hit on Tuomo Ruutu in the medal round, but we do know about three games in which Hurricanes players will see a teammate as an enemy: USA vs. Slovakia, 2/13, 7:30 a.m. (NBCSN): Defensive partners Justin Faulk and Andrej Sekera will see each other right away in Russia, as their teams open up with a head-to-head in matchup. USA vs. Russia, 2/15, 7:30 a.m. (NBCSN): Faulk gets his first taste of an old Olympic rivalry as the U.S. takes on Alexander Semin and Russia in hostile territory. Russia vs. Slovakia, 2/16, 7:30 a.m. (USA Network): Semin and Sekera will battle it out at the same time as Faulk and Team USA are wrapping up round-robin play vs. Slovenia (NBCSN). Miracle: Two members of the United States 1980 gold-medalwinning team in Lake Placid went on to play for the Hartford Whalers. Mark Johnson, who had two of Team USA s four goals in their upset of the Soviets, notched 203 points (85 goals, 118 assists) in 201 games for Hartford between 1982 and Forward Rob McClanahan had three assists in 17 games for the Whale in Speaking of those guys, this is pretty much required viewing for American fans this week, no? Squaw Valley: Digging even further into Team USA and Whaler-Canes lore, Tommy Williams played 139 games for the Whalers in the World Hockey Association (WHA). Williams was a member of the Forgotten Miracle United States team which won all seven of its games at the 1960 Winter Olympics to win the country s first Olympic gold in hockey. Match Made on Ice: Nearly a decade before he joined the Hurricanes, Bret Hedican was a member of the United States team that finished fourth at the 1992 Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, France. Also competing in those games was Hedican s future wife, Kristi Yamaguchi, who topped Japan s Midori Ito for the gold medal. Nancy Kerrigan won the bronze in Albertville, just ahead of fellow American Tonya Harding. Hedican returned to the Olympics in 2006, skating with fellow Hurricane Erik Cole and led by Carolina Head Coach Peter Laviolette in Torino, Italy. The Americans finished eighth in the tournament, but the trio did have some decent success together in Carolina in the months that followed. Hot Ticket: We re not the only ones fired up about the Olympic hockey tournament: Ladies First: The United States Women s hockey team has won four of the last five World Championships, but has not brought home Olympic Gold since Nagano in Most expect the U.S. and Canada to battle for the gold in Sochi, though hopefully not quite like this. Forward Julie Chu is competing in her fourth Olympics for the Americans, still looking for her first taste of Olympic gold. Wisconsin native Amanda Kessel (not to be confused with Hurricanes anthem singer Amanda Kessell Bell) is the younger sister of Toronto Maple Leafs and Team USA winger Phil Kessel. Four-time World Championship gold medalist Meghan Duggan is serving as captain for the Americans, who opened play with a 3-1 victory against Finland on Saturday morning. Canes Fall to Canadiens in Final Game Before Break Saturday, / 9:38 PM Michael Smith Tracking the Storm: Analysis -- The Carolina Hurricanes fell 4-1 to the Montreal Canadiens in the team s final game before breaking for the Olympics, certainly not the ideal scenario before heading into an extended layoff. Obviously we wanted to come in here and get those two points before we left. It s a tight race as it is, said U.S. Olympian Justin Faulk. I don t think we had the effort or the drive that we needed to get the two points tonight. In a game like that, especially before the break, we needed to leave it all out there. But it didn t go our way, and we didn t get it done. -- For a period and a half, it seemed like the Canes, leading 1-0, had a pretty good handle on the game. Then, the Habs struck twice in the last 2:08 of the middle frame to take a 2-1 lead heading into the intermission. It s disappointing because in the first period we came out, after playing last night, and

9 played a smart first period. We felt like we weren t giving them anything, head coach Kirk Muller said. It continued into the second, but we made a couple breakdowns, and they capitalized. That was the difference. -- Drayson Bowman scored the lone goal for the Hurricanes, his fourth tally of the season, at the 5:42 mark of the second period. Faulk made a good keep at the blue line, and then Riley Nash fed Bowman at the top of the near circle. Bowman picked the corner, as Tuomo Ruutu provided the screen in front of Carey Price. It s a tough one, like before Christmas break, Ruutu said, referencing the Canes 4-3 loss to Columbus on Dec. 23. I thought we were playing all right, and we had the one-goal lead, but something was missing. They scored four goals in our own building. It was too much. -- The fourth line was the Canes best line tonight, and they ve been rolling along for the past week now. Nash, who had the primary assist on Bowman s tally, has points (2g, 1a) in three straight games, a career high. They re working hard, and they ve been playing well defensively, Muller said. They re creating a lot of chances, and when they do, they re actually capitalizing on it. They re getting some good production. -- That said, there wasn t much happening offensively elsewhere. In the third period, what were arguably the Canes two best scoring chances came from the fourth line: Andrei Markov made a good defensive play on Nash to deny him what looked to be a pretty open net with Price scrambling, and Price, a Canadian Olympian, robbed Bowman with a glove save to preserve his team s 3-1 lead. Our fourth line was our best line tonight, Muller said. We had some guys that played really well and played hard, but we didn t have everybody on board. That doesn t cut it in this league. It was disappointing. -- The Hurricanes will now be off until Thursday, Feb. 20 when they return for five straight scheduled days of practice before taking on Buffalo in a rescheduled match on Feb. 25. That will kick off a season-long five-game road swing that will take the team then to Dallas and California. We ve got to get off to a good start right away, Faulk said. We ve got a big road trip to start off the last quarter of the year, and we need a hot start. -- Muller on what s on tap for the next two-and-a-half weeks: We re going to have a real tough [schedule] right after. They need to get a real good mental and physical break for 4 or 5 days, but there s time there after that to get back to working out. I m sure some of those guys will only probably take a day off and continue to train, he said. We ll have a few less practice days than other teams, as soon as we get here, the better shape they come in and ready to go, the quicker we can work on the X s and O s of the game and get us prepared to go into Buffalo. Recap (NHL.com) RALEIGH, N.C. -- David Desharnais scored twice and Carey Price stopped 31 shots to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a 4-1 win against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena on Saturday. The win was the third straight for the Canadiens ( ), who lost leading goal scorer Max Pacioretty in the first period. Pacioretty, who is slated to represent the United States at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, left the game with 7:30 remaining in the first period after being checked into the goal post. Hurricanes defenseman Brett Bellemore hit Pacioretty as he tried to cut from the goal line to the front of the net. The 25-year-old forward appeared to hit his leg and forearm on the post. He immediately grabbed his arm and remained facedown on the ice for a couple minutes before slowly making his way to the dressing room under his own power. The Canadiens announced in the second period that Pacioretty sustained a lower-body injury, and he did not return. He has 26 goals and 37 points in 50 games. Carolina struck first at 5:42 of the second period when Drayson Bowman one-timed a shot from above the right circle past Price. Montreal countered with two goals 85 seconds apart to take the lead. Desharnais drove to the net before starting a giveand-go with Rene Borque, who found Desharnais on the back door at 17:52. In the final minute of the period, Ryan White pounced on a rebound in front of the net after Andrei Markov's shot from above the circle was stopped by Hurricanes goalie Anton Khudobin. Desharnais extended the lead to 3-1 at 6:15 of the third period. Brendan Gallagher skated up the left wing and feathered a pass to Desharnais, who beat Khudobin over the glove. Gallagher finished with two assists. Brian Gionta finished the scoring with a wraparound goal into an empty net with 2:17 remaining. Price was sharp throughout. With 7:32 remaining in regulation, he stopped Bowman with the glove on a point-blank shot from the slot. Two minutes later, Price came across the crease to rob Bowman on a wrist shot. Khudobin stopped 20 of 23 shots in the loss.

10 Hurricanes begin Olympic break with 4-1 loss to Habs by Peter Koutroumpis on February 8, 2014 RALEIGH, N.C. The Carolina Hurricanes ended their pre- Winter Olympics season segment suffering a 4-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens in front of a sellout crowd of 18,680 at PNC Arena on Saturday. As only the second game all season where every seat in Carolina s home building was officially claimed, both teams came into the critical Eastern Division game having split decisions in their first two games against one another. Montreal avenged a 5-4 overtime loss to Carolina on New Year s Eve by earning a 3-0 shutout win on Jan. 28 to set up the third and final meeting between the two as a highly anticipated opportunity to head into the NHL s break for the Winter Olympics on a winning note. Playing in their second game of a back-to-back set following a 5-1 win over the Florida Panthers the night before, the Hurricanes looked ready to finish their recent home stand by winning three of four games. However, the Canadiens took advantage of defensive lapses on the Hurricanes part and ended up winning the three-game season series, and leaving Carolina splitting the set of games they expected to win a majority of. It was disappointing, Hurricanes head coach Kirk Muller said. The first period we came out after playing last night and played a good and smart first period. We felt like we weren t giving them anything. Continuing into the second we made a couple of breakdowns and they capitalized, and I think that was the difference. Overall, we were playing the game we were fine except our breakdowns cost us. Following a scoreless first period during which the Canadiens outshot the Hurricanes 10-7, Drayson Bowman opened the game s scoring at 5:32 of the second period. After defenseman Justin Faulk worked to keep the puck in the Canadiens zone by pushing it forward to Riley Nash in the slot, the centerman then found Bowman open along the boards to Canadiens goaltender Cary Price s left. As Nash s pass slid towards him, Bowman wound up and put a low blast towards Price that eluded him while Tuomo Ruutu ran interference in front of him. The Hurricanes held their one-goal lead for the next 12 minutes of play, but before the period ended, their entire effort to beat Montreal unraveled. With 2:08 left, Montreal s David Desharnais used a give-andgo with Rene Bourque, along with Brendan Gallagher skating along as a decoy, to tie the game up 1-1. Desharnais carried the puck across the Hurricanes blue line with Bourque to his left and Gallagher to his right. As Bourque took the pass along the boards, Gallagher cut left towards the net and created a diversion in the low slot and crease areas while Desharnais skated in on the right side to get the return pass from Bourque to put the puck into a wideopen net. The Canadiens then extended the lead to 2-1 after Ryan White got hit with an Andrei Markov shot that bounced off his backside and dropped close enough for him to backhand the puck past Khudobin for the eventual game-winner. It happened pretty quick there at the end of the second, Bowman said. They got two unfortunately and kind of swung the momentum in their favor. Trailing by a goal, the game was still within Carolina s reach, but Price continued to make numerous, and at times exceptional saves, finishing with a total of 31 stops on the night to end the series against the Hurricanes with a record to go along with a 1.97 GAA and.945 save percentage. Montreal then extended its lead to two goals at the 6:15 mark of the third period when Desharnais snapped a shot over Carolina netminder Anton Khudobin s shoulder after getting behind the Carolina defense. We didn t have the drive or the effort to get the two points that we needed tonight, Faulk said. In a game like that, especially before the break, we needed to leave it all out there, but it didn t go our way and we didn t get it done. After an apparent mix-up on a non-called high stick play, Habs captain Brian Gionta added insult to injury and scored the Canadiens fourth goal to secure their third consecutive win in as many games. With Khudobin out of the Hurricanes net for the extra attacker, Gionta picked up a loose puck that Brandon Prust pushed away from Faulk in the corner, and outskated Andrej Sekera to finish a wraparound to score the final goal of the game.

11 The loss dropped Carolina down two points more from a playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference standings. Fortunately for them, they will resume play after the NHL s scheduled break for the Winter Olympics still holding two games in-hand on the Philadelphia Flyers who occupy that spot in their division while holding a game in-hand on the Detroit Red Wings who sit three points ahead of them in the Conference standings. The Hurricanes will restart their season ahead of many teams on Feb. 25 as a result of needing to make up their previously postponed road game scheduled against the Buffalo Sabres. Thus, staying in shape and mentally focused to return will be imperative for his players according to Muller. It s a really tough schedule with the Olympics, he said. We re gonna have a real tough one to start right after. They need to get a real good mental and physical break for whatever four, five days, but then there s time right after that to get back to workin out. I m sure some of those guys will take a day off and continue to train The sooner we get here, the better shape they come in and are ready to go, the quicker we can work on the x s and o s of the game and get us prepared to go into Buffalo after four practices. 'Canes squander early lead, fall to Habs By Lauren Browlow Feb. 08, 2014 RALEIGH, N.C. -- Perhaps with some time off for the Olympic break, the Carolina Hurricanes ( ) can convince themselves it's January again. It was the only month this year when the Hurricanes had a winning record In October-December, they were February, though, has gotten off to a bad start at 1-2, as the Montreal Canadiens ( ) came to PNC Arena and left with a 4-1 victory. Now, the Hurricanes will be off until February 25, when they start a five-game road trip with a makeup game at Buffalo. "Obviously we wanted to come in here and get those two points before we left. It's a tight race as it is, and we didn't have the effort or, I don't think, the drive that we needed to get the two points obviously tonight," said Justin Faulk, who will be on his way to Sochi to join Team USA. "In a game like that, especially before the break, we needed to kind of leave it all out there. But it didn't go our way. We didn't get it done." They won't be back at PNC Arena until March 7, and they'll only be back there nine more times the rest of the year. In a tight Eastern Division, the Hurricanes certainly didn't do themselves any favors by squandering early momentum, getting out to a 1-0 lead early in the second and controlling the first 38 minutes of play, nearly. But two goals from the Canadiens in the final 2:08 of the second period gave the Habs a 2-1 lead and all the momentum. "Disappointing because first period, we come out to play last night and we played a good, smart first period (tonight)," Hurricanes head coach Kirk Muller said. "We felt like we weren't giving them anything, and continuing into the second and all that. But we made a couple breakdowns and they capitalized, and I think that was the difference. Overall... we were fine except our breakdowns cost us." "We were feeling good. It was a big goal and we had the momentum, I thought," Drayson Bowman, who scored the Hurricanes' only goal, said. "Unfortunately we let it slip there at the end of the second. You can't let that happen. That's a good team over there." The fast start didn't even save the Hurricanes this time. They were when scoring first this season and hadn't lost a game when scoring first since December 27. Now, make it Of course, perhaps the bigger problem is one that was plaguing the Hurricanes in most of their star players were no-shows. Muller said after the game that his fourth line was the team's best line. While it's certainly a compliment to those guys, who have worked hard all season and been key in Carolina's victories, it's not a good thing for the team overall. "Our fourth line was our best line tonight. I thought we had some guys that, we had some guys tonight that played really well, played hard, but we didn't have everybody on board and that doesn't cut it in this league," Muller said. "It was disappointing. It was disappointing because some guys didn't bring their 'A' game here tonight." A few Hurricanes will be headed to Sochi along with Faulk -- Andrej Sekera (Slovakia), Tuomo Ruutu (Finland) and Alexander Semin (Russia). The rest of the guys are going to have to take some time to rest, since the rest of the season is going to be quite the grind. Muller said he'll encourage the team to take 4-5 days off from even working out individually, and then the team will resume

