Hockey!

I did a semi-live blogging exercise here...wrote in Word as the game progressed, cut 'n' paste when the game was over. So, now...hockey!

Watching Team USA lose to the Russians… The US came out smokin’ in the first four minutes of the game, skating hard, taking it to the Russians with play mostly in the Russian zone. And then things went all to Hell. Russia scores on a breakaway as a US power play expires. Three minutes later, with the US on the power play, the Russians get a two-on-one shorthanded goal. An odd-man rush by Russia on a freakin’ US power play? Things look bad. Very bad…

The NBC audio feed SUCKS. The static is so bad I have to watch the game with the audio muted. One would think the techs could (a) realize the audio is bad and (b) FIX IT! And this at 17 minutes into the game.

Team USA gets a power play goal at 18:38 of the first, resulting from a scrum in front of the Russian net. Ugly goal, but…we’re on the board. End of the first. USA out shot the Russians, 8-6. Audio feed still sucks, but the commercials are as clear as a bell. Imagine that!

Second period under way. Audio is finally fixed. Ovechkin LEVELS Chelios behind the US net…hardest hit I’ve seen in the game so far. This game is physical! Team USA kills off a penalty 3:30 into the second. The US is looking better. Russia makes a bad change at 7:30 and takes a too-many-men on the ice penalty. The US doesn’t convert, but gets at least three shots on the power play.

Markov scores on a beautiful cross-ice pass from Datsyuk at 15:00 in the second. Russia, 3-1. Goal under review—I don’t know why—the puck was clearly in the net. Review complete: Goal. The US goes on back-to-back power plays at 16:16 minutes into the second. And the US SCORES at 19:01! Another scrum in front of the Russian net, with Brian Gionta tapping in a rebound. Russia, 3-2. End of the second…a one-goal game. The US needs to score even-strength. You can’t count on the power play exclusively to win. The US looked a LOT better in the second period, however, outshooting the Russians 19-13 through the end of the second. Hope springs eternal…

Team USA scores on the power play, again! Schneider holds the puck in at the blue line, takes a shot and Gomez, who is parked in front of net about a foot outside the crease, deflects the puck into the net at 5:00 in the third. Tie game! USA is putting VERY good pressure on the Russians…the momentum may have changed to the good. A flurry of US shots after the PPG, all the sticks are aligned… Russia gets its FIRST shot on goal 13+ minutes into the third… The US had 13 unanswered shots on goal up to this point.

Russia scores on a give and go, Ovechkin from Malkin, at 9:55 of the third. Russia, 4-3. The US comes back and scores its first even-strength goal at 10:38…Eric Cole on a wrap-around from behind the net. Sweet! Kovalev puts a rocket from the blue line past Esche at 11:52, assist from Datsyuk. Wow. Three goals on three shots in less than three minutes. Russia, 5-4. The action is fast and furious!

Russia goes on the power play at 15:34. Nail-biting time. The US kills the penalty, but not without the Russians getting several good scoring opportunities. Two minutes left.

Esche leaves the net with a minute left. Russia misses an empty-netter by about six inches just seconds after Esche gets to the bench. Icing. Team USA takes the face-off but immediately surrenders the puck. A Russian empty-net goal is avoided by a penalty for a hand pass. A flurry of shots by the US in the final ten seconds of the game, but for naught. Russia wins, 5-4. A much better game than I thought this would be.

Finland tomorrow…and I think that will be it for Team USA. Great match-ups in the quarter finals: Russia v. Canada and the Czech Republic against Slovakia. I hope the US - Finland game doesn’t conflict with the Czechs and the Slovaks…THAT’S the game I wanna watch!