Olympic Hockey USA-CAN Preview

As a kid who grew up in the South, my first real introduction to hockey was via my extended family from PA and via the Olympics. In 1980, for the Miracle on Ice, I was only 5 years old, but the legend of that team has not only survived the test of time, but has even grown through the years.

Tonight, almost 30 years to the day after the Miracle on Ice upset of the USSR, the USA Olympic Hockey team plays a game against the heavily favored Canadian Olympic team. The Canadians are stacked from 1-to-20 on their team. From Sidney Crosby, to Martin Brodeur in net, to Chris Pronger on defense, Canada is the overwhelming favorite to win the gold medal on their home soil.

The US team is in a transition period. Longtime stalwarts Mike Modano, Bill Guerin, Jeremy Roenick, and Keith Tkachuk have been replaced by younger players like Zach Parise, Erik Johnson, and Ryan Miller. The team is a bit green in major international competition with only a few holdovers from the 2006 Olympic team.

It's important to know that tonight's game is only for seeding into the knockout round. The winner will have a bye into the quarterfinals. The loser will have to win 4 games (think ACC Tournament bracket). All of the pressure is on Canada tonight. There are thousands in attendance inside the arena and millions of Canadians equally absorbed in front of their TVs.

Tonight's game will be a great measuring stick for the US squad. I'll predict that Canada strikes early for a 2-0 lead after the 1st period. The US will adjust and make it 2-1 in the 2nd, but Canada will pull away for a 5-2 win. I'll predict the line of Marleau-Heatley-Thornton (all of the San Jose Sharks) to have a big game. I also predict that if the US and Canada meet during the knockout round, that it will be a much tighter game.

I also predict that some bastard in Vancouver still has my laptop and I hope they get what's coming to them....