12 practice on February 20. But they'll only have a few days, so they get less practice time. "We're going to have a real tough one starting right after, so they need to get a real good mental and physical break for 4-5 days, but then there's time there after that to really get back to the working out," Muller said. "We just said, 'Hey, listen, we got a game thrown in on us early, the Buffalo one from the snowstorm, so we have a few less practice days than other teams.' So as soon as we get in... they come in and ready to go, the quicker we can work on the x's and o's of the game and get us prepared going to Buffalo." Canadiens 4, Hurricanes 1 CBSSports.com wire reports Feb. 8, 2014 RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Montreal Canadiens needed a little time to get up to speed in their final game before the Olympic break. When they did, they left behind the Carolina Hurricanes. David Desharnais scored twice and the Canadiens rallied for a 4-1 victory Saturday night. "We had a little slump a couple of weeks ago and we wanted to get out of it," Desharnais said. "We did and we want to stay up in the standings and with these three wins, we did. That was our goal." Ryan White and Brian Gionta also scored and Carey Price made 31 saves to help the Canadiens win their third in a row. "It was nice to finish before the break with another win," said Price, set to play for Canada in the Olympics. "We talked about staying focused and earning that one and it worked out for us. Confidence in hockey is a big thing and to finish strong like this is good," Montreal left wing Max Pacioretty, a member of the U.S. team, suffered a first-period injury after being checked into the goal by Carolina's Brett Bellemore. He left with 7:30 left in the first period and did not return. After the game, Pacioretty said it was all precautionary for his to sit out the rest of the game. "I went in pretty hard and I got the wind knocked out of me," Pacioretty said. "I think the team wanted to play it safe and I think it was a good decision." After a scoreless first period, Carolina got on the scoreboard first in the second period. Drayson Bowman scored his fourth goal of the season with a rising shot from the top of the right circle at 5:42. Bowman took advantage of Tuomo Ruutu's screen that kept Price from making a play on the puck. But the rest of the game belonged to the Canadiens. "We responded the right way," Montreal coach Michel Therrien said. "Even though they scored the first goal, we started playing well." Desharnais tied it with 2:08 left in the second, converting a 3- on-2 rush. It took only 1:25 for Montreal to take the lead as White scored on a rebound at the top of the crease with 42.7 seconds left in the period. Desharnais gave Montreal some breathing room early in the third period with his 11th goal of the season. It marked his first multi-goal game of the season. Gionta finished the scoring for Montreal with an empty-netter with 2:37 to go. Carolina defenseman Justin Faulk said the Hurricanes didn't play with energy. "We didn't have the drive and the effort we needed," said Faulk, who also is on the U.S. Olympic team. "In a game like this, especially before the break, we needed to leave it all out there. It didn't go our way." Neither team took advantage of their power-play opportunities. Montreal was 0 for 1 with the man-advantage, and Carolina failed on two power plays.

13 In the Habs' room: Pacioretty feels better, will play in Sochi Team responded the right way to distractions, Therrien says By PAT HICKEY, The Gazette February 9, 2014 RALEIGH, N.C. David Desharnais is known for his pinpoint passes but he said he had to adopt a new role after his longtime friend and linemate Max Pacioretty was injured in the first period of Saturday s game against the Carolina Hurricanes. (Pacioretty) is a big part of our offence when he s shooting the puck and when he s not there, somebody has to pick it up, said Desharnais, who scored twice in the Canadiens 4-1 win at PNC Arena. I had some nice setups. I do it quite often but it s nice to be on the receiving end. Rene Bourque set up Desharnais for the Canadiens first goal and Brendan Gallagher collected the second of his two assists on Desharnais s second goal, which put Montreal ahead 3-1. We were facing a lot of distractions, all 30 teams were, and we responded the right way, said coach Michel Therrien, whose team went into the break with three consecutive wins. We had a lot of leadership and we needed everyone to step up, not just two or three players, but we started our comeback when (Desharnais) scored that first goal. Davey s a big part of our team, said goaltender Carey Price, who stopped 31 shots. He s a quiet leader and he stepped up tonight. There was no panic, Desharnais said. We scored two goals in the second and added two more in the third. We had a little slump a few weeks ago and we wanted to get out of it and we needed these three wins to stay up in the standings. The Canadiens remained in third place in the Atlantic Division with 70 points, one back of Tampa Bay. Toronto also has 70 points but has played one more game. Montreal and Toronto also moved six points clear of fifth-place Detroit. The Canadiens were being outplayed by a wide margin in the second period before Desharnais scored at 17:52. The injury to Pacioretty may have taken some of the wind out of the Canadiens sails but it definitely took the wind away from Pacioretty. I had trouble catching my breath, said Pacioretty, who was driving to the net when he was shoved by Carolina s Brett Bellemore. He hit a goalpost and had to be helped from the ice. It s a play I make often, Pacioretty said. I went in a little awkwardly and I dinged my arm and my hip but I feel good now. Pacioretty admitted that his first thought was that the injury would torpedo his chances of representing the U.S. in Sochi. I was very worried at first, he said. It was tough to breathe and I was having back spasms but I had x-rays and there was nothing broken. I had some treatments while the game was going on and I feel better, I was in a lot of pain but I could tell it was more muscular. I don t feel that bad right now and I have a couple of days before we start playing in Sochi. Therrien said also thought of Sochi when he saw Pacioretty hit the post. I was hoping that it was not a big injury because you want your players to participate (in the Olympics), Therrien said. It was scary for him and it would have been terrible if he missed the Olympics, said Price, who has been polishing his credentials as the No. 1 goalie for Team Canada. He is in his last six starts and he has allowed only seven goals on 210 shots for a save percentage of.967. I think confidence is a big part and it was definitely important to play well going into the break, said Price. He said he hadn t started thinking about Sochi but that process would probably begin when he boarded a charter flight to Russia on Sunday. Why NHL coaches are worried about a Sochi hangover Stephen Whyno, Canadian Press February 9, :51 PM ET SOCHI, Russia Randy Carlyle doesn t have fond memories of the aftermath of the 2010 Olympics. Sure, as a native of Sudbury, Ont., Carlyle was happy Canada won the gold medal. But as coach of the Anaheim Ducks, he

14 was less than thrilled with how things went after the Olympic break. We had seven players go to the Olympics and we had [Ryan] Getzlaf, [Corey] Perry and Scott Niedermayer come back and they didn t have any emotion left when they got back, Carlyle said last month in Toronto. They participated in winning a gold medal, and it was difficult to get those guys back to the level that we needed them at that time, and it s understandable. All those things are tough things when they come back to your group after participating in that type of event because it s two or three weeks of high emotion, and the last thing on their mind is where they came from. They re playing for their country. The Ducks lost five straight after Niedermayer and Co. beat the United States in Vancouver, went the rest of the way and missed the playoffs. That s something Carlyle doesn t want to see happen to his Toronto Maple Leafs, who have three Olympians in Americans Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk and Russian Nikolai Kulemin. It s a concern for coaches across the NHL as players land in Sochi to participate in what s considered the most elite hockey tournament in the world. Current Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau has seven Olympians of his own this time and figures he won t be concerned about this until after the medals are awarded. You re excited to see them go, you re excited to see them go for their country and everything. But you re concerned because of your own team It s almost like a father-figure: You re concerned about your kids all the time, said Boudreau. You re excited to see them go, you re excited to see them go for their country and everything. But you re concerned because of your own team. You want them to come back fresh, and it s a dicey little thing of when they re done how much rest they need to get reestablished, just get back into playoff mode or the last-21- game mode. Some teams have more concerns that others. Mike Babcock s Detroit Red Wings and Joel Quenneville s Chicago Blackhawks each have 10 Olympians, while the Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators, Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators have two apiece. With so many players affected, Quenneville s focus is on how to get players back into form in late February. We think when they return, getting a pretty good feel from them when they get back, how they look, how they re playing, how they seem, we ll try to keep these guys as fresh as possible and keep them away from the rink if necessary and try to cut their minutes back in games, but that might be wishful thinking, he said. But we ll see. Paul Maurice of the Winnipeg Jets has four players in Sochi Blake Wheeler for the U.S., Olli Jokinen for Finland and Ondrej Pavelec and Michael Frolik for the Czech Republic. His experience in 2002 with the Carolina Hurricanes was the opposite of Carlyle s in 2010, so he s thinking positive. I remember we ended up going to the finals and came out fast and quick, Maurice said. We had a bunch of guys that were older, fit men that used that break to rest but came back roaring. Maurice is thinking more about his players not going to Sochi and how they ll handle the time off than those playing for the next two weeks. They re going to go and play at a really, really high level and they re going to get better from it, he said. I d prefer to have more guys going than not. Dave Tippett of the Phoenix Coyotes agrees. You re always worried about risk to your players, but there s another way to look at it: When players go over there and play against the top players in the world, they get an unbelievable confidence about their game, Tippett said recently. They might come back much better. If that happens to Kessel, van Riemsdyk and Kulemin, Carlyle will be glad this happened. Either way, he s not begrudging his players opportunity. We think those players have earned the opportunity, and we support them in their endeavour to go to the Olympics, Carlyle said. It s a chance of a lifetime. Max Pacioretty: I'm going to Sochi Updated: February 9, 2014, 7:24 AM ET RALEIGH, N.C. -- Montreal Canadiens left wing Max Pacioretty said he is still going to the Olympics despite suffering a lower body injury against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night. "I'm OK. I'm going to Sochi," the U.S. Olympian said, according to NHL.com, following Montreal's 4-1 victory.

15 A Team USA spokesman echoed his claim, saying Pacioretty was still expected to head to Russia. There were no changes in that plan, the spokesman said. Pacioretty collided with the goal with 7:30 left in the first period after being checked by Carolina's Brett Bellemore in the teams' final game before the Olympic break. "I went in pretty hard and I got the wind knocked out of me," Pacioretty said. "I think the team wanted to play it safe and I think it was a good decision." A native of New Canaan, Conn., Pacioretty is scheduled to leave for Russia on Sunday to join the American team, which opens play on Thursday against Slovakia. The 25-year-old Pacioretty has played 49 games this season. He has 26 goals and 11 assists. Pacioretty had second hat trick of the season Thursday in a 5-2 win over Vancouver. Golden but gone: Who won't be suiting up for Team Canada in 2014 By Jordan Bowman and Wyatt Arndt, The Province February 9, 2014 The honour of representing Canada at the Olympics might just be the highest one a hockey player can attain. But with four years between tournaments, not everyone gets invited back. So, to honour our 2010 gold-medal team, here's an update on a few of the players who won't be suiting up for Canada in Scott Niedermayer: Our 2010 captain is enjoying his retirement. History will remember him as the first person into the pile to congratulate Sidney Crosby for his Golden Goal. Although he is old and well past his prime, we would still rather have him on the team than Duncan Keith. Brent Seabrook: Seabrook was apparently caught trying to sneak over the border into Russia, wearing a Dan Hamhuis mask. "No, really, it's me, Dan! Look how sad I am! I'm frowning so much! I find puppies unlovable and upsetting, I am totally Dan Hamhuis!" Chris Pronger: Details were hard to find on what Pronger is up to these days, but rest assured it most likely involves elbowing people in the head or hitting them from behind. Maybe an occasional skate stomp thrown in there for good measure. He's probably lining you up for an illegal hit as you read this. Jarome Iginla: Reunited with 2010 teammate Sidney Crosby in Pittsburgh, but left for Boston when he saw he had been replaced by Crosby's new BFF Chris Kunitz. Still hears "IGGY!" when he goes to sleep. Eric Staal: Still plays for the Carolina Hurricanes. With it being Family Day tomorrow, we're happy to report Eric will get to spend some time with his NHL-playing brothers Jordan and Marc, as Team Canada instituted a strict "No Staals" policy this year. Brenden Morrow: Fun fact: There is nothing funny or entertaining about Brenden Morrow. So let's say he played polo whilst riding a magical unicorn that shot cotton candy out of its mouth, much to the delight of Steven Spielberg, who was in attendance looking for someone to play the lead in his new hockey movie about the life of Nathan Lafayette, simply called Whoops, Post, My Bad. Mike Richards: Richards has a Stanley Cup and a gold medal under his belt already. In Vancouver, we call these people "jerks" and we kindly ask that they stay away from us. Now if you'll excuse us, we need to go have a bit of a cry over in the corner. Joe Thornton: Ever since Jumbo Joe informed The Province's own Jason Botchford how he'd celebrate a fourgoal game, it left everyone excited about how he might celebrate two gold medals. Alas, we might never know now, but apparently it involved glow-in-the-dark paint, eight pounds of hamburger meat, and a My Little Pony costume. Martin Brodeur: Lost the job to Luongo in 2010, but still went home with a gold medal. Now he is still playing in New Jersey, battling a hot young goalie prospect trying to take his job: Cory Schneider. Wow, he has more in common with Luongo than we thought. Marc-Andre Fleury: Fleury was so rattled by his exclusion from the Olympic team that he let in several soft goals before the Olympic break. How does this differ from normal Fleury, you ask? We're not quite sure...

