Who will be the Olympic stars for Finland?
Come on Switzerland!
The Swedes took a deliberate dive against Slovakia in order that they would finish 3rd in their group and so avoid the Czechs or the Canadians in the quarter-finals. Their coach as good as admitted as much, and the team played listlessly and with no apparent desire to win.
Clearly the Swiss are regarded as the "soft touch" of the eight teams left, despite what they did to Canada and to the Czechs. The Swedes are banking they won't be able to do it again, or that the only reason they won earlier was that the Czechs and Canucks underestimated them or simply weren't firing on all cylinders.
It's typical Swedish gamesmanship, and all right-thinking Finns should wave a little Swiss flag and hope the cuckoo-clock people stuff a pendulum up the collective Swedish rectum.
The Swedes took a deliberate dive against Slovakia in order that they would finish 3rd in their group and so avoid the Czechs or the Canadians in the quarter-finals. Their coach as good as admitted as much, and the team played listlessly and with no apparent desire to win.
Clearly the Swiss are regarded as the "soft touch" of the eight teams left, despite what they did to Canada and to the Czechs. The Swedes are banking they won't be able to do it again, or that the only reason they won earlier was that the Czechs and Canucks underestimated them or simply weren't firing on all cylinders.
It's typical Swedish gamesmanship, and all right-thinking Finns should wave a little Swiss flag and hope the cuckoo-clock people stuff a pendulum up the collective Swedish rectum.
This written by a Canadian frmo another site I check out.
I think he sums it up about rightGreat moment in sportmanship from the Swedes. Their coach is suggesting they may intentionally lose their game with Slovakia today, so they play Switzerland in the QF instead of Canada or the Czechs. The good news is Swedish fans are apparently outraged. Sweden is the hockey version of Spain's football club. Great talent, no trophys. It's always Canada, Russia or the Czechs.
Swedes weren't kidding. They lay down like cowardly dogs and lost 3-0 to a Slovak team they are better than. A victory by the SWiss over them tommorrow would be cheered by the hockey world, but is definitely unlikely.
The game to watch Wednesday features the greatest rivalry in the game. Canada vs Russia. This time the Ruskies will justly be heavily favored but never count Canada out. The Russians certainly won't. I don't know if Canada's ponderously slow, elderly defence can stop Russia's blazing young forwards. We have never met in a QF before. Would be sweet to get through, than meet the chicken Swedes later in the tournament. The Russians played hard Tuesday barely beating an inspired U.S. team 5-4. Could be some surprises Wednesday. The Americans may just be tougher than the Finns expect, but their goaltending is rancid so a loss is likely I pick the 4th place Czechs to expel their former countrymates, the first place Slovaks. The Swedish b-girls should roll past the Swiss, than likely get their just desserts from the Finns or Yanks. I have to pick the Russians but I'm sure they're not thrilled about the matchup.
Got a feeling I won't get much work done tommorow.
I have read the on line Swedish papers this morning they only report that their coach is getting a lot of international critics and that he at least has harmed Swedish reputations....But on the whole they seem quite smug...
Here are some of the International reports.
So, did the Swedes lay down?
No, but they did recline a little.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/o ... 21/sweden/
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) sent a representative to monitor the game but there were no immediate reports of anything unusual. It was..Kalervo Kummola, head of the Finnish Hockey Association.
http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory?id=1646420
The Calgary Sun says.. First Swedish coach Bengt-Ake Gustafsson disgraced himself.
Then he disgraced the game. He said...Let's give it 10% boys!
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/ ... 55793.html
By the way ..I am told that the best odds one could get last night on Sweden beating the Slovacs was 50- 1 against the Swedes winning.
Here are some of the International reports.
So, did the Swedes lay down?
No, but they did recline a little.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/o ... 21/sweden/
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) sent a representative to monitor the game but there were no immediate reports of anything unusual. It was..Kalervo Kummola, head of the Finnish Hockey Association.
http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory?id=1646420
The Calgary Sun says.. First Swedish coach Bengt-Ake Gustafsson disgraced himself.
Then he disgraced the game. He said...Let's give it 10% boys!
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/ ... 55793.html
By the way ..I am told that the best odds one could get last night on Sweden beating the Slovacs was 50- 1 against the Swedes winning.
The only bit that's all wrong is that the Finns won't be playing the Swedes in the semis. But it WOULD be a delight above a lifetime's supply of Mars Bars to whack them in the final. Still, they've got to get there first. The Finns, I mean.simon wrote:This written by a Canadian frmo another site I check out.I think he sums it up about rightGreat moment in sportmanship from the Swedes. Their coach is suggesting they may intentionally lose their game with Slovakia today, so they play Switzerland in the QF instead of Canada or the Czechs. The good news is Swedish fans are apparently outraged. Sweden is the hockey version of Spain's football club. Great talent, no trophys. It's always Canada, Russia or the Czechs.
Swedes weren't kidding. They lay down like cowardly dogs and lost 3-0 to a Slovak team they are better than. A victory by the SWiss over them tommorrow would be cheered by the hockey world, but is definitely unlikely.
