Just a quick round up of the day. Day 13. It sure was a bad luck day for two of the teams. Really? Team USA? Really? Read on.
[Czech Republic-USA] 4-0. Jagr. What a hockey deity! They guy is twice the age of some rookies, but still plays top-notch hockey. And today he led the Czechs to a shut-out victory, with a hat trick! Mike Komisarek gave the reporters some spin about how the team is young and lacks the international experience, but come on, we all expected them to better than this right? I am OK with the Czech win though. I think we may be looking at the Champions here. Eventhough Canada are still my personal faves. But I could live with the Czechs claiming the title.
And then Blogger went down for two days and ate this article! They rerolled it all and got me back this article in draft form. But missing half of it! What did I write about the other game?
[Sweden-Germany] 5-2. Germany started unlucky this Day 13 by allowing a first goal in the first minute. I hear you think 'Why is this unluck? It happens often'. You are right, but does it happen twice in a row that the first goal was not scored by the opponent but in fact by your very own D-man? Indeed, that is rotten luck. I am not sure if there is a way to practice on avoiding this, but if so, extra training might be called for! The German had a rough first period and the third was not much better. In fact, as soon as the Swedes scored yet another goal all the fighting spirit the German still had simply left. My German buddy Sven said they sure gave it their best shot, but in the end the Swedes were simply better.
Showing posts with label germany. Show all posts
Showing posts with label germany. Show all posts
Friday, 13 May 2011
Monday, 9 May 2011
IIHF World Championship | Day 11 | May 9th, 2011
A busy schedule today and it started bright and early with two games at 12.15 my time. A lunch-time-game? Sounds a bit uncommon considering it is a Monday. But OK, I watched the scoreboard on the IIHF site. And a Twitter-buddy was actually at the Slovakia-Denmark game and fed us with nice updates.
[Slovakia-Denmark] 4-1. Scoring was started by the Danes, but before the end of the first period, Strumpel and Satan had scored for Slovakia, giving them a 2-1 advantage going into the second period. Second period started strong for the Slovaks as well. Satan had some cool scoring opportunities and managed to get himself in a fight as well. OK, that is not really surprising ;) The second period went without goals, but in the third the Slovakia scored two more (Zednik and Hossa!). I for one am glad they at least ended the tournament on a positive note! And I should mention that the Danes had a lot of PPs in the third too which the Slovaks effectively killed off.
[France-Norway] 2-5. Well, it was the longest of all long shots, but a France win and a USA loss were what the Swiss - one of my personal faves - needed to move on the Quarter Finals. So I was looking closely at the France game. With Norway having an alright but not perfect tournament I though perhaps the French would try to redeem themselves a bit before going home. But yeah, the long shot was too long and the Norwegians dealt with the French decisively and in the process clinched their own spot in the Quarter Finals. Well done guys!
[Russia-Finland] 2-3. Had to go all the way to SO. Neither team looked spectacular in the third period and frankly, the OT was a waste of time too. Finns dominated the SO, it feels like the Russians did not even try to score. I had expected to see a bit more from these guys. But according to the IIHF report, the first period was excellent for Russia, with lots of hitting by Artyukhin and good scoring opportunities, but of course I missed that one *sighs*
[Switzerland-USA] 5-3. Well blimey. The Swiss finally found their scoring mojo. If only France had done the same earlier and defeated Norway, then the Swiss would have made it to the Quarter Finals. But it was all a bit too late. It was however, a nice way to redeem themselves a bit and beating the States always looks good on a resumé ;) ... Team USA tried to fight back in the final period and my boy JVR scored a goal to make it a one-goal game. But in the final minutes the Swiss scored an empty-netter, winning this game with a cool 5-3.