16 10 NHLers to watch at the Olympic hockey tournament While the men s hockey tournament will be full of top talent, here are some players coming into Sochi on a hot streak. By: Mark Zwolinski Sports reporter, Published on Sun Feb The NHL is officially on break now, with many of its top players flying to Russia on Sunday to prepare for the start of the Olympic hockey tournament on Wednesday. Here s a look at 10 of the hottest NHL performers heading into Sochi: Phil Kessel (Maple Leafs / USA): Having his best season as a Leaf, and has been the NHL s top scorer since Jan. 1 (11 goals, 17 assists in 19 games). He s second in the league in goals and fourth in points, and has hit top-10 status in several NHL player power rankings. Henrik Lundqvist (New York Rangers / Sweden): Also redhot since Jan. 1, he s second in NHL in wins (10), goals against average (1.91) and save percentage (.937) in He looks to be in peak form, and will have arguably the most skilled defence in front of him at the Olympics. Anze Kopitar (L.A. Kings / Slovenia): He currently sits third in even-strength Corsi-for percentage at 61.1, and is set to make history by becoming first player in Olympic hockey to be coached by his father (Matjaz Kopitar). Justin Faulk (Carolina Hurricanes / USA): Five points in his last nine games, and he enters Sochi with a career-high 22 points in 57 games, as an under-the-radar D-man. Mark Streit (Philadelphia Flyers / Switzerland): Has 10 points in his last 13 games, and is now up to eight goals and 29 points after a tough start. He feels the Swiss, after their silver medal at the World Championships last year, are in for a good showing in Sochi. Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins / Canada): Had two goals on Saturday against Ottawa in the final pre-olympic game, has led the Bruins to nine wins in their last 11 and sits just behind Kopitar in Corsi-for percentage. Jamie Benn (Dallas Stars / Canada): Has 22 goals and 51 points, easily on pace for new career highs. It s a first Olympic appearance for Benn, who many believe will be one of the top forwards in the game. Valeri Nichushkin (Dallas Stars / Russia): Has 12 goals and 27 points, along with a plus-15 for the Stars not bad for an 18-year-old rookie who deservedly got the nod for Team Russia. When playing well, he s hard to contain. Gustav Nyquist (Detroit Red Wings / Sweden): Had a stretch of nine goals in nine games recently, and fired a hat trick in a loss to Washington over the weekend. A legitimate goal scoring threat who works nicely with Wings teammate Henrik Zetterberg. Zach Parise (Minnesota Wild / USA): One of the NHL s three stars this past week, the USA captain has 35 points in 42 games for Wild and is peaking just in time for the Olympics. Monday Musings: Special Sunday Olympic edition By Tim Wharnsby Posted: Sunday, February 9, :08 AM Some Monday morning musings from the NHL and rest of the hockey world to prepare you for the upcoming week that will see: More than 150 NHLers arrive in Sochi to prepare for the Olympic men's hockey tournament in four charters (three from Newark, one from Atlanta) on Monday. The Canadian women play the rival United States at Shayba Arena on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET in the final game of the round-robin portion of the tournament. The men's Olympic hockey tournament begins on Wednesday with two games at noon ET. Sweden and Czech Republic will square off at the Bolshoy Ice Dome. Latvia and Switzerland will meet at the smaller venue, Shayba Arena. Canada opens its tournament against Norway at Bolshoy Ice Dome at noon ET on Thursday. St. John's IceCaps left-winger Jason Jaffray will captain the AHL all-star team against Sweden's Farjestad BK at Mile One Centre in St. John's on Wednesday.

17 We are No. 5 Would you be surprised to learn the Canadian men's team is ranked fifth in the world, even though Canada won gold in Vancouver four years ago? Well, that's the case, according to the IIHF world rankings released after the 2013 world championship last spring. The IIHF rankings are compiled on a points system based on the past four world championships and last Olympics. So while Canada enters the Sochi Games as the defending champions, it has finished fifth in the last three world championships and seventh in The next IIHF rankings will be issued after the 2014 world championship in Belarus in May. Men's rankings 1. Sweden 2. Finland 3. Russia 4. Czech Republic 5. Canada 6. United States 7. Switzerland 8. Slovakia 9. Norway 10. Germany Women's rankings 1. United States 2. Canada 3. Finland 4. Russia 5. Switzerland Hot and cold Canadians Canadian Olympians Sidney Crosby, John Tavares and Ryan Getzlaf sit in the Art Ross Trophy scoring race as the NHL breaks for the Olympics. Here's how the entire Canadian team has performed since the roster was named on Jan. 7. Goalies (W-L-OTL/SOL, goals-against average, save percentage) Carey Price 6-6-1, 2.64,.919 Mike Smith 5-7-1, 2.47,.918 Roberto Luongo 3-6-0, 4.01,.901 Defence (goals, assists, points, plus-minus) Alex Pietrangelo , -1 (16 games) Shea Weber , +3 (16 games) Drew Doughty , +3 (16 games) P.K. Subban , -8 (15 games) Duncan Keith , +1 (14 games) Jay Bouwmeester , -4 (16 games) Marc-Edouard Vlasic , +3 (16 games) Dan Hamhuis , -5 (14 games) Forwards (goals, assists, points, plus-minus) Ryan Getzlaf , +3 (15 games) Martin St. Louis , +3 (16 games) Corey Perry , +7 (16 games) Sidney Crosby , +1 (14 games) John Tavares , -5 (16 games) Jamie Benn , +5 (16 games) Patrice Bergeron , +8 (15 games) Patrick Sharp , -4 (15 games) Matt Duchene , -6 (16 games) Jeff Carter , E (16 games) Jonathan Toews , E (15 games) Rick Nash , +7 (15 games) Patrick Marleau , -6 (16 games) Chris Kunitz , +3 (14 games) Poile's scare Nashville Predators general manager David Poile hopes to join the United States men's hockey team at some point in Sochi. But for now he is recovering back in the U.S. after getting hit in the face by an errant puck while watching his Predators practise in Minnesota last Thursday. Poile, who will turn 64 on Friday, required two surgeries and stitches in a Minnesota hospital to repair injuries to his face and eye area. When we return The NHL doesn't return to action until Feb. 25, when the Carolina Hurricanes visit the Buffalo Sabres. Here are five storylines to follow in the final seven weeks of the season. 1. The stumbling Vancouver Canucks hit the break having lost seven in a row and have fallen out of the top-eight playoff spots in the Western Conference. Can head coach John Tortorella get his club back on track? Meanwhile, after a rough start to the capaign, old Canucks coach Alain Vigneault has steered the New York Rangers to a run that has them firmly in the playoff picture in the East. The Canucks and Rangers meet in Vancouver on April The up-and-down season continues for the Ottawa Senators without Daniel Alfredsson and the same goes for the Detroit Red Wings with Daniel Alfredsson, who has 14 goals and 35 points in 46 games with his new club. One team could make the playoffs at the expense of the other. Eighth-place Detroit has a game in hand and a slim one-point lead on the Senators. These teams meet in Ottawa on Feb The Winnipeg Jets dropped their last two games before the break, but overall they have gone an impressive under new coach Paul Maurice to push themselves back into the playoff picture in the West. They sit 11 th in the conference, two points behind the eighth-place Dallas Stars. But the Jets have played two more games than Dallas. Winnipeg finishes its schedule with 12 games at home and 10 on the road. 4. The Olympic trade freeze lifts on Feb. 23 at midnight ET, giving NHL general managers 10 days before the March 5 trade deadline at 3 p.m. ET. It will be interesting to see where high profile players like Ryan Miller and Matt Moulson with the Buffalo Sabres, and Ryan Callahan and Dan Girardi of the New York Rangers wind up. Of the four Girardi is the most likely to sign a contract extension to stay with his team. 5. The rest of the NHL was shocked to find out Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Kris Letang had suffered a stroke. As he receives treatment for his condition, Letang will miss a

18 minimum six weeks. The 26-year-old already has been absent for 24 games this season because of knee and upper-body ailments as well as the recent setback. But the Penguins have gone without their star defenceman and with him in the lineup. The persistence of Brouillette After 490 regular season and playoff games in seven years and eight teams in the ECHL and AHL, Julien Brouillette of St- Esprit, Que. scored his first NHL goal in his second game on Saturday after picking up an assist in his NHL debut two nights earlier. The former Chicoutimi Sagueneens defenceman went undrafted. He started his pro career with the Columbia Inferno to the Charlotte Checkers, Providence Wolf Pack, the Greenville Road Warriors, back to Charlotte, Lake Erie Monsters, Hershey Bears, Reading Royals, back to Hershey before the Capitals called him up last week. With his parents Lucy and Alain, who had driven in from the family farm in Quebec, in the stands, Brouillette, 27, broke open a goal-less game with less than 10 minutes left with a point shot to spark the Capitals to a 3-0 win against the New Jersey Devils. By the Numbers 20 - Years, a record, between Olympic Games for 42-year-old Czech Petr Nedved. He settled for silver with Canada at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics Age of Russian Yekaterina Pashkevich, making her the oldest woman to play in a hockey game in Olympic history Age of Finland's Teemu Selanne, making him the oldest player in the men's Olympic hockey tournament. 6 - Olympic Games for Selanne, which equals a record held by fellow countryman Raimo Helminen Points registered in Selanne's previous five Olympics, which is a record. He has scored 20 goals and 17 assists NHL teams each will be represented by at least one player in Sochi. Group A: U.S., Russia to battle for top spot Saturday, / 10:55 PM / 2014 Olympics By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer Two gold-medal contenders will battle for an automatic trip to the quarterfinal round with one of the surprise contenders from four years ago and a national team making its first trip to the Olympics in Group A. The United States and Russia will play one of the most anticipated games in the preliminary round of the 2014 Sochi Olympics men's ice hockey tournament Saturday. The Americans open the tournament Thursday against Slovakia, the losers in the bronze-medal game four years ago. The Russians play Olympic rookie Slovenia at the same time. Group play concludes Feb. 16 when the United States plays Slovenia and the Russians play the Slovaks. Here is a preview of Group A: UNITED STATES Coach: Dan Bylsma Key players: G Ryan Miller (Buffalo Sabres), G Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles Kings), D Ryan Suter (Minnesota Wild), LW Zach Parise (Minnesota Wild), RW Patrick Kane (Chicago Blackhawks), C David Backes (St. Louis Blues) 2010 recap: The Americans won the silver medal in Vancouver after losing to Canada in overtime of the goldmedal game. Preview: It's an understatement to say expectations internally and externally are higher heading into Sochi than they were heading into Vancouver four years ago. The Americans were underdogs in 2010; they're favorites now. The Americans were not supposed to medal four years ago; they have legitimate gold-medal aspirations now. The Americans had two players from the 2006 Olympic team play on the 2010 team; they have 13 players from the 2010 team on this year's roster. The United States has not medaled at an Olympics outside of North America since They captured the bronze medal at the 2013 IIHF World Championship split between Sweden and Finland, but only three players from that team are on the Olympic team (Paul Stastny, T.J. Oshie and Justin Faulk). To fulfill their expectations of winning gold in Sochi, the Americans are first going to have to identify a No. 1 goalie. The choice is between Miller and Quick, though Jimmy Howard also is an option even though he's likely in Sochi as the third goalie. Identifying a No. 1 in net might not happen in the preliminary round, but provided his team gets through that and into the

19 quarterfinals, Bylsma knows he has to have his choice firmly in place in the win-or-go-home portion of the tournament. The United States opens against Slovakia, plays Russia in its second game, and then closes the preliminary round against Slovenia. Miller has the experience at the Olympic level -- he was the MVP of the tournament in Vancouver. However, Quick has been more battle-tested of late, having been to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in four straight seasons and winning the Stanley Cup in 2012, when he also was the Conn Smythe Trophy winner. Miller hasn't played in the playoffs since 2011 or won a round since going to the Eastern Conference Final in Miller has been the more consistent goalie this season largely because he has played the entire season. Quick was out of the lineup for nearly two months with a groin injury but had a strong January despite the fact the Kings were slumping because they couldn't score. Then again, Miller hasn't had much in the way of goal support, or really any support all season from the last-place Sabres. One question Bylsma has to ask himself: Will Quick's aggressiveness work with defensemen who are not used to playing with him? Quick is known for coming out of his crease to challenge shooters. He is one of the most aggressive goalies in the NHL, but the Kings defensemen all know that and they understand that they need to give him room, especially at the top of the crease, where the athletic Quick likes to play. None of the American Olympic defensemen ever have played in a game with Quick, so they'll have to adjust to his style. While Miller is not nearly as aggressive as Quick, he did make it a point to challenge shooters in the 2010 Olympics and could decide to do the same in Sochi. Bylsma also has to consider which goalie will better handle the different angles on the larger, international ice. The rink is 15 feet wider, so the angles for goaltenders are different. Quick has no experience on the big ice and Miller hasn't played on it in a meaningful way since the 2003 IIHF World Championship in Finland. It's Howard who has the most recent experience on the big ice, having served as the United States' top goaltender at the 2012 World Championship that was split between Sweden and Finland. Suffice to say this is an interesting and potentially difficult decision for Bylsma. The decisions up front will be all about chemistry and finding the right line combinations. Bylsma has three sets of teammates who could start the tournament as linemates in Derek Stepan and Ryan Callahan from the New York Rangers, Backes and Oshie from the St. Louis Blues and James van Riemsdyk and Phil Kessel from the Toronto Maple Leafs. It's possible Bylsma will separate those three pairs early in the tournament, but to foster chemistry it might make sense to try it out at least in the first game or two. Center depth has been discussed in the media as a concern for the Americans, but Bylsma does have five to choose from. Backes, Stepan and Ryan Kesler appear to be locks to play in the middle. If Bylsma decides to put Joe Pavelski on the wing then Stastny will be the fourth center. If Pavelski plays center then Bylsma will have the option to dress Stastny as his 13th forward. The American defense is young, with six first-time Olympians joining Suter and Brooks Orpik from the 2010 team. Paul Martin was supposed to play in Vancouver, but an injury prevented him from participating. It's an unbalanced defense with five left-handed shots and three righties, but Bylsma can balance his top six. The American blue line is filled with strong skaters who bring some offensive skill in Suter, Faulk, John Carlson, Ryan McDonagh, Kevin Shattenkirk and Cam Fowler. Orpik and Martin, the two most veteran defensemen, should be the safe options that are necessary for success on the big ice. Most teams will want to play a skill game, but for a defenseman, taking the safe route on the big ice typically is the best route because recovering from a mistake is harder. RUSSIA Coach: Zinetula Bilyaletdinov Key players: LW/RW Alex Ovechkin (Washington Capitals), LW/RW Ilya Kovalchuk (SKA St. Petersburg), C Evgeni Malkin (Pittsburgh Penguins), G Semyon Varlamov (Colorado Avalanche), G Sergei Bobrovsky (Columbus Blue Jackets), C Pavel Datsyuk (Detroit Red Wings) 2010 recap: The Russians lost to Canada 7-3 in the quarterfinals in Vancouver. Preview: The pressure is on the Russians the same way it was on the Canadians four years ago. How the Russians handle that pressure, or how well they deflect it, could determine how likely they are to be at the top of the medal stand Feb. 23. The good thing is their coach knows a thing or two about pressure, both failing to live up to it and overcoming it. Bilyaletdinov played for the Soviet Union team that lost to the Americans in 1980 and then came back to win the gold medal in the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics. Russia is going through a minor changing of the guard, as they have 16 first-time Olympians in Sochi, most notably Varlamov, Bobrovsky and defenseman Slava Voynov. Bilyaletdinov has a team loaded with high-end forwards, but they might have to make up for some deficiencies along the blue line. Fortunately, Russia has a strong goaltending core with the red-hot Bobrovsky and the steady Varlamov. Russia has four forwards in Ovechkin, Kovalchuk, Malkin and Datsyuk who could play in any top six on any team in the

