2026 Olympics

[imafrshmn]

Canada women eke over the finish line to beat Switzerland 2-1 in the semis, making 2 Poulin goals in the second period stand up.

Meanwhile USA cruise into the gold medal game with a 5-0 pasting of Sweden, looking every bit as hungry, confident, and dangerous as you would expect.

So it is, once again, a Canada-USA olympic final. Team Canada will be trying to conjure up all the old magic, but may find it very difficult to impose their will on this game with their aging core who cannot keep up with USA's track meet. Their head coach seems to be lacking ways to find them a psychological edge--things looked very nervy and disjointed in the third against the Swiss.

[stereax]

Canada women eke over the finish line to beat Switzerland 2-1 in the semis, making 2 Poulin goals in the second period stand up.

Meanwhile USA cruise into the gold medal game with a 5-0 pasting of Sweden, looking every bit as hungry, confident, and dangerous as you would expect.

So it is, once again, a Canada-USA olympic final. Team Canada will be trying to conjure up all the old magic, but may find it very difficult to impose their will on this game with their aging core who cannot keep up with USA's track meet. Their head coach seems to be lacking ways to find them a psychological edge--things looked very nervy and disjointed in the third against the Swiss.

And in either case, a Cornellian gets gold!

[Chris '03]

Canada women eke over the finish line to beat Switzerland 2-1 in the semis, making 2 Poulin goals in the second period stand up.

Meanwhile USA cruise into the gold medal game with a 5-0 pasting of Sweden, looking every bit as hungry, confident, and dangerous as you would expect.

So it is, once again, a Canada-USA olympic final. Team Canada will be trying to conjure up all the old magic, but may find it very difficult to impose their will on this game with their aging core who cannot keep up with USA's track meet. Their head coach seems to be lacking ways to find them a psychological edge--things looked very nervy and disjointed in the third against the Swiss.

I've seen some online discontent about TOI on team Canada and how the players who play for Toronto in the PWHL are being overused.

It's felt like this was very much USA's gold to lose coming out of the rivalry series and nothing in the past week has suggested otherwise. MPP's injury didn't help matters.

[imafrshmn]

Canada women eke over the finish line to beat Switzerland 2-1 in the semis, making 2 Poulin goals in the second period stand up.

Meanwhile USA cruise into the gold medal game with a 5-0 pasting of Sweden, looking every bit as hungry, confident, and dangerous as you would expect.

So it is, once again, a Canada-USA olympic final. Team Canada will be trying to conjure up all the old magic, but may find it very difficult to impose their will on this game with their aging core who cannot keep up with USA's track meet. Their head coach seems to be lacking ways to find them a psychological edge--things looked very nervy and disjointed in the third against the Swiss.

I've seen some online discontent about TOI on team Canada and how the players who play for Toronto in the PWHL are being overused.

It's felt like this was very much USA's gold to lose coming out of the rivalry series and nothing in the past week has suggested otherwise. MPP's injury didn't help matters.

This is probably a fair criticism of Troy Ryan. He would have more familiarity with his Scepters players and trust in their chemistry. But it's a tough job, especially this year with no centralization to really get the team into shape. The Rivalry Series was a nightmare from a Canadian coaching perspective. Probably the biggest curse of the olympics is the heaping scrutiny of the segment of Canadian hockey fans who otherwise don't care about women's hockey at all but feel entitled (thinking about your typical Leafs fans).

[underskill]

We are not entitled. We are just bitter.

[Weder]

Canada women eke over the finish line to beat Switzerland 2-1 in the semis, making 2 Poulin goals in the second period stand up.

Meanwhile USA cruise into the gold medal game with a 5-0 pasting of Sweden, looking every bit as hungry, confident, and dangerous as you would expect.