[Canada-Sweden] 3-2. My choice for tonight. It was a nice game to watch, nice pace, cool rushes, good saves. Not a big score and not the most spectacular game ever, but it was quite alright. And I am happy because Canada won :)
[Germany-Czech Republic] 2-5. The Germans started this tournament so strongly, so this game is hardly one they will want to remember. I did not watch this game, so I hoped for some input from my German buddy Sven, but he was too mad to talk about this game. Guess that says it all really! The Czechs had a walk in the park, having a bit of a pre-Quarter Finals practice. Oh wait, Sven decided to help me out anyways: "Czechs were better and Germany took too many penalties. Germany also had a bit of bad luck: first Czech goal was an goal in own net by Krüger. Second one flipped from Holzer's leg into the goal and another one was blocked by Nicolai Goc and that was a perfect assist for Plekanec." Ah see, it was not all bad! And thanks for your input Sven!
I am ready for the Quarter Finals. You too?
[Slovakia-Denmark] 4-1. Scoring was started by the Danes, but before the end of the first period, Strumpel and Satan had scored for Slovakia, giving them a 2-1 advantage going into the second period. Second period started strong for the Slovaks as well. Satan had some cool scoring opportunities and managed to get himself in a fight as well. OK, that is not really surprising ;) The second period went without goals, but in the third the Slovakia scored two more (Zednik and Hossa!). I for one am glad they at least ended the tournament on a positive note! And I should mention that the Danes had a lot of PPs in the third too which the Slovaks effectively killed off.
[France-Norway] 2-5. Well, it was the longest of all long shots, but a France win and a USA loss were what the Swiss - one of my personal faves - needed to move on the Quarter Finals. So I was looking closely at the France game. With Norway having an alright but not perfect tournament I though perhaps the French would try to redeem themselves a bit before going home. But yeah, the long shot was too long and the Norwegians dealt with the French decisively and in the process clinched their own spot in the Quarter Finals. Well done guys!
[Russia-Finland] 2-3. Had to go all the way to SO. Neither team looked spectacular in the third period and frankly, the OT was a waste of time too. Finns dominated the SO, it feels like the Russians did not even try to score. I had expected to see a bit more from these guys. But according to the IIHF report, the first period was excellent for Russia, with lots of hitting by Artyukhin and good scoring opportunities, but of course I missed that one *sighs*
[Switzerland-USA] 5-3. Well blimey. The Swiss finally found their scoring mojo. If only France had done the same earlier and defeated Norway, then the Swiss would have made it to the Quarter Finals. But it was all a bit too late. It was however, a nice way to redeem themselves a bit and beating the States always looks good on a resumé ;) ... Team USA tried to fight back in the final period and my boy JVR scored a goal to make it a one-goal game. But in the final minutes the Swiss scored an empty-netter, winning this game with a cool 5-3.
[Canada-Sweden] 3-2. My choice for tonight. It was a nice game to watch, nice pace, cool rushes, good saves. Not a big score and not the most spectacular game ever, but it was quite alright. And I am happy because Canada won :)
[Germany-Czech Republic] 2-5. The Germans started this tournament so strongly, so this game is hardly one they will want to remember. I did not watch this game, so I hoped for some input from my German buddy Sven, but he was too mad to talk about this game. Guess that says it all really! The Czechs had a walk in the park, having a bit of a pre-Quarter Finals practice. Oh wait, Sven decided to help me out anyways: "Czechs were better and Germany took too many penalties. Germany also had a bit of bad luck: first Czech goal was an goal in own net by Krüger. Second one flipped from Holzer's leg into the goal and another one was blocked by Nicolai Goc and that was a perfect assist for Plekanec." Ah see, it was not all bad! And thanks for your input Sven!
I am ready for the Quarter Finals. You too?
Saturday, 7 May 2011
IIHF World Championship | Day 9 | May 7th, 2011
Still reeling from last night's Playoffs shenanigans, but was ready for some World Championship action and I just finished watching Norway-Canada. It was like a little band-aid for the hurt hockey soul ;) *exit dramatics*
Anyways, here today's round-up!
[Austria-Slovenia] 3-2. Austria manages to win one and makes the last game of the Relegation Round exciting. The two teams that win their next game will earn their stay in the top division. Fun when teams fight like that.