20 tournament. Ovechkin and Kovalchuk could play on either wing, so they could play on the same line. Malkin and Datsyuk are dynamic yet different centers, so Russia should be able to play a power and a speed game. Russia has a solid third-line center in Artem Anisimov who is having a strong season for the Columbus Blue Jackets. He's defensively responsible and can put up some numbers too. Toronto Maple Leafs forward Nikolai Kulemin could join Anisimov on the third line, making it more of a checking/scoring line. Alexander Popov and Alexander Svitov also are options in the middle for Bilyaletdinov. Popov, who plays for Avangard Omsk in the Kontinental Hockey League, has 32 points in 46 games. Svitov, who plays for Ak Bars Kazan in the KHL, is strong in the faceoff circle, having won 56.8 percent of his draws so far this season. However, he has 12 points in 46 games. Potentially joining Ovechkin and Kovalchuk as top-six forwards are Carolina Hurricanes right wing Alexander Semin and former Nashville Predators left wing Alexander Radulov, who has 34 points in 33 games for CSKA Moscow in the KHL. Semin was a late addition to the roster as a replacement for Dynamo Moscow forward Sergei Soin, who had to withdraw because of a knee injury. Semin has had a difficult season in Carolina but improved right around the time he was named to the Olympic roster. First-time Olympians Vladimir Tarasenko, Valeri Nichushkin and Viktor Tikhonov, who plays for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL, should be relied on to provide some scoring depth, but they can't be overcome by the moment. If the Russians have a weakness, it's on defense, where they have seven left-shot players to only one righty and no real speedster. Compounding the problem is the fact that Ovechkin, Semin and Radulov, three forwards who expect to receive a lot of ice time, are not known for coming back hard into the defensive zone. Datsyuk is coming off a knee injury that kept him out of 14 straight games before he returned last Thursday. Russia could become susceptible to giving up Grade A scoring chances to other high-end teams like Canada, Sweden and the United States. Bilyaletdinov has an interesting dilemma on the blue line too. He has three natural pairs in Columbus teammates Fedor Tyutin and Nikita Nikitin, Montreal Canadiens teammates Andrei Markov and Alexei Emelin and Ak Bars teammates Ilya Nikulin and Evgeni Medvedev. However, Russia's top defenseman might be Voynov, who doesn't have a natural pair and is used to playing on the left side. If all goes to plan, Markov and Voynov should lead the Russian defense in minutes played. Goaltending should not be a concern with Bobrovsky and Varlamov competing for the No. 1 job. Bobrovsky, last season's Vezina Trophy winner, has rebounded from a slow, injury-riddled start to the season and has helped lift the Blue Jackets into playoff position in the Metropolitan Division. Varlamov has been strong all season. SLOVAKIA Coach: Vladimir Vujtek Key players: G Jaroslav Halak (St. Louis Blues), D Zdeno Chara (Boston Bruins), RW Marian Hossa (Chicago Blackhawks) 2010 recap: The Slovaks reached the bronze-medal game after beating Sweden, the defending gold medalists, in the quarterfinals. They lost to Finland in the third-place game. The fourth-place finish is Slovakia's best in the Olympics since the split from Czechoslovakia. Preview: The Slovaks again enter the tournament as underdogs despite having one of the best defensemen in the world in Chara and one of the top right wings in Hossa. They were underdogs in 2010 but gave Canada a run in the semifinals before losing 3-2. They then had a 3-1 lead on Finland entering the third period of the bronze-medal game but gave up four unanswered goals in the final 20 minutes and lost 5-3. Vujtek took over as the national team coach in 2011, replacing former Washington Capitals coach Glen Hanlon. He led the Slovaks to a second-place finish in the 2012 IIHF World Championship. Slovakia's chances at a medal, or at least being the upset specialist again, took a major hit when Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Marian Gaborik broke his collarbone earlier this season. Gaborik will not play in the Olympics, and for a team like Slovakia, it's just about impossible to replace someone who is a three-time 40-goal scorer in the NHL. Gaborik led Slovakia with four goals in the 2010 Olympics. Chara leads a defense corps that clearly is made better by his presence. He is one of three veteran NHL defensemen on Slovakia's roster, plus former NHL defenseman Milan Jurcina. Lubomir Visnovsky was selected to play, but he returned recently from a concussion and reportedly accepted the New York Islanders' decision to not let him go to Sochi. The other two veteran NHL defensemen are Andrej Meszaros and Andrej Sekera. Martin Marincin is 21 years old and has been in and out of the Edmonton Oilers' lineup this season. Opposing coaches are going to work on a game plan to stop Hossa, or at least not let him beat them. The Slovaks will need some first-time Olympians like Detroit Red Wings teammates Tomas Tatar and Tomas Jurco to step up to provide some offense. Tomas Kopecky and Michal Handzus give the Slovaks experience down the middle, but they could have problems against quicker opponents like the Russians and Americans. Former New York Rangers prospect Tomas Zaborsky, a left wing, has 21 goals and 41 points in 52 games for Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the KHL.

21 Halak could be the difference in Slovakia's chances of going deep in the tournament the way he was in 2010, when he posted a 2.41 goals-against average and.910 save percentage in seven games. Halak now has Olympic experience and he's having a strong season for the Blues, but he has been susceptible to some bad goals. SLOVENIA Coach: Matjaz Kopitar Key players: C Anze Kopitar (Los Angeles Kings), LW Jan Mursak (CSKA Moscow) 2010 recap: Slovenia did not participate in the 2010 Olympics. The country is making its first Olympic appearance this year in Sochi. Preview: For Slovenia, just qualifying for the Olympics is the equivalent to winning a medal. This is the first time the country has qualified for the Olympics since becoming a country after the breakup of Yugoslavia. Slovenia did provide all the players for Yugoslavia's team at the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics. Anze Kopitar is the only NHL player on Slovenia's roster. Mursak is a former prospect with the Detroit Red Wings. Slovenia was ranked 17th in the world by the IIHF when it qualified for the Olympics by beating out Belarus, Ukraine and Denmark. The Slovenians finished 16th at the 2013 IIHF World Championship, but they didn't have Kopitar and still took Canada to overtime in the preliminary round. Their best finish in the World Championship is 13th, in 2002 and Group B: Canada favorite to advance to medal round Monday, / 3:00 AM / 2014 Olympics By Arpon Basu - Managing Editor LNH.com If group play wasn't already simply a preseason tuneup for Canada at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, it might be now. What was already a top-heavy Group B became even more so when Finland was dealt a severe blow to its hopes with the injury withdrawals of Mikko Koivu of the Minnesota Wild and Valtteri Filppula of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Missing its top two centers, Finland's best hopes for an automatic bye to the quarterfinals will most likely be through the wild-card spot. It's unfortunate because a healthy Finnish squad featuring undoubtedly the best goaltending in the tournament could have had a chance to finish first in the group. Now, Group B is shaping up to be fodder for the Canadian machine to roll through on its way to the medal round. Preliminary round play in Group B begins Thursday and concludes Sunday, when Canada and Finland face each other in the final game of group play in the tournament. Here is a preview of Group B: CANADA Coach: Mike Babcock Key players: F Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins), F Jonathan Toews (Chicago Blackhawks), D Duncan Keith (Chicago Blackhawks), D Shea Weber (Nashville Predators) 2010 Recap: Canada won the gold medal with an overtime victory against the United States. Preview: Gold or go home. In a nutshell, that describes Canada's outlook heading into the Olympics, or any international competition for that matter. Canada has 11 returning players from the team that won gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, including its top three defensemen (Duncan Keith, Shea Weber and Drew Doughty), top two centers (Sidney Crosby and Jonathan Toews) and starting goaltender (Roberto Luongo). Among the 14 players being added to that group are the reigning Art Ross (Martin St. Louis) and Norris (P.K. Subban) Trophy-winners, and the NHL's third (John Tavares), ninth (Patrick Sharp), 17th (Chris Kunitz), 21st (Jamie Benn) and 24th (Matt Duchene) leading scorers. In fact, Canada has 11 of the League's top 25 scorers among its 14 forwards. The rosters of all the other countries in the Olympic tournament combined have nine: the U.S. has three (Phil Kessel, Patrick Kane and Joe Pavelski), Russia has two (Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin), Sweden has two (Erik Karlsson and Nicklas Backstrom), the Czech Republic has one (David Krejci) and Slovakia has one (Marian Hossa). So really, whatever combination coach Mike Babcock comes up with from this group of forwards should work, at least in theory. Canada's depth at the position is best reflected by its response to the loss of Steven Stamkos, who had to pull out last week because his broken tibia hadn't sufficiently healed for him to play. In his place, Canada added St. Louis, a two-time NHL scoring champion and former Hart Trophy winner. And St. Louis might be asked to play a checking role. The main question mark for Canada, as it has been all along, remains in goal. With Luongo returning as the defending gold medalist, it stands to reason that he will be given every opportunity to seize the starting goaltending job. Luongo's performance amid the pressure cooker in Vancouver four years ago has likely allowed him to get the benefit of the doubt from Babcock, but he is entering the tournament cold. Playing behind a Vancouver Canucks defense decimated by injuries, Luongo allowed at least three goals in each of his final six starts prior to the Olympic break, posting an.880 save percentage in those games. On the opposite end of the spectrum is Carey Price, who finished with a flourish prior to leaving for Sochi. He stopped 203 of 210 shots and posted two shutouts in his final six starts, a.967 save percentage. Price's numbers took a dip during a run where he allowed at least four goals in five straight starts immediately prior to his

22 current hot streak, but his save percentage of.925 on the season is still second among all goaltenders who will be in Sochi, behind only the.928 of Finland's Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins. Luongo's.917 save percentage ranks him seventh among Sochi-bound goalies, behind Rask, Price, Semyon Varlamov (Russia, Colorado Avalanche), Ryan Miller (United States, Buffalo Sabres), Henrik Lundqvist (Sweden, New York Rangers) and Sergei Bobrovsky (Russia, Columbus Blue Jackets). Babcock has already said Luongo and Price will each start one of Canada's first two games of the group stage against Norway on Thursday and Austria on Friday before a final decision is made on the No. 1 job in goal. On defense, it is another member of the Montreal Canadiens that represents what is basically the lone question among what is probably the strongest group in the tournament. Subban's spot on this team was the subject of great debate right up until he was named Jan. 7, and now that he's on the team it remains to be seen in what capacity he will be used. He is fifth in scoring among League defensemen and is considered to be one of the most potent power play weapons in the world. It's possible Subban will dress exclusively to help in that area, just as it's possible Subban is used in a top-four role, or that he'll be scratched altogether. One thing that is not in question is that Keith, Doughty and Weber will be the anchors of the Canadian defense, likely to log heavy minutes and play in all situations. No team can count on a top trio of defensemen as elite as Canada's. Filling out the Canadian defense are Alex Pietrangelo and Jay Bouwmeester of the St. Louis Blues, who are almost guaranteed to play together on a third pair, along with Marc- Edouard Vlasic (San Jose Sharks) and Dan Hamhuis (Canucks). One of Vlasic or Hamhuis, both lefty shooters, will likely play the left side on Canada's second pairing, while the other might not dress. FINLAND Coach: Erkka Westerlund Key players: G Tuukka Rask (Boston Bruins), D Kimmo Timonen (Philadelphia Flyers), D Sami Salo (Tampa Bay Lightning), F Aleksander Barkov (Florida Panthers), F Teemu Selanne (Anaheim Ducks) 2010 recap: Finland won the bronze medal by scoring four goals in the third period in a 5-3 win against Slovakia. Preview: Finland has the strongest goaltending in the tournament with Tuukka Rask, Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Unfortunately for the Finns, only one of them can play at a time. Perhaps no team in tournament was more decimated by injuries than Finland, who officially lost Koivu and Filppula last week. When combined with the decision of Koivu's older brother Saku Koivu to remove himself from consideration for the team so he can focus his energy on the Anaheim Ducks and the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Finland finds itself without three of its top centers. That reality could thrust Aleksander Barkov into the spotlight. The 18-year-old Florida Panthers rookie was already a great story simply by making the team, but now Barkov might be asked to play as its first-line center as well by the end of the tournament. Finland's depth chart down the middle has Barkov, Olli Jokinen of the Winnipeg Jets and Mikael Granlund of the Minnesota Wild. It remains to be seen in what order those three players find themselves. Just as Barkov may be in a position to play a role that belies his age, the same might be true of Pittsburgh Penguins rookie defenseman Olli Maatta. One of four NHL defensemen on the team, Maatta's development was fast-tracked this season due to a number of injuries on the Penguins defense, and Finland might be the beneficiary of Pittsburgh's injury woes. The 19-year-old could prove to be an important piece on Finland's blue line, one anchored by 38-year-old Kimmo Timonen of the Philadelphia Flyers and 39-year-old Sami Salo of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The possible emergence of Barkov and Maatta as stars on this Finnish team would be a symbol of the renewal on the roster. Finland has seven returning players from the team that claimed bronze in Vancouver, four on defense (Timonen, Salo, Lasse Kukkonen and Sami Lepisto), three at forward (Jokinen, Tuomo Ruutu and Teemu Selanne) and none in goal. Despite the injury troubles and the lack of experience on the roster, Finland should not be written off as a medal contender in Sochi. The Suomi is the only team to have medaled in three of the four Winter Olympics that's included NHL players, and the leadership provided by veterans like Selanne and Timonen should not be discounted in a short tournament where pressure can get the best of you. Past history would also suggest that the team with the best goaltending in the tournament can reach the podium. Logic would dictate that Rask should win the starting job in goal, considering his.928 save percentage leads all NHL goalies participating at the Sochi Olympics. But should he falter, Finland has tremendous insurance policies in Lehtonen and Niemi. If Finland plays Canada tight in the final game of the group stage, and blows out Austria and Norway, grabbing the wild card spot for a bye to the quarterfinals is not out of the question. And once the Finns reach that knockout stage of the tournament, they could see their goaltending catch fire for three games. That scenario would see Finland on the Olympic podium, something that has become a habit for the Suomi. Norway Coach: Roy Johansen

