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Game 1: Kazakhstan’s unending pain gauntlet continues as they get processed by Sweden 6-2
It feels like the Kazakhs have been playing every single day of this tournament up till tomorrow, which cannot be great for their spirits as they dive headfirst into the regulation series.
Game Notes:
- Sam Fagemo for Sweden is an unstoppable goal-scoring factory. He’s usually good for at least two a game and he had two in this one.
- Again, pour one out for Maxim Musorov who’s been the lifeblood of the Kazakh offense, and is tied for 2nd overall in the tourney in goals with 4. They’re gonna need him to come up big against Germany if they want to have a prayer of sticking around.
- You never want your opponent to look as bored as Sweden did while scoring. The Kazakhs did their best to keep up speed-wise but it just wasn’t happening.
Game 2: Canada drops Germany with a 4-1 strangling.
You ever see a python eat a deer? That’s what Canada did to Germany. Utter domination from front to back.
Game Notes:
- I have gone on record as thinking of these Nike sweaters as a sin against decent design, but if there’s any country that comes out looking the least bad of them, then Germany is undoubtedly it. This is the end of my “something positive about the team who is not great” note I hope you liked it because Germany was just flailing at nothing.
- After the drubbing against Russia, it was good to see Canada buckle down and get back to what they’re good at, and that’s “being better than you”. Almost every player with a goal ended up helping on another somewhere in this game. It made for what I’m hoping is going to be called a good learning experience, because the only thing I learned in this game is that the 19 shots the Germans managed to summon against them were an act of charity.
Game 3: The Swiss bury the Slovaks in their own entrails. Win 7-2.
Where the hell did this come from?
Game Notes:
- After game after game of an unremarkable, kinda dull tournament for them, The Swiss just snapped and promptly made Slovakia watch as they ate their lunch in front of them, including the note mom left for them letting them know they’re mom’s special little guy. And they got outshot.
- Of course, a huge part of why was Samuel Hlavaj and Sam Vyletelka just couldn’t stop anything that the Swiss threw their way. Luca Hollenstein meanwhile had a major comeback performance and looked every bit as good as he did a year ago. Good timing, too!
- Slovakia’s not bad enough to be relegated, but they’ve certainly had some clunkers this tourney. There’s reason to believe they could be next on the chopping block in the not-too-distant future.
Game 4: USA and the Czech Republic have a real close game, USA comes out on top 4-3 in OT
Closer than it had any right to be, but man if it didn’t make for some of the most fun hockey of the tournament.
Game Notes:
- Enormous fan of the Czech Republic’s entire strategy of “actually we’re going to just play defense like we’re already in transition”, it almost never works and this could’ve been a much worse result for them, but it caught the US completely off-guard in the 2nd period.
- Trevor Zegras does not have a goal in this tournament and yet leads it in points with 9 assists. This guy is gonna become a problem.
- Seems like it’s big goals only for Cole Caufield, who got one that got him off the shitlist of a lot of fans...for a day.
- Bruins Prospects: If Beecher and Hall wanna do something, they’re welcome to at any point over the quarterfinals. Beecher played 11:48 TOI, and Hall had less than 8.
Today’s Games:
9 O’clock slate:
- Sweden vs. Slovakia
- Germany vs. Russia
1 O’clock slate:
- Finland vs. Switzerland
- Canada vs. Czech Republic
Personal Recommendations: I for one think that if you’re gonna be up and in front of a TV playing it, that you should try and catch Germany vs. Russia because that could be a potentially wild upset. As for the afternoon games...play it by ear. I think Canada vs. Czechs will be a fun one.