The Olympic flame is set to be lit in Sochi this week and the stories that fill the headlines center around security concerns, animal cruelty and absurd accommodations for the press and athletes. The security issue is very real and honestly scares the hell out of me. With assurances that the city is on a militant lockdown, let’s pray that the games come and go without incident.
I’ll spare the gratuitous digs at the Olympic venue. The low hanging fruit is easy pickings and I’ll let another article continue to pile on the Olympic hospitality shortcomings in Sochi. What really matters most is the competition among the athletes in attendance.
The competition begins Thursday while the official opening ceremonies kick off the celebration on Friday. The NHL wraps up the first portion of the season on Sunday before the hockey tournament starts February 12 with a huge matchup featuring the Czech Republic and Sweden.
The round robin of the tournament will drop fast and furious loads of hockey all over the place with three games per day between February 13th and February 16th. The entire tournament lasts only 11 days from the opening game to the gold medal game, so the action will resemble playoff hockey. This is a really, REALLY good thing.
Here is the entire schedule courtesy of Sochi.com.
2014 Olympic Men's Hockey Schedule
Date Time (ET) Time (MSK) Game/Round
Feb. 12 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Czech Republic vs. Sweden
Feb. 12 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Latvia vs. Switzerland
Feb. 13 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Finland vs. Austria
Feb. 13 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Russia vs. Slovenia
Feb. 13 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Slovakia vs. USA
Feb. 13 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Canada vs. Norway
Feb. 14 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Czech Republic vs. Latvia
Feb. 14 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Sweden vs. Switzerland
Feb. 14 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Norway vs. Finland
Feb. 14 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Canada vs. Austria
Feb. 15 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Slovakia vs. Slovenia
Feb. 15 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. USA vs. Russia
Feb. 15 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Sweden vs. Latvia
Feb. 15 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Switzerland vs. Czech Republic
Feb. 16 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Austria vs. Norway
Feb. 16 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Russia vs. Slovakia
Feb. 16 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Slovenia vs. USA
Feb. 16 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Finland vs. Canada
Feb. 18 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Qualification Round
Feb. 18 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Qualification Round
Feb. 18 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Qualification Round
Feb. 18 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Qualification Round
Feb. 19 3 a.m. 12 p.m. Quarterfinals
Feb. 19 7:30 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Quarterfinals
Feb. 19 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Quarterfinals
Feb. 19 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Quarterfinals
Feb. 21 7 a.m. 4 p.m. Semifinals
Feb. 21 12 p.m. 9 p.m. Semifinals
Feb. 22 10 a.m. 7 p.m. Bronze-Medal Game
Feb. 23 7 a.m. 4 p.m. Gold-Medal Game
Sochi2014.com
There are sure to be some surprises in the early rounds and we’ll quickly learn which teams are going to be gold medal favorites. The Russians will be looking to erase the memory of their 2010 implosion but now have the weight of the home nation supporting them/on their shoulders. It will produce some of the best hockey we have ever seen, or a spectacle like we have never seen. Either way, hockey fans win.
We have previewed each of the favorites, handicapped the teams and told you which forwards, defensemen and goaltenders to watch.
Team Canada
Team Russia
Team Sweden
Team Finland
Team United States
Team Slovakia
Team Latvia
Handicapping the Olympic Hockey Teams
All you have to do now is sit back and enjoy the show, appreciate your potable water and comfortable accommodations and complain that Claude Giroux isn’t going to Sochi and Jeff Carter is.