23 Key players: F Mats Zuccarello (New York Rangers), G Lars Haugen, F Patrick Thoresen, D Ole-Kristian Tollefsen 2010 recap: Norway finished 10th in Vancouver, losing all four of its games. Preview: For what the Norwegians lack in NHL players, they make up for in continuity. There are 14 players back from the 2010 team that entered the third period of the play-in game against Slovakia tied 3-3 before losing 4-3 on a goal by Miroslav Satan. Norway also forced Switzerland to overtime in group play. The most prominent of those players would be New York Rangers forward Mats Zuccarello, the only NHL player Norway has. Zuccarello, who came to prominence at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, leads the Rangers in scoring with 43 points in 58 games. Defenseman Ole-Kristian Tollefson and forward Patrick Thoresen also have NHL experience, but the strength of Norway will come from the chemistry it established four years ago. The one position with no returning players is in goal, where Lars Haugen of Dinamo Minsk of the KHL should get the bulk of the work. AUSTRIA Coach: Emanuel Viverois Key players: F Thomas Vanek (New York Islanders), F Michael Grabner (New York Islanders), F Michael Raffl (Philadelphia Flyers) 2010 recap: Did not qualify Preview: The Austrians will go as far as their trio of NHL forwards will take them. Thomas Vanek and Michael Grabner of the New York Islanders, and Michael Raffl of the Philadelphia Flyers, are the strength of the Austrian team, but the talent drops off rather significantly after those three. Of the 25 players on the roster, 16 come from the domestic Austrian league, not one of the stronger circuits in Europe. Another three players come from the Swiss league and there is one each from the top leagues in Germany and Sweden, and one from the Swedish second division. In goal, Austria will likely rely on Bernhard Starkbaum from Brynas Gavle of the Swedish Hockey League, who had a.934 save percentage in three games of Olympic qualifying last year. Historic scoring surge leads U.S. women past Swiss Monday, / 9:21 AM / 2014 Olympics NHL.com Kendall Coyne and Amanda Kessel had two goals and two assists each as the United States women's hockey team rolled to a 9-0 victory against Switzerland in its second preliminaryround game at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Monique Lamoureux scored two goals, both on assists from twin sister Jocelyne, and Hilary Knight, Alex Carpenter and Brianna Decker also scored for the United States. Molly Schaus stopped all 10 shots for the shutout. Florence Schelling stopped 44 of 53 shots for the Swiss. The opening period got off to a slow start as the game remained scoreless past the nine-minute mark. But the United States erupted from that point, closing a historic first-period scoring surge. Lamoureux, Decker and Kessel opened the scoring with three goals in 55 seconds to set an Olympic record for fastest three goals, according to USA Hockey. But the Americans didn't stop there. Knight scored with 5:37 remaining in the first and Kessel scored her second of the game 79 seconds later while Sarah Forster served a penalty to expand the U.S. lead to 5-0. That 6:22 span is the fastest any U.S. team ever has scored five goals. Monique Lamoureux's second of the game was the only goal of the second. The Americans completed the rout with a pair from Coyne in the third and then Carpenter scored her second of the tournament with 4:21 remaining. The Americans' historic first period appeared to deflate the Swiss team as the United States outshot their opponent 36-4 in the final two periods. The U.S. women will play their final game of the preliminary round Wednesday against Canada in what is expected to be a preview of the gold-medal game. International rules to be enforced at Sochi Olympics Monday, / 3:00 AM / 2014 Olympics By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer More players in the lineup, no-touch icing, goalies free to play the puck where they please, plus tweaks to procedures for faceoffs and definitions for offside, high-sticking, fighting and checking from behind are some of the differences NHL players will have to get used to in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. The Olympic tournament is governed by the International Ice Hockey Federation and its rulebook differs from the NHL's in many ways. Here are some of the biggest differences between the two, according to IIHF.com: LINEUPS The IIHF allows a maximum of 20 skaters and two goaltenders to dress. Teams will typically go with 13 forwards and seven defensemen. In the NHL, only 18 skaters and two goalies are allowed to dress.

24 In addition, the IIHF rulebook allows five seconds for each team to change players following a stoppage throughout the game, negating the last-change advantage. In the NHL, the home team is allowed eight seconds to change players following a stoppage versus the five seconds allotted to the visiting team. However, this rule is not enforced in the final two minutes of regulation or in overtime. ICING Though the NHL moved closer to no-touch icing this season by implementing the hybrid icing, the IIHF follows the no-touch icing rules. Icing will be called as soon as the puck crosses the goal line. FACEOFFS There are two variations to the IIHF's faceoff rules. 1) The attacking team's player must put his stick on the ice first for any faceoff in the attacking zone. For example, if the faceoff is between Patrice Bergeron and Derek Stepan and it's taking place in Canada's zone, Stepan, the U.S. center, will have to put his stick on the ice first. In the NHL, the visiting team player must put his stick on the ice first for any faceoff. 2) Unlike in the NHL, there will be no minor penalty assessed to a player taking the faceoff who uses his hand to play the puck. The linesman simply will set up a new faceoff, but the player that used his hand to play the puck will not be permitted to take the draw. TRAPEZOID It doesn't exist in international hockey. Goalies are free to play the puck where they please. FIGHTING Fighting in the Olympics will result in an automatic game misconduct or a match penalty in addition to the five-minute major. HIGH STICKING There are two minor differences between the IIHF rulebook and the NHL rulebook here. 1) In the Olympics, if a player plays the puck with a high stick in his defending zone or in the neutral zone the ensuing faceoff will take place at the nearest faceoff area in his defending zone. However, in the NHL, the ensuing faceoff takes place either where the puck was played by a high stick or where it was last played by the offending team. 2) The IIHF rulebook calls for a minor penalty to a player who accidentally high sticks an opponent on the windup or followthrough of a shot or a pass. In the NHL, no such minor penalty exists. OFFSIDE Any shot on goal during a delayed offside will result in a stoppage in play in the Olympics. However, in the NHL a shot on goal during a delayed offside does not bring about a stoppage in play unless the offending team controls the puck. PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT A couple changes of note here: 1) Visors are mandatory in the Olympics for all players born after Dec. 31, In the NHL, visors are mandatory for players who have played in 25 or fewer games. Colored or tinted visors are not permitted in the Olympics. 2) In the Olympics, if a player's helmet comes off he must immediately go to the bench whereas in the NHL he would be allowed to continue playing without a helmet until the next stoppage. In addition, all players must wear helmets during warm-ups in the Olympics; not the case in the NHL. 3) The maximum curve on a player's stick blade can be no greater than 1.5 centimeters in the Olympics; it's 1.9 centimeters in the NHL. CHECKING FROM BEHIND AND CHECK TO THE HEAD A player called for checking from behind in the Olympics will be assessed either a minor penalty plus a 10-minute misconduct, or a five-minute major plus an automatic game misconduct or match penalty. In the NHL, there is no minor penalty component, only a five-minute major plus a game misconduct or a match penalty. The IIHF also has stricter punishment for illegal checks to the head. A player who receives a minor penalty for an illegal check to the head will also receive a 10-minute misconduct. If he gets a major penalty for an illegal check to the head it comes with a game misconduct. Sochi refresher: Olympic groups, format, schedule Sunday, / 8:17 PM / 2014 Olympics By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer If you remember the format that the International Ice Hockey Federation followed for the men's hockey tournament at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics then the following simply will be a refresher. However, if you can't recall that tournament or the format, then we've got you covered. Here is all the information you need to know about the teams, dates and format for the men's hockey tournament at the 2014 Sochi Olympics: PRELIMINARY ROUND This is group play so each country will play every country in their group once, equaling three games per country and 18 games in total. The IIHF follows a three-point system per game. Teams will receive three points for a win in regulation and zero points for a regulation loss. Each team receives one point if the game goes

25 to overtime and a second point is awarded to the team that wins in the five-minute overtime or the shootout. The top four teams based on where they finish in the group and highest number of points in the preliminary round will receive byes into the quarterfinals and be considered the home team in that round. The IIHF will refer to the four teams as 1D, 2D, 3D and 4D. The tie-breaking procedure can come down to goal-differential, higher numbers of goals-for, and finally which country had a better 2013 IIHF world ranking. QUALIFICATION PLAYOFF The bottom eight teams will play in the qualification playoff with the winners moving on to the quarterfinals. The teams are ranked 5-12 based on how they finished in the preliminary round and referred to as 5D, 6D, 7D, 8D, 9D, 10D, 11D and 12D. The games are referred to as E1 through E4: E1: 5D vs. 12D E2: 6D vs. 11D E3: 7D vs. 10D E4: 8D vs. 9D The four winning teams move on to the quarterfinals; the four losing teams will be ranked 9-12 according to their ranking after the preliminary round. QUARTERFINALS These games are referred to as F1 through F4 and the four teams that had byes based on their performance in the preliminary round (1D, 2D, 3D and 4D) are considered the home teams: F1: 1D vs. winner of Qualification Playoff Game E4 F2: 2D vs. w/o E3 F3: 3D vs. w/o E2 F4: 4D vs. w/o E1 The winning teams move on to the semifinals; the losing teams are ranked five through eight according to their ranking after the preliminary round. SEMIFINALS The winners of the quarterfinals play in the semifinals to determine who plays in the medal round. The winners of the semifinal-round games move onto the gold-medal game; the losers play in the bronze-medal game: w/o F1 vs. w/o F4 w/o F2 vs. w/o F3 BRONZE-MEDAL GAME The losers of the semifinal-round games play for the bronze medal Feb. 22. GOLD-MEDAL GAME The winners of the semifinal-round games play for the goldmedal Feb. 23. OVERTIME/SHOOTOUT PROCEDURES For the preliminary round these are similar to what they are in the NHL; a five-minute overtime session of 4-on-4 play with the teams defending the same end they defended in the third period. If no goal is scored the game moves to a shootout. The length of the overtime session increases in the playoff rounds. Overtime will be 10 minutes of sudden-death play in the qualification round, the quarterfinals, semifinals and bronzemedal game. In the gold-medal game a 20-minute sudden death overtime session will commence after a 15-minute break. Teams also will change ends for overtime in the goldmedal game. The shootout procedure is different from the NHL. In the Olympics coaches can re-use shooters that already have attempted a shot if no winner is determined through the first three rounds of the shootout. Lundqvist tops goalie rankings at Sochi Olympics Sunday, / 10:48 AM / 2014 Olympics By Kevin Woodley - NHL.com Correspondent It's not hard to find a lot of hockey people to agree that goaltending will play a huge role in deciding who leaves the 2014 Sochi Olympics with a medal. Nor is it too tough to get some of the NHL's great goaltending minds to break down puck-stopping performances so far this season. But getting a consensus on how those goaltenders and their varying styles will be affected by a short-notice transition to wider ice, different team systems and increased expectations at these Olympics? That proved a lot harder. Though common themes emerged, opinions varied among the half-dozen active League goalie coaches and two goalies now playing professionally overseas that were consulted to come with a ranking of goalies going to the Olympics. Even when most agreed more conservative goalies would adjust quicker to the big ice because they had to commit less aggressively to their reads and travel shorter distances to recover from them, a couple pointed out that too passive an approach may leave lots of net for shooters that will have more time and space to pick corners. And since goaltending never exists in a vacuum, team play and the ability to trust the defenders in front of you immediately will also play a big role in performance. There were just too many unknowns for confident predictions. "Every year at the World Championships over in Europe we see guys that can't get a job here play well, but that doesn't