So it is, once again, a Canada-USA olympic final. Team Canada will be trying to conjure up all the old magic, but may find it very difficult to impose their will on this game with their aging core who cannot keep up with USA's track meet. Their head coach seems to be lacking ways to find them a psychological edge--things looked very nervy and disjointed in the third against the Swiss.

I've seen some online discontent about TOI on team Canada and how the players who play for Toronto in the PWHL are being overused.

It's felt like this was very much USA's gold to lose coming out of the rivalry series and nothing in the past week has suggested otherwise. MPP's injury didn't help matters.

This is probably a fair criticism of Troy Ryan. He would have more familiarity with his Scepters players and trust in their chemistry. But it's a tough job, especially this year with no centralization to really get the team into shape. The Rivalry Series was a nightmare from a Canadian coaching perspective. Probably the biggest curse of the olympics is the heaping scrutiny of the segment of Canadian hockey fans who otherwise don't care about women's hockey at all but feel entitled (thinking about your typical Leafs fans).

And the Hockey Canada GM is also Toronto's GM. The lack of centralization might be part of it, though with the PWHL you're not going back to that model. (And I'm sure the NCAA teams were not sad to see it go, either.) 

[Trotsky]

I recommend the CBC highlights of the Czechia-Denmark preliminary men's game (VPN to Canada and then sign on to https://gem.cbc.ca, they have far superior coverage -- I believe they pick up the same raw footage that Peacock does, but then they don't blarg it with our various idiocies).  Some of the prettiest and best-executed hockey I've ever seen.

[chimpfood]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

[BearLover]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

Definitely disagree with those who were saying 3x3 OT is boring. It shouldn't decide important games, but it's super exciting.

[ugarte]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

Definitely disagree with those who were saying 3x3 OT is boring. It shouldn't decide important games, but it's super exciting.

absolutely. unlike NHL OT where the standings structure encourages endless dithering in the neutral zone, do or die 3x3 is real firewagon fun.

[BearLover]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

Definitely disagree with those who were saying 3x3 OT is boring. It shouldn't decide important games, but it's super exciting.

absolutely. unlike NHL OT where the standings structure encourages endless dithering in the neutral zone, do or die 3x3 is real firewagon fun.

I think the incentives in the NHL are the same as the Olympics once the game goes to OT. It's late in regulation when the incentives are all screwed up due to an extra point being given out if the game goes to OT.

[Dafatone]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

Definitely disagree with those who were saying 3x3 OT is boring. It shouldn't decide important games, but it's super exciting.

absolutely. unlike NHL OT where the standings structure encourages endless dithering in the neutral zone, do or die 3x3 is real firewagon fun.

Deeply unpopular opinion: I like a shootout more than 3x3 sudden death.

3x3 combines the back and forth of a shootout with just enough puck luck to make it feel less than even, plus all the puck possession that stalls momentum.

Now, I think a whole league/sport that's just 3x3, no sudden death, could be fun.

[Trotsky]

Counterpoint: 3x3 is the most boring, most joyless, least skilled variety of hockey.  It is the triumph of tactics over ability and calculation over inspiration.  It is the athletic equivalent of banking and should be shot into the sun.

[Trotsky]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

194 of 195 nations will join me in rooting for Slovakia, as well as every American with musical taste.

[The Rancor]

Crazy slate today with 3 of 4 quarterfinals going to OT. US pulls it out and gets Slovakia, who is doing well but should certainly be beatable.

Definitely disagree with those who were saying 3x3 OT is boring. It shouldn't decide important games, but it's super exciting.

absolutely. unlike NHL OT where the standings structure encourages endless dithering in the neutral zone, do or die 3x3 is real firewagon fun.

Deeply unpopular opinion: I like a shootout more than 3x3 sudden death.

3x3 combines the back and forth of a shootout with just enough puck luck to make it feel less than even, plus all the puck possession that stalls momentum.

Now, I think a whole league/sport that's just 3x3, no sudden death, could be fun.

Well, guess what?

3ICE 3v3 Pro Hockey