The game to watch Wednesday features the greatest rivalry in the game. Canada vs Russia. This time the Ruskies will justly be heavily favored but never count Canada out. The Russians certainly won't. I don't know if Canada's ponderously slow, elderly defence can stop Russia's blazing young forwards. We have never met in a QF before. Would be sweet to get through, than meet the chicken Swedes later in the tournament. The Russians played hard Tuesday barely beating an inspired U.S. team 5-4. Could be some surprises Wednesday. The Americans may just be tougher than the Finns expect, but their goaltending is rancid so a loss is likely I pick the 4th place Czechs to expel their former countrymates, the first place Slovaks. The Swedish b-girls should roll past the Swiss, than likely get their just desserts from the Finns or Yanks. I have to pick the Russians but I'm sure they're not thrilled about the matchup.
Got a feeling I won't get much work done tommorow.
Thats true about the Finns missing the Swedes. Makes me even more angry to see the route to the finals for the Swedesotyikondo wrote:The only bit that's all wrong is that the Finns won't be playing the Swedes in the semis. But it WOULD be a delight above a lifetime's supply of Mars Bars to whack them in the final. Still, they've got to get there first. The Finns, I mean.simon wrote:This written by a Canadian frmo another site I check out.I think he sums it up about rightGreat moment in sportmanship from the Swedes. Their coach is suggesting they may intentionally lose their game with Slovakia today, so they play Switzerland in the QF instead of Canada or the Czechs. The good news is Swedish fans are apparently outraged. Sweden is the hockey version of Spain's football club. Great talent, no trophys. It's always Canada, Russia or the Czechs.
Swedes weren't kidding. They lay down like cowardly dogs and lost 3-0 to a Slovak team they are better than. A victory by the SWiss over them tommorrow would be cheered by the hockey world, but is definitely unlikely.
The game to watch Wednesday features the greatest rivalry in the game. Canada vs Russia. This time the Ruskies will justly be heavily favored but never count Canada out. The Russians certainly won't. I don't know if Canada's ponderously slow, elderly defence can stop Russia's blazing young forwards. We have never met in a QF before. Would be sweet to get through, than meet the chicken Swedes later in the tournament. The Russians played hard Tuesday barely beating an inspired U.S. team 5-4. Could be some surprises Wednesday. The Americans may just be tougher than the Finns expect, but their goaltending is rancid so a loss is likely I pick the 4th place Czechs to expel their former countrymates, the first place Slovaks. The Swedish b-girls should roll past the Swiss, than likely get their just desserts from the Finns or Yanks. I have to pick the Russians but I'm sure they're not thrilled about the matchup.
Got a feeling I won't get much work done tommorow.
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SUOMI!
The Finnish citizens in my family are very happy tonight!
Less than a minute left and it looks like being a bleak night all round for our North American guests.
Canada need to learn at least where the goal is, if they want to get out of that jam..
I really DO hope the Great One's old lady had a few bob on a Finland - Russia double...
Of course this will KILL NBC. Nobody was watching there anyway, and I hardly expect seeing the USA and Canada knocked out in the last eight will help matters...
Uh-oh. That's it. 2-0.
Not bad... four European teams in the last four. Says quite a lot for the current state of the NHL.
Canada need to learn at least where the goal is, if they want to get out of that jam..
I really DO hope the Great One's old lady had a few bob on a Finland - Russia double...
Of course this will KILL NBC. Nobody was watching there anyway, and I hardly expect seeing the USA and Canada knocked out in the last eight will help matters...

Uh-oh. That's it. 2-0.
Not bad... four European teams in the last four. Says quite a lot for the current state of the NHL.
's funny...
I watched the dreaded SkyNews (to catch the ECL goals) and they mentioned the curling in their sports coverage. Nothing about the hockey of course, since the Brits aren't in it, so it didn't happen. Anyway, the way they sold it, it was "heartbreakingly close", which isn't QUITE the way the YLE commentator saw it.
I think, although he's been given a bad press in some quarters here, at least Liukkonen does know the importance of "last stone", and he read the actions of the Finnish skip in the 9th end as though it was a tactical move to ensure they kept that advantage right to the end. The Finns were never headed, and basically they "controlled" the game after picking up those two points halfway through. It didn't look spectacular, and there weren't many points in it at the death, but apparently curling can be like that. Hell, you can DELIBERATELY knock all the stones out of the area (including your own) to ensure that nobody gets any points and you keep the upper hand of that last stone thing. And most important of all, the U-15 man kept his nerve and delivered when it mattered. The only way GB could have won, as I saw it, was by a screw-up from the opponent's captain. It wasn't really in their hands at all.
I hope the final is a bit more open, though.
I watched the dreaded SkyNews (to catch the ECL goals) and they mentioned the curling in their sports coverage. Nothing about the hockey of course, since the Brits aren't in it, so it didn't happen. Anyway, the way they sold it, it was "heartbreakingly close", which isn't QUITE the way the YLE commentator saw it.
I think, although he's been given a bad press in some quarters here, at least Liukkonen does know the importance of "last stone", and he read the actions of the Finnish skip in the 9th end as though it was a tactical move to ensure they kept that advantage right to the end. The Finns were never headed, and basically they "controlled" the game after picking up those two points halfway through. It didn't look spectacular, and there weren't many points in it at the death, but apparently curling can be like that. Hell, you can DELIBERATELY knock all the stones out of the area (including your own) to ensure that nobody gets any points and you keep the upper hand of that last stone thing. And most important of all, the U-15 man kept his nerve and delivered when it mattered. The only way GB could have won, as I saw it, was by a screw-up from the opponent's captain. It wasn't really in their hands at all.
I hope the final is a bit more open, though.