26 mean they can play in the NHL," said one of the goalie coaches queried. "And there are guys that we know are really good here that go over and struggle. There's no hard rule how it translates." The reality is any of the goalies in the top 10 of this list could realistically return to the League in a couple of weeks with an Olympic gold medal. But these are called rankings for a reason so we didn't want to cop out with nine No.1s: 1. Henrik Lundqvist Sweden/New York Rangers Lundqvist may not be reigning Olympic champion, but he is the last goaltender to win Olympic gold on international ice and the belief is his deeper, more patient, inside-out, angle-first style from the goal line, complimented by a tight Swedish system he is comfortable behind, played a big role in that. After experiencing one of the only prolonged blips of his remarkably consistent NHL career to start this season, Lundqvist's recent return to form includes a.948 save percentage in his past 12 games and, perhaps more importantly for the Swedes, a rekindling of his faith in a patient approach that should again serve him well on big ice. 2. Jonathan Quick United States/Los Angeles Kings Quick is the biggest wild card in the Olympic deck. Several coaches picked him as the goalie most likely to struggle with the adjustment to big ice because of his super-aggressive style, particularly against the rush. Yet even those wondering if he might end up swimming in all that extra ice ranked him as America's best goalie. Quick's lateral quickness, particularly on his knees, is usually enough to overcome his aggressive nature, but it's fair to wonder if he'll have as much defensive support for that style behind the U.S. Olympic team as he gets from the stingy Kings. So after a couple wobbles going into the break, and with Ryan Miller very capable of leading the U.S. into the medal round, any early struggles on the big ice could leave one of the world's best watching from the bench. 3. Carey Price Canada/Montreal Canadiens There are similarities between Quick and Price and the situation they face supplanting their medal-winning Olympic playing partners. Price isn't nearly as aggressive as Quick, especially under new Canadiens goalie coach Stephane Waite, but he does have some backwards flow to his game off the rush, relying slightly on timing that can be disrupted by the extra space on big ice. Price, who has been brilliant while often being bombarded in Montreal, most also get used to fewer shots, something goalies that rely on rhythm can struggle with. But in terms of upside, Price has the most for Canada. Any positional aggression -- and Price plays on the edge of his crease on end-zone play, so it's not overdone -- is made up for by his mobility advantages. Price is also more active, more engaged and more "on the puck" visually since lowering his stance at the waist. Like Quick, though, the question is whether he gets to show it through any early stumbles. 4. Sergei Bobrovsky Russia/Columbus Blue Jackets An incredibly athletic goalie who benefited from added structure and technical adjustments over the past year in Columbus, the biggest question for Bobrovsky is whether Russian coaches can command enough defensive support out of a group loaded with top offense-first talent. More contained in his movements, more active with his hands and bigger in net after raising his torso, and better tactically on plays around the net, Bobrovsky is also very comfortable on the big ice, giving Russia its best Olympic goaltending option since Vladislav Tretiak. 5. Semyon Varlamov Russia/Colorado Avalanche You could almost paste the Bobrovsky text into this space for Varlamov, who has experienced a similar resurgence by cleaning up technical elements under goaltending coach Francois Allaire in Colorado. Similarly comfortable on big ice and spectacular in terms of raw athletic talent, Varlamov relies less on it now, adding a layer of consistency that gives him an equal shot at starting in Sochi and Russia just as good a chance at a medal with either goalie in net. 6. Tuukka Rask Finland/Boston Bruins Rask hasn't represented Finland internationally since the World Junior Hockey Championships in 2007, and it would be easy to argue his outside-in, flowing style of play might cause some translation problems, or that like Quick he may have less defensive structure in front of him in Sochi than he does behind the typically tight Bruins. But Rask was good on big ice in the Czech Republic at the start of last season and has been one of the League's best for several years. And whatever problems Finland may have scoring because of injuries, strong team play is rarely an issue internationally, making both medal possibilities. 7. Ryan Miller United States/Buffalo Sabres It seems absurd to see Miller this far down any list given the season he is having and his status as the MVP at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. More than one NHL goalie coach queried was worried about ranking Quick ahead of Miller simply because they didn't know if Miller would give Quick a chance to get the net. Self-labeled as an aggressive goalie, Miller will attack shooters and throw out a poke check, but actually plays deeper than Quick and should adjust more easily to the big ice. Seeing fewer shots may be an adjustment after a season behind the struggling Sabres, but all consulted believed he would make it quickly. 8. Roberto Luongo Canada/Vancouver Canucks Just like Miller, Luongo remains very capable of leading Canada back to the gold-medal game four years after winning

27 it. Even critics recognize Luongo is a better goalie now than in 2010, tweaking his game each season, including a move back in his crease to a three-quarters depth that should make the adjustment to big ice easier, while also leaving him less reliant on rhythm and better equipped to play well when not busy. Despite some recent struggles behind a Canucks team in a tailspin and playing its 10th defenseman on the depth chart, one NHL goalie coach consulted still firmly put Luongo ahead of Price because of his big-stage experience, but on form heading over to Sochi it was hard to do the same. 9. Kari Lehtonen Finland/Dallas Stars At his best, Lehtonen is every bit Rask's equal in terms of raw athleticism and skill, just as capable of stealing a medal for the tight, tough Finns, and worthy of a spot higher up this list. Consistency has improved with work habits and a more controlled tactical approach in Dallas, and should also make the adjustment to big ice easier for a goalie that hasn't played on it for more than a decade. 10. Jaroslav Halak Slovakia/St. Louis Blues Halak backstopped Slovakia to the bronze medal game before losing to Finland, their best-ever finish at the Olympics in 2010, and his contained, controlled style of play should be just as effective on the international ice. But even with Zdeno Chara in front of him for nearly half of every game, Halak and the Slovaks may be hard pressed to match their run to the semifinals four years ago. 11. Jonas Hiller Switzerland/Anaheim Ducks The well-structured Swiss are always capable of throwing a scare into the top teams, and Hiller's positional-based game and strong "down" movements fit that style perfectly. His success overseas before coming to the League should make the transition to big ice easy, but the kinds of corner-picking scoring chances he is likely to see may force Hiller outside his norm to give the Swiss a shot. 12. Ondrej Pavelec Czech Republic/Winnipeg Jets Based on raw talent, Pavelec deserves a better ranking. But his overreliance on that natural skill, combined with questions about the roster in front of him, make it hard to justify a higher spot. Capable of brilliance, a still questionable technical foundation leaves Pavelec prone to the ups-and-down of rhythm goalies that rely too much on timing, making too many saves harder than they need to be. Add in the way a change in team play and ice size can affect that timing and Pavelec may have a tougher time finding the rhythm he's captured of late in the League. 13. Mike Smith Canada/Phoenix Coyotes At least one goalie coach still saw Smith as a legitimate, and great, option for Canada despite most expecting him to spend his time in Sochi cheering from the stands. But in addition to a Lundqvist-like style that requires no adjustment to the bigger ice, Smith is the world's best puck handling goalie, and if Canada forces opponents to dump the puck in, no one can make better use of the missing trapezoid and wide-open 15 feet behind the nets in Sochi. 14. Peter Budaj Slovakia/Montreal Canadiens Budaj has quietly bettered Price's save percentage in Montreal and his numbers are all better than Halak behind a team that doesn't defend as well. But like the role he plays so well for the Canadiens, and despite some success at the last Olympics on big ice, Budaj goes to Sochi expected to watch from the bench. 15. Antti Niemi Finland/San Jose Sharks It's not always pretty or smooth, but Niemi's style has been effective enough to produce a Stanley Cup win and Vezina Trophy nomination. It may also be better suited to short-notice adjustment to the big ice than the more aggressive style of his fellow Finns. But with his League numbers down through recent struggles and no international success on his resume, Niemi goes in as the third-stringer. 16. Jhonas Enroth Sweden/Buffalo Sabres Enroth earned his Olympic spot by backstopping Sweden to gold on home soil at the World Championships last spring, so neither big ice nor a big stage should be a problem for the undersized Buffalo backup. But the shooters in Sochi will be better and it's hard to picture Enroth playing much outside of a Lundqvist injury. 17. Jimmy Howard United States/Detroit Red Wings Another ranking that seems low given his track record in the League, but Howard has struggled for most of this season. And unlike Smith with Canada he's too similar in style to Quick and Miller -- not as aggressive as Quick, but more than Miller -- to think he'll be anything more than an emergency option for the U.S. 18. Reto Berra Switzerland/Calgary Flames Berra combined with Martin Gerber to backstop the Swiss to the gold medal game at last year's World Championships, and has provided glimpses of that potential in his first NHL season, but expecting a repeat of last year's results now that every country has their top players seems a stretch for the Swiss. 19. Alexander Salak Czech Republic/St. Petersburgh SKA (KHL)

28 Salak can be every bit as aggressive as Pavelec, and equally over reliant on athleticism to bail him out with highlight reel saves as a result. But Salak has been performing that magic on big ice for the last two seasons, turning down offers to come back to North America last summer in favor of a much better contract in the KHL, and faces no style or rink-size adjustments. 20. Jonas Gustavsson Sweden/Detroit Red Wings It's probably not fair to rank Gustavsson so far down given past success at the World Championships, including bronze medals in 2009 and 2010, and numbers overseas that defy a style overly reliant on inherent athleticism. But injuries have derailed a promising start in Detroit this season, and Gustavsson heads overseas the apparent third-stringer on a Swedish team not expected to get past No.1. NBC broadcast team looking forward to Sochi Sunday, / 3:00 AM / 2014 Olympics By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer Mike "Doc" Emrick will never forget the feeling he had 22 years ago when he was in Albertville, France, to call the Olympic men's hockey tournament for the first time. "Intoxicating" is perhaps the best adjective he could use to describe the experience. "I realized I wasn't sleeping that much and it wasn't out of fatigue and it wasn't out of fear; it was more out of the thrill. And that's seeing the best guys ever available from Finland, and the best guys from Czech Republic coming off the ice and coming on were the best guys possible from the United States and the best guys possible from Slovakia," Emrick said. "You go back to the hotel and you're still kind of charged up and so you kind of sleep fast if you can, and look forward to what you're going to see the next day. "That's what happened in '92 and it's happened in every Olympics I've been fortunate to do since." For the third straight time, Emrick will serve as NBC's lead voice for the Olympic hockey tournament. The 2014 Sochi Olympics are the seventh he has covered, including two Summer Olympics. Joining Emrick in Sochi will be his regular partners, Eddie Olczyk and Pierre McGuire, as well as play-by-play broadcasters Dave Strader and Kenny Albert. Brian Engblom is joining the NBC crew for his Olympic debut. Olczyk and McGuire each will be making his third straight appearance in the broadcast booth at the Winter Olympics. Strader last called the Olympics in 2006, and Albert will be making his fourth straight appearance. NBC will also have a studio coverage team of Liam McHugh, Mike Milbury, Keith Jones and Jeremy Roenick. Kathryn Tappen of the NHL Network will join McHugh as the host of NBC's Olympic hockey coverage in Sochi. Emrick said the Sochi Games could even be better than the Vancouver Games four years ago. "Players were whispering to one another before 2010 in Vancouver saying they thought it would be the best tournament in the history of hockey," Emrick said. "Considering the playing level of all of the players who went to Vancouver you can understand why they'd say that, and I think it was. This one could surpass it certainly because of the caliber of the players that will be over there." Olczyk is most curious to see how Henrik Lundqvist plays for Sweden. If the New York Rangers goaltender shines, he could help the Swedes win their second gold medal in the past three Olympics. "For the most part, the majority of the season, he's been barely above average and we're not used to seeing Henrik Lundqvist do that," Olczyk said. "He's an Olympic champion. He's had a nice run here where it seems he has found his game. That's one story I am looking at for Sweden and I would have never said that a year ago. How will he play for his native country come the drop of the puck in Sochi?" Olczyk also said he's as interested as anybody to find out what United States coach Dan Bylsma is going to do with his goaltending and if Ryan Miller or Jonathan Quick will emerge as the No. 1 goalie. Jimmy Howard is also in the mix. "We've seen it in prior Olympics, in particular with Team Canada in When you start with a certain netminder, you put somebody else in there and you end up winning the gold medal," Olczyk said. "Either way he goes to start it may not be how it lasts. It'll be interesting to see which direction he does go to in Game 1." A silver medalist at the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002, Roenick thinks Bylsma should give Quick the first crack at winning the job. "It's his job to lose, but you have to give Ryan Miller a bunch of credit for the way he's come out and played this year," Roenick said. "He's played on a horrible team [that] probably would be a lot worse if it wasn't for Ryan Miller and the way he has played. He's ready for the challenge, I'm sure. He's proven that he can do it, but I think this is Jonathan Quick's job to lose." One of the top storylines McGuire said he's interested in is the pressure facing the Russian team as a gold-medal favorite playing on home ice and how, or better yet, if, they're going to be able to handle it. "That was critically important for Canada in 2010 when they defended home ice and won the gold medal," McGuire said. "It's not an easy thing to do, especially in an amped-up hockey environment like you're going to see in Sochi. But I like to think that you're going to see Canada, Russia, the United States, Sweden and Finland be very competitive for those three medals.

