OLYMPIC SPOILER: HOCKEY :SPOILER,

[Are_grits_groceries]

Last edited Wed Feb 19, 2014, 10:45 AM - Edit history (1)

Finland is leading Russia 3-1 going into the 3rd period.

Finland defeats Russia 3-1

[Lasher]

1. Woah!

Wish I could watch. I think Russia is out if they lose this game, right?

[Are_grits_groceries]

3. Yep! Gone....nt

[Lasher]

18. And Team USA moves ahead after a thrilling game!

Canada survived too.

[Adrahil]

2. Holy Crap!

I mean, the Finns are good and all, but if the Russians don't even get in the medal round, there will be some players and coaches that meet with unfortunate accidents!

[Berlum]

4. Puckey Riot coming soon. Please get hankies ready for Pooty Poot.

[Are_grits_groceries]

5. Getting nasty!

Kovalchuk high sticking for one.

[Brickbat]

6. I'll just leave this here...

[badtoworse]

7. I'm a Ranger fan. I can definitely relate.

[Are_grits_groceries]

8. Less than 5 minutes to go! nt

[Are_grits_groceries]

9. Less than 2 minutes.

Russia-Icing, icing, icing....

[Are_grits_groceries]

10. EMPTY NET FOR RUSSIANS! nt

[Adrahil]

11. In before the usual suspects....

... say this is a Western corporatist plot to make Putin and Russia look bad.

#tearsinsochi

[giftedgirl77]

12. Oh shit, I totally forgot about the olypmics

after we lost power for damn near a week due to that damn ice storm. We finally got it back Sunday & the kids returned to school yesterday, yipee!!!!

[Adrahil]

13. Caption this photo

http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Cqw.SMBd9NXEJ_AfLuGiKQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTgwMDtweW9mZj0wO3E9NzU7dz02MTc-/

My entry: Well that sucked. Think we'll invade Ukraine to make ourselves feel important again.

[Avalux]

14. The Russians were doomed; never got it together as a team.

The Fins on the other hand, are firing on all cylinders and I won't be surprised if they medal.

Putin has been working really hard to make Russia's hockey league as big as the NHL; Ovechkin's face is plastered all over Sochi. I bet he heads back to the US asap.

[Are_grits_groceries]

15. Ovechkin sucks in the big moments.

He is great in the NHL regular season, but in the playoffs....

The Finns took full advantage of the international style of hockey. If this had been NHL goon rules, different story.

[Avalux]

16. Interesting thing about Finland hockey -

it's a hybrid of NHL and international - their rinks are sized in between. If this had been NHL rules - Russia would have beat the US with that disallowed goal (maybe).

Ovechkin isn't a team player at all. Malkin didn't do anything either - surprising since he's full tilt for the Pens.

[Are_grits_groceries]

17. Unfortunately for the Russians, I think Ovechkin overshadows Malkin.

I also don't think they function as a team because they don't know who leads. Does Ovechkin by dint of his sheer talent and big persona? Do some of the other older more experienced players take control?

There could be two groups or even a diffuse sense of responsibility. Nobody looked ready to take the lead at the end and they were called for icing four times in a row. That is inexcusable in the final minutes of any hockey game much less one on this level.

Captain is just a title that may not mean squat. The true center of a team emerges naturally IMO. I have no idea who led who but against the cohesive Finnish team they looked discombobulated.

Playing a hybrid form of hockey has to help the Finns. It is much easier for them to shift from one form to another. The NHL players have to make a complete change.

The Russian hockey team was great when it was not made up of players with interests also in the NHL.

(Edit to add:I really don't know much about hockey. I have coached different sports and I do know team.)

[William769]

19. Go Finland!

[GoCubsGo]

20. We were close to an even bigger shocker later in the day.

Canada barely squeaked by Latvia. Yes, you read that right. They were tied 1-1 until there were only a couple of minutes left in the game. Had Latvia pulled it off, THAT would have been the shocker.

As for Finland vs. Russia, Finland has a really good team, so I'm not sure it was as big a surprise as it's being made out to be. I just think it's awful that they're laying all the blame on Alex Ovechkin. I'm not really a fan of his, but he's a great player, and it's a team sport.

[pokerfan]

21. "Finland has it all."