[Belarus-Latvia] 3-6. A haphazzard World Championship for both countries. Win a few lose a few, no real consistency in sight. But hey, a game with this many goals is always fun. And the upside is that because Austria won as well, tomorrow's final games of the Relegation Round will be truly exciting as each team can either win a stay in next year's World Cup or be relegated to the First Division.
[Denmark-Germany] 4-3. Germany already qualified for the next round, so this outcome is acceptable for them. And although the Danes managed to win this one, their World Cup is over as they needed a regulation win to stay in the running. Instead this game went all the way to SO and we have seen the last couple of games that the Danes keep their cool in this situation and can turn it to their advantage.
[Norway-Canada] 2-3. I watched this one and I must admit that it was a nice soothing game. Canada was playing a calm and collected game and halfway through the third period the score was 3-0. Then the Norwegians woke up and increased pressure and suddenly this turned into a game again! At 51:36 the score was 3-1. At 52:49 it was 3-2 and I must admit that I sat up a bit straighter and got just a tad anxious. But the Canadians hung in there and have secured their spot in the Quarter Finals! Yay!
[Finland-Slovakia] 2-1. Chose to watch this one over USA-France, thinking it would be the more exciting of the two. Well, two periods into the game, a 1-0 lead for the Slovaks and I was bored so much I continued writing this article rather than concentrating on the game. At some point in the third period the players started to skate a bit faster, there was more puck movement and what do you know? The Finns scored, twice in succesion, to clinch the win and their place in the Quarter Finals. Oh, both goals were scored by Ruutu. And the Slovaks had dreams of medals and what not but it was not meant to be. The sad faces of the Slovak fans were making me go 'Awwwwww' :(
[USA-France] 3-2. Hmm, not much to report here. Some crazy reporting going on and I cannot make much sense of it. A 3-2 win over France does not sound very commanding to me, but the IIFH site suggests that the French were outclassed by far. I feel like shrugging a bit. And as I type this the Flyers tweet that JVR will be joining Team USA. Sounds like an excellent idea, they can use some offensive power! But OK, the French have no chance at moving on to the Quarter Finals and can start packing. Team USA has plenty of opportunity and I hope they take it.
Tomorrow my faves are playing - Russia and Switzerland - I hope they will win their respective games :) ... and I hope to see Ovi in good spirits!
Anyways, here today's round-up!
[Austria-Slovenia] 3-2. Austria manages to win one and makes the last game of the Relegation Round exciting. The two teams that win their next game will earn their stay in the top division. Fun when teams fight like that.
[Belarus-Latvia] 3-6. A haphazzard World Championship for both countries. Win a few lose a few, no real consistency in sight. But hey, a game with this many goals is always fun. And the upside is that because Austria won as well, tomorrow's final games of the Relegation Round will be truly exciting as each team can either win a stay in next year's World Cup or be relegated to the First Division.
[Denmark-Germany] 4-3. Germany already qualified for the next round, so this outcome is acceptable for them. And although the Danes managed to win this one, their World Cup is over as they needed a regulation win to stay in the running. Instead this game went all the way to SO and we have seen the last couple of games that the Danes keep their cool in this situation and can turn it to their advantage.
[Norway-Canada] 2-3. I watched this one and I must admit that it was a nice soothing game. Canada was playing a calm and collected game and halfway through the third period the score was 3-0. Then the Norwegians woke up and increased pressure and suddenly this turned into a game again! At 51:36 the score was 3-1. At 52:49 it was 3-2 and I must admit that I sat up a bit straighter and got just a tad anxious. But the Canadians hung in there and have secured their spot in the Quarter Finals! Yay!