29 "It's going to be amazingly intense. I really think the Americans have a legitimate chance to play for one of the three medals and potentially the gold medal." As for Emrick, he simply can't wait for it all to start to unfold Wednesday. He's a 67-year-old Olympic veteran now, but the feeling of being in the center of the hockey universe is the same for him as it was 22 years ago. "It's the excitement that gets in your blood and nothing changes that through the years," he said. "It's just fun to be there and to thank your lucky stars you get to do Olympic hockey because there is something special about it, and you can see it in the eyes of every player in October or November who is looking ahead to maybe being picked for their national team." Finland, U.S. boast top goalies at Sochi Olympics Sunday, / 3:00 AM / 2014 Olympics By Corey Masisak - NHL.com Staff Writer The 2014 Sochi Olympics could be the deepest collection of talent for a hockey tournament in the sport's history. Some of this generation's top players, including Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin, are at the peak of their powers in the NHL. In addition, some of the previous generation's greats, such as Jaromir Jagr and Teemu Selanne, are getting one last chance at Olympic glory. For years, international hockey has been led by a group of medal contenders known as the "big seven." But Switzerland continues to progress and could make it a "big eight" sooner rather than later. So how does each of these eight medal contenders stack up against the competition at each position? NHL.com ranks the Olympic teams at forward, on defense and in goal, beginning Sunday with the goalies and followed by the defense corps Monday and the forwards Tuesday. 1. Finland The Finns have a 2013 Vezina Trophy finalist (Antti Niemi) and a goalie who looks like a lock to be a 2014 finalist (Tuukka Rask). Pekka Rinne, a 2012 Vezina finalist, was kept out of the tournament with an injury. Kari Lehtonen could have a case to start for a couple of teams on this list, but he's probably the No. 3 goalie for Finland. All three Finns rank among the top 12 in save percentage among NHL goaltenders participating in the Olympics. 2. United States Start with the MVP of the Olympic tournament four years ago and add the last goalie to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. Ryan Miller, the Olympic hero in Vancouver, and 2012 Conn Smythe winner Jonathan Quick could see time in net for the Americans. Either could carry the team through a couple of tough games against superior opposition and ultimately to a medal. Dan Bylsma and his coaching staff just have to pick the right one. 3. Sweden If this list were about goaltending depth, the Swedes would be near the bottom. It's possible that no one player is more indispensable to his country than Henrik Lundqvist. If he plays well, the Swedes can win the gold medal. If he does not and/or gets injured, they could be an also-ran. Don't be surprised if Lundqvist looks more like the guy who won the Vezina in 2012 than the one who has struggled at times in this season. 4. Russia Sergei Bobrovsky is the reigning Vezina winner and is a big part of the Columbus Blue Jackets' recent surge in the standings. Semyon Varlamov has had a strong year for the Colorado Avalanche and has played well in both the IIHF World Championship for Russia and in the Stanley Cup Playoffs while with the Washington Capitals. Both are playing well going into the tournament. It's a tough call, one that could give the Russian coaching staff some sleepless nights. 5. Canada Carey Price looked like an easy choice as the starter earlier in the season, then yielded four goals or more in seven of his 10 appearances in January. But he has allowed just seven goals in his past six games for the Montreal Canadiens to make the case that he should be the starter. Roberto Luongo played only once between Dec. 22 and Jan. 18 and has been a little shaky of late, but he has the gold-medal experience and has actually been pretty steady this season. Does he end up in the same role as four years ago, waiting for his turn while Price begins the tournament as the starter? It is possible. 6. Switzerland Jonas Hiller has been consistent for the League-leading Anaheim Ducks and is the best starting goalie among the three teams remaining on this list. Calgary Flames goaltender Reto Berra has statistically been one of the worst goalies in the NHL to see significant playing time this season, but his team isn't helping him most nights. Hiller could lead the Swiss to a surprise second-place finish in Group C, which could mean an easier path to the quarterfinals. 7. Slovakia Jaroslav Halak has proven he can play well in short stretches. He did it in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, when he led this team to the semifinals and gave Canada a scare, as well as the Stanley Cup Playoffs, although most of his postseason work also came four years ago. Should Halak falter, Peter Budaj has played pretty well for the Canadiens when spelling Price. 8. Czech Republic Ondrej Pavelec's defenders have pointed out his lack of support at the defensive end with the Winnipeg Jets for years, but his numbers clearly make him the last guy among projected starters on this list. Of the goalies who have played more than 175 games since the start of the season,

30 he is the only one with a save percentage below.910. Alexander Salak has put up great numbers in Sweden and the Kontinental Hockey League the past two seasons, and might be on the radar of NHL teams looking to Europe for goaltending help. Emotionally preparing for this being the last NHL Olympics (What We Learned) By Ryan Lambert 1 hour ago Puck Daddy As this is being written, the National Hockey League players who will represent their countries in Sochi are en route to Russia, and by the time you read it, they will have already landed and begun practicing. But the more one thinks about it, the more dread must rise at the prospect of this being the last time the world's greatest players will jet off for the event. No decision, obviously, has been made about whether the league will participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea four years from now, considering the 2014 men's hockey tournament doesn't even begin for another two days. But you get the sense that the tide is certainly shifting toward a solid no vote four years from now. The simple fact is that the NHL risks a lot for the good of the sport by sending these top-flight players off for three weeks every year. For one thing, they shut down the league for three weeks at a time, which is something about which no teams can be particularly happy. For another, they risk seeing, say, Evgeni Malkin blow out a knee late in a meaningless preliminary round game because he catches a rut, and that hurts both the Penguins and the league itself. These players are The Product in the NHL, and as such owners very understandably are reticent to just let them go play for someone else; if you really loved your car, would you want to loan it to someone you don't know to enter it into races for three weeks? This was recently reflected in an interview with Ed Snider, usually one of the more fan-friendly owners in terms of giving them what they want (provided what they want does not include sane contracts for largely unproven goaltenders ). For example, he was one of the few owners in the league to be vocally opposed to the most recent lockout through which his more militant, or perhaps you'd say greedy, colleagues dragged the league. But the Olympics? Snider is 100 percent not-down with them. He said it's not good for the league and the teams, and that's fair enough because really, it isn't. The fact is that this is something the NHL does so its players won't flip out, and you can bet participation came up in the most recent collective bargaining agreement talks. It's very important to the players to be able to compete in the Olympics, so the league allows it. (Snider also said the tournament is bad for the fans, and if we're talking about people who are fans of their teams only, then maybe that's true, but if they're fans of the sport itself, then this is the greatest two weeks in hockey, period.) Not that there isn't pushback. Pavel Datsyuk, for example, is headed over to Sochi to represent the host country but he's also nursing an injury. Ken Holland says he's pretty worried about it but doesn't feel like it's his place to tell his star center that he can't go. Meanwhile, the Islanders apparently feel no such compunction about their ability to dictate to an employee how he spends his three-week Olympic break; Slovak general manger Otto Sykora seems to think that Lubomir Visnovsky is not quite so injured as the Islanders would have us believe, which is to say that they're holding him out of the Olympics despite the fact that the player says he's okay. Then there's John Tortorella, who flat-out said of the injured Henrik Sedin, I'll tell you right now: Do I want him to go? Absolutely not. I'm thinking about our hockey club. This isn't the kind of thing we've seen in the past, with teams expressing misgivings about the quadrennial tradition, but one imagines that even an injury that holds a player out of just a single NHL game when the league comes back is going to be enough to start a firestorm. Again, it's important to keep in mind that the NHL is a business and one that makes no money from the Olympics, at least not directly. Maybe the games get a few more general sports fans interested overall, but they're not exactly selling out National Ski Jumping League events even if people do pay a hell of a lot of attention to it for three weeks every four years. Just because everyone suddenly becomes an expert in a sport during the Olympics telling you for sure that so-and-so screwed up her triple axel horribly despite having watched no figure skating since Vancouver doesn't mean they stick with the sport and the vast majority. The NHL (probably correctly) thinks that it should be in charge of promoting the sport on a global level, and turning it over to the IOC every four years has to chafe them. The reason the NHL is setting revenue records just about every year now is that it's incredibly good at getting people to pay attention to it. The league, frankly, doesn't need the help in making the sport more popular. It's doing a great job in that regard. There's a reason negotiations dragged on so long about going to Sochi, and there's a reason that all the Olympic orientation camps are basically floor hockey tournaments, and there's a reason there's so much pushback from teams now. It's because while hockey fans and players love the Olympics, the NHL doesn't, and when's the last time the league did something that was in the best interest of fans and players

31 only? Might be wise to start getting yourself ready to looking forward to all amateur players in Pyeongchang. What We Learned Anaheim Ducks: The Ducks headed into the Olympic break by snapping a three-game losing streak on what Hampus Lindholm called a couple of [crappy] goals. That works. Boston Bruins: Yes Patrice Bergeron we get it. You're really good. Buffalo Sabres: Loved this feature on Ryan Miller going to Sochi out for blood. Calgary Flames: The Flames are feeling good about losing to the Flyers because at least they put 32 on net apparently. Carolina Hurricanes: The Hurricanes entered the break by getting clobbered. They are not happy about it. Chicago Blackhawks: Joel Quenneville is a good coach. This has been a very important update on why the Blackhawks are good, I guess. Colorado Avalanche: The entire city of Haliburton is hoping Canada wins because of native son Matt Duchene. Otherwise, they would never have rooted for Canada ever. Columbus Blue Jackets: Olympic break a non-issue as Blue Jackets stay focused on winning. Too bad. I bet they don't win a game for at least the next three weeks. Dallas Stars: Thank you Valeri Nichushkin for once again reminding everyone that any goal scored against crybaby Mike Smith is never his fault ever. Detroit Red Wings: Stephen Weiss will be back from injury following the Olympic break but have the Red Wings really missed his contributions this season? Edmonton Oilers: Well: In order to become a playoff contender, the Oilers need to become a lot better and have to learn to play a lot harder. And also go back in time to win about 10 more games than they have already. Florida Panthers: Anyone who gets Tom Gilbert in a trade with the Panthers is probably going to get a steal. He's been one of the better possession defensemen in the league this season (34th in the league in relative corsi, despite playing on the Panthers), playing on a dirt-cheap contract, and then whoever trades for him gets first crack at re-signing him. This is awful asset management by Dale Tallon. Los Angeles Kings: That things about good young players getting sent to the AHL? How about Tyler Toffoli and Martin Jones? Woe be unto opponents of the Manchester Monarchs the next few weeks. Minnesota Wild: The Wild might just kick the tires on finding some goaltending depth for the stretch run. Say, are there any guys who might help? Maybe like ones that might be a teammate with your two best players in Sochi? I don't know I'm just spitballing here. Montreal Canadiens: Max don't you ever scare me like that again. Nashville Predators, America's Favorite Hockey Team: The only way the Swiss surprise anyone in Sochi is if all the better teams literally don't even show up. Roman Josi is really rooting for a Bermuda Triangle-type situation here. New Jersey Devils: Devils' splits on the power play with and without Eric Gelinas running it? Without: 5 for 49 (10.2 percent). With: 28 for 125 (22.4 percent). That's literally double. Just recall him, Lou. Jesus. New York Islanders: This is pretty good advice for anyone, really. New York Rangers: Really interesting comments from Alain Vigneault if only because he's very candid about the team's position, and you don't often hear coaches say stuff like this inseason. Ottawa Senators: Paul MacLean on his team dropping a 7-2 road decision to the Bruins: We probably owe them a couple of bucks for the clinic they put on today. Philadelphia Flyers: The Flyers are divided on whether getting three weeks off when they've won five of their last six. Having their first game back be against the Sharks probably doesn't help. Phoenix Coyotes: Phoenix Coyotes players wait for Olympics fever. Another weird disease for Shane Doan, I guess. Pittsburgh Penguins: Well, Kris Letang's stroke certainly makes Ray Shero's job a lot more interesting after the Olympic break. San Jose Sharks: Todd McLellan on Patrick Marleau: He's a streaky player. The fact that he's got two points in his last seven games bodes well for Canada. St. Louis Blues: This is a hell of a strange bounce to get a goal for Derek Roy. Tampa Bay Lightning: Valtteri Filppula's fractured ankle will keep him out of the Olympics and then more time after that. Tough for the Bolts, but it looks like they're probably going to get some kid named Stamkos back, so that might cushion the blow a little bit. Toronto Maple Leafs: Phil Kessel yeahhhhhh. Most points in the NHL since the new year. America! Vancouver Canucks: Pretty great headline here. Washington Capitals: Martin Erat finally frickin scored. Wow. Winnipeg Jets: Amazing how the narrative changes when the coach does. Five reasons Austria could totally medal in Sochi Olympics By Greg Wyshynski 3 hours ago Puck Daddy

32 Austria competes in Group B in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi: 1. They Have Thomas Vanek What Else Does One Need? NHL fans know that when Vanek gets hot, he gets scorching: Better than a point per game, and able to carry his team offensively. He d pretty much have to do that here for Austria to have a snowball s chance in coastal Sochi to win a game but keep in mind this is a grand-stage audition for a player that s likely to be moved by the New York Islanders at the NHL trade deadline when the season resumes. Maybe he lights it up. 2. They Also Have Michael Grabner If the name the game in Sochi is speed, then the only name you need to know is Michael Grabner. The Islanders forward has won the fastest skater competition at the all-star game and should love the bigger ice sheet. 3. The Goalie Bernhard Starkbaum, 27, will be the likely starter for the Austrians. He's been strong in the Swedish Elite League, sparking speculation that he could be on the radar for NHL teams. The other goalies are Mathias Lange and Rene Swette. 4. The Old Man To Calm Them Down While Austria sports a rather young roster five players born in 1988 or after Gehard Unterluggauer is the veteran on the blueline. The 37-year-old defenseman with the robust last name has played 239 games internationally and appeared in the 1998 and 2002 Olympics, the last times the Austrians made the cut. Said coach Manny Viveiros: Players like him can draw on their own experience in making sure the other guys don t get too distracted, get themselves prepared and get enough rest. His experience will be invaluable for us. 5. Element of Surprise Face it: The Austrians aren t going to be taken all that seriously. They re only in Sochi because they upset Germany and avoided relegation. They have one line at best and are in a group with Canada and Norway. But teams taken lightly in the Olympic tournament can be teams that pull stunners. C mon, Can These Guys Actually Medal? No, not really. While their goaltending might given them a shot at an upset, the Austrians should be honored to be nominated. Five reasons Sweden could totally medal in Sochi Olympics By Greg Wyshynski 19 hours ago Puck Daddy Sweden competes in Group C in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi: 1. Big Ice Advantage As the Canadians and Americans adjust to life on the big sheet, the Swedes are built for it and know how to utilize it especially when it comes to their mobile defense. 2. Their Swede Back End Even in a post-nicklas Lidstrom world, the Swedes have the best defense corps in the Olympics: Erik Karlsson, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Niklas Kronwall, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Alex Edler, Johnny Oduya, Jonathan Ericsson and requisite old guyhenrik Tallinder. They can fly, they can hit, they can win boards battles. 3. Henrik Lundqvist Oh, right: There s a pretty good last line of defense, too. Lundqvist posted a 1.34 GAA and a.927 save percentage in three games during the Vancouver Games. He had a 2.33 GAA in six games when the Swedes won gold in It s not his first rodeo, and he s hot right now: Giving up only one goal in four of his last seven games with the New York Rangers. 4. The Vet And Kid Mix Some teams are the Czechs, with a group of veterans and few young players. Some teams are like the Americans, who have three players over 30. And some are like Sweden, with the perfect mix of medal-winning veterans (Daniel Alfredsson, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Zetterberg) and newbies (Gabriel Landeskog, Karlsson, Carl Hagelin). 5. Nicklas Backstrom Who was Sweden s best forward in the Vancouver Olympics? Backstrom, actually. He had six points in four games, playing strong two-way hockey and acting as the perfect pivot between Loui Eriksson and Daniel Alfredsson. He was the best faceoff man in the tournament (69%) as well. In Washington, he gets overshadowed by Ovechkin. He has the chance to return the favor in Sochi. C mon, Can These Guys Actually Medal? Yes, and despite the injuries to Henrik Sedin and Johan Franzen, it could be a medal as gold as their jerseys. Five reasons Switzerland could totally medal in Sochi Olympics By Greg Wyshynski 21 hours ago Puck Daddy Switzerland competes in Group C in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi: 1. Jonas Hiller Time Simply put, Hiller gives the Swiss a chance to win any game. He has a 2.34 GAA and a.917 save percentage in going with the Anaheim Ducks this season. He had a 2-3 record with a 2.47 GAA and a.918 save percentage in five games for the Swiss in the 2010 Vancouver Games, including a shootout loss to the Canadians. He can win games on his own. 2. Keeping It Simple

33 The Swiss are a pain in the rump to play against. They outwork opponents; they play physically and keep things rather simple to cut down mistakes. They won t outgun you; they might not outrun you; but they ll make you pay if you underestimate them. 3. El Nino Warning? Prepare for another confounding appearance from Nino Niederreiter in an international tournament. The winger has 13 goals in 123 NHL games between the New York Islanders and Minnesota Wild. He has 10 goals in 28 games in international play for the Swiss, including five goals in their silver medal win in the 2013 IIHF worlds. For whatever reason, the international spotlight triggers his Beast Mode. 4. The NHL Influence As more and more Swiss players make the NHL, more and more NHL players are on the Swiss National Team. Yannick Weber (Vancouver Canucks), Mark Streit (Philadelphia Flyers), Raphael Diaz (Vancouver Canucks), Roman Josi (Nashville Predators) are on defense; Simon Moser (AHL, Milwaukee), Damien Brunner (New Jersey Devils) and Niederreiter are up front; Hiller and Reto Berra (Calgary Flames) are in goal. Gone are the days when the Swiss team was Martin Gerber, Paul DiPietro and "UH, WHO?!" 5. The Coach Hey remember Sean Simpson? You probably don t. He was drafted in the seventh round by the Chicago Blackhawks in He coached Team Canada in a victory at the 2007 Spengler Cup. But he s taken Swiss underdogs to strong performances against NHL-laden teams, nearly upsetting Canada in the 2012 worlds and coaching ZSC Zurich to a 2-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at the Victoria Cup in C mon, Can These Guys Actually Medal? Totally. The Swiss might be the dark horse team for at least the bronze medal game, given how good Hiller can be and how much talent this roster has gained over the years. No, they're not a tournament favorite. But we wouldn t want to have to play them. Five reasons Latvia could totally medal in Sochi Olympics By Greg Wyshynski 23 hours ago Puck Daddy Latvia competes in Group C in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi: 1. Ted Nolan s Other Job Before his NHL career was resurrected by the Buffalo Sabres this season, Ted Nolan was the Gordon Bombay of Latvian hockey. He was hired in 2011, and led the Latvians to a 10th place finish at the 2012 IIHF world championships. That earned him the chance to help Latvia qualify for the 2014 Sochi Olympics for the fourth straight season which they did, earning Nolan a second contract extension. While the team continues to struggle in international tournaments, Nolan has received high marks for innovations like having all the Latvian players speak Latvian in the locker room, rather than Russian and other languages. 2. Edgars Masaļskis Can Handle The Rubber Masaļskis, 33, is a journeyman goalie that finally found a home with Khanty-Mansiysk Yugra of the KHL for the last three seasons. He s the goalie that made 47 saves in putting a huge scare into the Czechs during the Vancouver Games. As Steven Ellis of The Hockey House notes: The only Latvian goaltender to ever score a goal (he did so in while in the KHL), expect the 33 year old netminder to steal the spotlight from the rest of the team when they get pestered with 50 shots a game in Hopefully he s received some good advice from assistant coach Arturs Irbe, who knew a thing or two about upsets during his career. 3. Maybe This Time They Cut The Penalties Down? In Vancouver, Latvia took 19 minor penalties in three games, the most for any team in the tournament. A respectable 73.7 percent penalty kill better than the Americans and No. 8 in the preliminaries helped ease that pain, but Latvia still gave up five power-play goals, with only Germany worse (6). So how about cuttin down on those penalties, boys? 4. The Ageless And The Unflappable Sandis Ozolins (né Ozolinsh) lost his passion for hockey after the 2006 Turin Games, but rediscovered it with Dinamo Riga of the KHL. The 15-year NHL veteran can still move the puck well at age 41. On the other side of the spectrum is Kristaps Sotnieks, a stay at home defender who has played for Dinamo Riga of the KHL since 2008 and is a rock on the blue line. 5. Familiar Faces (Sorta) Finally, there are a few intriguing names on the roster with North American ties. Zegmus Girgensons has 17 points in 56 games for the Buffalo Sabres. Kaspars Daugavins is formerly of the Ottawa Senators and a shootout ace. Ronalds Kenins is signed by the Vancouver Canucks. Oskars Bartulis played for the Philadephia Flyers. Ralfs Freibergs, 22, is a defenseman for Bowling Green University. C mon, Can These Guys Actually Medal? Of course not. Just making it out of their group would be a herculean accomplishment for Latvia (just jokes: everyone advances), but that doesn t mean they couldn t pull an upset here or there. As Masaļskis told R-Sport: Can we win a medal? It is another matter. I am sure everyone has a dream, and now have a chance. Olympics are unpredictable, a lot can happen time and again we have seen miracles not the main favorite performance.

34 One thing we can predict: They ll once again have the rowdiest, drunkest fans at the tournament. For which we re thankful. Five reasons Czech Republic could totally medal in Sochi Olympics By Greg Wyshynski February 9, :58 AM Puck Daddy The Czech Republic competes in Group C in the 2014 Winter Olympics. They're coached by Alois Hadamczik, who led them to bronze in Turin. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi: 1. Age Before Beauty There are 10 players on the Czech roster 30 years old or older, including 42-year-old Petr Nedved and Jaromir Jagr, who will turn 42 on Feb. 15. So, uh, they ve got experience on their side. But that also means they have familiarity, too. 2. Up The Middle David Krejci of the Boston Bruins, team captain Tomas Plekanec of the Montreal Canadiens and Martin Hanzal of the Phoenix Coyotes are a heck of a trio at center for the Czechs. Krejci has reached another level as a player since Vancouver 2010, where he had two goals and an assist. 3. The Stay-At-Home Defense The Czechs aren t exactly going to have a strong puck possession blue line, despite Marek Zidlicky s presence as their best offensive defenseman. But with Zbyněk Michálek, Radko Gudas, Ladislav Šmíd and Lukáš Krajíček, they have a veteran group of stay-at-home defensemen deep enough where Jan Hejda was left off the roster. 4. Jagr Sonnets have been written about Jagr this season with the New Jersey Devils, playing beyond expectations. These are his fifth Olympics, and he has 10 points in his last 13 games in the tournament. He s still a difference maker provided Ovechkin doesn t run him over again. 5. Maybe Goaltending Isn t Completely Important? Who knows? Maybe a team with some of the weakest goaltending in the world can somehow win despite relying on Winnipeg Jets keeper Ondrej Pavelec and NHL castoff Alexander Salak. And hey, maybe Pavelec will play like he did against the Ducks recently in a big spot in Sochi. Anything can happen! It s hockey! OK, C mon, Can They Really Medal In Sochi? The Czechs are in a tricky group, with a dangerous Swiss team and a dominant Swedish team. The odds are against them, but this is a veteran group that can generate goals and won t be rattled. If they get a scintilla of defense, they could surprise. As Nedved told us: They re not just here to watch. TODAY S LINKS CAR home CAR home

35 Websites ESPN /Friday, February 7, 2014 Updated: February 9, 10:04 AM ET By Scott Burnside ESPN.com Anyone who watched the Canada-Slovakia semifinal at the Vancouver Olympics understands just how close the Slovaks came to possibly rewriting hockey history in the waning seconds of that game. A Pavol Demitra shot nearly beat Canadian netminder Roberto Luongo, which would have tied the game and meant a date with overtime. It didn't go in, of course, and Demitra is sadly no longer with us as the veteran forward was among those who perished on the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl flight in the fall of The Slovaks, who lost in the bronze-medal game in Vancouver to Finland, will once again be trying to shoulder their way onto the stage with the titans of the tournament, just as they have at every one of these best-on-best events for the past decade or so with varying degrees of success, although injuries to key players will make this the most difficult test yet. Five things to watch Zdeno Chara Zdeno Chara is a stout defender, but all in all, the Slovaks don't have the firepower to hang with the top-tier teams. 1. As is always the case, the Slovaks will be an intriguing group because of the individual stars who dot their lineup, whether it's former Norris Trophy winner Zdeno Chara on the blue line or snipers such as Marian Hossa up front. Hossa's little brother, Marcel, is having a strong year in the KHL but is coming off an injury. Also, the late withdrawal of star winger Marian Gaborik, who could not recover in time from a broken collarbone to take part in the tournament, leaves a gaping hole offensively, while the absence of defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky, who isn't 100 percent after recovering from a concussion, is a big blow defensively. Without Gaborik and Visnovsky, the question that always lingers for the Slovaks is whether there is enough depth to take on deeper, more talented teams such as Canada, Sweden or the U.S. A glance at the Slovak's suddenly revamped roster suggests the answer will ultimately be no. 2. The one sure way to get on an equal footing with deeper, more talented squads at this tournament will be to get great goaltending from Jaroslav Halak on whose shoulders the Slovaks will be pinning their medal hopes. Peter Budaj is a serviceable backup, but for the Slovaks to knock off any of the tournament favorites once the Olympics move into sudden-death mode, Halak will have to be at his best. We've seen him go on this kind of role in the past, back in the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs when he guided the Montreal Canadiens to a surprise berth in the Eastern Conference final, but that's a long time ago. Does he have another roll like that in him? If he does, the Slovaks could make things interesting. 3. With Visnovsky expected to miss the tournament, and with two other European-based defenders having to be replaced earlier because of injury, what should have been a strength for the Slovaks has become another question mark. Andrej Meszaros has enjoyed something of a renaissance in Philadelphia after several seasons of maddening injuries and will help take some of the burden off of the team's heart and soul, Chara. There's also Andrej Sekera, who has turned into an important part of the Carolina blue line and has more than a little offensive upside to his game. Longtime NHLer Milan Jurcina, now playing in the Finnish Elite League, will also be counted on to eat up minutes along the blue line. 4. The bottom line is that Slovakia is in a thin period of its hockey evolution. Once home to a bevy of strong NHL players such as Zigmund Palffy, Jozef Stumpel and Miroslav Satan, there isn't at this point a new generation of solid players on the horizon to take their place. That means the Slovak's success will come from sticking to systems employed by head coach Vladimir Vujtek and taking advantage of the fact more than half the roster that will suit up in Sochi plays in various European pro leagues. 5. Although the Slovaks have not medaled at the Olympics since the NHL joined the tournament in 1998, they have had success internationally with a surprise silver at the 2012 World Championships. And though they did blow a 3-1 lead in losing the bronze medal four years ago in Vancouver, there is leadership in that room with Marian Hossa, a two-time Stanley Cup champ, and Chara likewise having brought the Stanley Cup home after Boston's 2011 Cup win. Chara and Hossa are good friends and neighbors in the offseason, and Chara was given leave by the Boston Bruins to miss the final two games before the Olympic break in order to carry his country's flag in the opening ceremonies in Sochi. Between the two, they'll carry an even greater burden in this tournament than four years ago. Breakthrough Player: Andrej Sekera, Caroline Hurricanes As of this writing, Sekera's eight goals put him in the top 10 in the NHL for defensemen, and he leads the Hurricanes in average ice time per night. He is the top-scoring defenseman on the team in both goals and points. Prediction Hard to imagine the Slovaks avoiding any of the big boys in the quarterfinals, and it's likewise hard to imagine them effecting what would be a mighty upset especially, given the number of players dealing with injuries heading into the tournament. Eliminated in quarterfinals. ESPN LOADED: Websites ESPN / Team-by-team breakdown (Sweden) Updated: February 9, 2014, 9:58 AM ET By Pierre LeBrun ESPN.com Olympic Hockey: Team Sweden Preview Team Sweden is always built well for tournament play and looks to reclaim the gold it won the last time the Olympics were held in Europe.Tags: Team Sweden, Sochi, Hockey, 2014, Barry Melrose The defending IIHF world champions are a popular pick by many to win gold in Sochi, and why not? They're loaded at every position. The last time the Olympics were held overseas, the Swedes took gold in Torino. Will we see a repeat of that in Sochi? Perhaps, but do the injury withdrawals of Henrik Sedin and Johan Franzen -- plus the fact Henrik Zetterberg doesn't seem to be 100 percent, even though he's going to play -- poke a dent in the Swedes' armor? Five things to watch 1. Next to Canada, not sure there's a more impressive blue-line corps in the tournament with Erik Karlsson, Niklas Kronwall, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Alexander Edler, Jonathan Ericsson et al. Just wow. Having said that, for the life of me, I can't figure out why the Swedes didn't also take Victor Hedman, who is having a sensational year in Tampa, instead of a guy like Henrik Tallinder. That decision is puzzling to me. But it remains an incredibly skilled and balanced blue-line corps.