[Finland-Slovakia] 2-1. Chose to watch this one over USA-France, thinking it would be the more exciting of the two. Well, two periods into the game, a 1-0 lead for the Slovaks and I was bored so much I continued writing this article rather than concentrating on the game. At some point in the third period the players started to skate a bit faster, there was more puck movement and what do you know? The Finns scored, twice in succesion, to clinch the win and their place in the Quarter Finals. Oh, both goals were scored by Ruutu. And the Slovaks had dreams of medals and what not but it was not meant to be. The sad faces of the Slovak fans were making me go 'Awwwwww' :(
[USA-France] 3-2. Hmm, not much to report here. Some crazy reporting going on and I cannot make much sense of it. A 3-2 win over France does not sound very commanding to me, but the IIFH site suggests that the French were outclassed by far. I feel like shrugging a bit. And as I type this the Flyers tweet that JVR will be joining Team USA. Sounds like an excellent idea, they can use some offensive power! But OK, the French have no chance at moving on to the Quarter Finals and can start packing. Team USA has plenty of opportunity and I hope they take it.
Tomorrow my faves are playing - Russia and Switzerland - I hope they will win their respective games :) ... and I hope to see Ovi in good spirits!
Friday, 6 May 2011
IIHF World Championship | Day 8 | May 6th, 2011
Guys, did not get around to watch any of today's games, so really just a quick update so I have all the days covered when I read this back in a while :)
[Germany-Finland] 4-5. Whoa, the first loss for Germany this tournament. But against the Finns who of course have a repute to protect. But the reports tell me the Finns had no walk in the park and had some goaltending issues. And the game had to go all the way to SO to be decided so there is no shame in losing for the Germans. Plus I learnt something today: a player can appear twice in the SO lol ... did not know that, or is it an IIHF rule only? If - unlike me - you do have a clue, please drop me a comment about this!
[Canada-USA] 4-3. Ahhh the good old rivalry. I remember many a Winter Olympics with these two teams headlining *nods reverently*. But this Team USA hardly sets my heart aflutter, whereas Team Canada sports some of my fave NHL Players and is looking pretty good out there. I was not sure what to expect. But we got pace, hits, goals and it went all the way to SO. Speaking of hits, Dion had a big one heheh. If I find it somewhere I will add it for enjoyment! Anyways, in SO Eberle scored as well as ♥ Rick Nash ♥ ... so from my point of view ... good stuff and I am sorry I had to miss it :(
[Czech Republic-Slovakia] 3-2. The Czechs are on a nice roll as they notch down another win. Our NHL-buddies Elias and Havlat did great for the Czech Republic with various assists and goals. And on the whole this must have been an interesting game by the looks of it, with both teams generating chances. In the end the Czechs clinched it and they are looking good.
[Sweden-France] 4-0. Nothing like a a three-goal lead in the first period to kill the opponent's will. It takes a strong team to get back from such a tough start and the French just were not cut out for it. The Swedes simply dominated and smoothly sailed through this one.
Just checked the sked for tomorrow and how we are going to make it through the day, I do not know! Six games tomorrow you crazy hockey fans!
[Germany-Finland] 4-5. Whoa, the first loss for Germany this tournament. But against the Finns who of course have a repute to protect. But the reports tell me the Finns had no walk in the park and had some goaltending issues. And the game had to go all the way to SO to be decided so there is no shame in losing for the Germans. Plus I learnt something today: a player can appear twice in the SO lol ... did not know that, or is it an IIHF rule only? If - unlike me - you do have a clue, please drop me a comment about this!
[Canada-USA] 4-3. Ahhh the good old rivalry. I remember many a Winter Olympics with these two teams headlining *nods reverently*. But this Team USA hardly sets my heart aflutter, whereas Team Canada sports some of my fave NHL Players and is looking pretty good out there. I was not sure what to expect. But we got pace, hits, goals and it went all the way to SO. Speaking of hits, Dion had a big one heheh. If I find it somewhere I will add it for enjoyment! Anyways, in SO Eberle scored as well as ♥ Rick Nash ♥ ... so from my point of view ... good stuff and I am sorry I had to miss it :(
[Czech Republic-Slovakia] 3-2. The Czechs are on a nice roll as they notch down another win. Our NHL-buddies Elias and Havlat did great for the Czech Republic with various assists and goals. And on the whole this must have been an interesting game by the looks of it, with both teams generating chances. In the end the Czechs clinched it and they are looking good.
[Sweden-France] 4-0. Nothing like a a three-goal lead in the first period to kill the opponent's will. It takes a strong team to get back from such a tough start and the French just were not cut out for it. The Swedes simply dominated and smoothly sailed through this one.
Just checked the sked for tomorrow and how we are going to make it through the day, I do not know! Six games tomorrow you crazy hockey fans!
Tuesday, 3 May 2011
IIHF World Championship | Day 5 | May 3rd, 2011
And so Day 5 comes to a conclusion. Had planned to watch Canada-Switzerland and Russia-Slovakia, but due to a long day at work I was happy enough to catch the second game. Wish I had seen Canada-Switzerland too though, the reports are interesting. Anyways, as the day winds down, let me write up a quick overview of the games played.
[Slovenia-Germany] 2-3. Well well well, those Germans did it. For the first time since 1930 they started the World Cup with three wins in a row. I know this because the guys at the IIHF site said so. Do not worry! I have not magically turned into a stats-crunching, trivia-spewing blogger ;) ... anyways, the guys had to take it to SO, but a win is a win and the Germans are first placed in their group and moving on to the Qualification Round.
[Canada-Switzerland] 4-3. I am truly sorry I missed this gem. After Russia, Switzerland is my fave European team and I am glad they made things difficult for Team Canada. But Canada of course holds a special place in my heart. I prefer the outcome as it is, but I would not have minded too much if the Swiss had won this one. It took an OT goal to decide the victor of this game. Canada is first in Group B and the Swiss have secured second place. I am content.
[Russia-Slovakia] 4-3. Yeah, Russia won! It was an exciting game to watch and the tension of it all made me go walk around my place a few times. One such walk occured after the Slovaks made it 2-3. And because of it I missed Nikulin make it 3-3 ;) ... he scored two of the goals. Kovi also scored one; he played a good game. Russians are in second place in their group, right after those pesky Germans!
[France-Belarus] 2-1. Another OT game. I apologise, but I just could not get excited about this game. France is through to the Qualification Round, whereas Belarus will have to fight for survival in the Relegation Round. Next!
Oh, that was it for today. But here a pic for fellow Reimer fans! My buddy Ferd is in Slovakia to watch some games. Hell yeah, of course I am jealous. Hahah, I must also add that he is a fellow Flyers fan but he remembered my ramblings about Reims, so just for me - I like to think hahah - he took some pics! :D
[Slovenia-Germany] 2-3. Well well well, those Germans did it. For the first time since 1930 they started the World Cup with three wins in a row. I know this because the guys at the IIHF site said so. Do not worry! I have not magically turned into a stats-crunching, trivia-spewing blogger ;) ... anyways, the guys had to take it to SO, but a win is a win and the Germans are first placed in their group and moving on to the Qualification Round.
[Canada-Switzerland] 4-3. I am truly sorry I missed this gem. After Russia, Switzerland is my fave European team and I am glad they made things difficult for Team Canada. But Canada of course holds a special place in my heart. I prefer the outcome as it is, but I would not have minded too much if the Swiss had won this one. It took an OT goal to decide the victor of this game. Canada is first in Group B and the Swiss have secured second place. I am content.
[Russia-Slovakia] 4-3. Yeah, Russia won! It was an exciting game to watch and the tension of it all made me go walk around my place a few times. One such walk occured after the Slovaks made it 2-3. And because of it I missed Nikulin make it 3-3 ;) ... he scored two of the goals. Kovi also scored one; he played a good game. Russians are in second place in their group, right after those pesky Germans!
[France-Belarus] 2-1. Another OT game. I apologise, but I just could not get excited about this game. France is through to the Qualification Round, whereas Belarus will have to fight for survival in the Relegation Round. Next!
Oh, that was it for today. But here a pic for fellow Reimer fans! My buddy Ferd is in Slovakia to watch some games. Hell yeah, of course I am jealous. Hahah, I must also add that he is a fellow Flyers fan but he remembered my ramblings about Reims, so just for me - I like to think hahah - he took some pics! :D
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