The first round of the men's hockey tournament at the Olympics has come to an end. Four teams have been given byes and the remaining eight sides have been grouped into do-or-die knockout rounds. Which teams are the favorites to take home gold after the first round? Here is how the nations stack up.
12. Norway
The Norwegians had a first round to forget despite a strong start. In its opener against Canada the team seemed resigned to being the underdog, but also looked intent on keeping the goal-scoring down. The team accomplished its mission admirably. In one of the biggest shocks of the first round, Norway kept Canada off the board in the opening period (and outshot the favored nation) while only allowing a total of three goals for the remainder of the match.
Unfortunately the effort was for naught as Norway was destroyed by Finland in the ensuing game by the score of 6-1 and was then taken down 3-1 by Austria in its final match.
A match against Russia will likely do little to help the team's chances moving forward.
11. Latvia
Latvia was arguably more embarrassing than Norway but will take on Switzerland in the knockout rounds; if they had been grouped with Russia in the next round then they would undoubtedly be in last place. Latvia lost all of its games while managing five goals in the process. Impressive but nothing to be excited about.
10. Slovenia
Anze Kopitar and his nation managed a remarkable result against an underachieving Slovakia, but the team was steamrolled by the Russians and Americans in the group round. A date with Austria could potentially help the team climb up the ladder in the next round, but this team is too weak defensively to contend with an otherwise solid Austria offense.
9. Slovakia
Marian Hossa, Zdeno Chara, Andrej Mezaros, Thomas Kopecky, Tomar Tartar, and Jaroslav Halak—this team should be better than it has been in this tournament. And while that first round certainly proved that they are not major contenders, it is hard to believe that Slovakia will simply fold in the next round against the Czech Republic. This team is better than it has played and will prove that in the next round.
It will be interesting to see which netminder gets the call in net. Halak was destroyed by the Americans in the opener while Peter Budaj was also taken down by Slovenia in the second round. Third-string keeper Jan Laco was excellent against Russia but is unproven and could implode against the Czechs.
8. Austria
The Austrians were a terrible defensive side in the first round but have the current leading scorer in the tournament. New York Islanders forward Michael Grabner has struggled to score for his club but has put together a whopping five goals and one assist in three games thus far; he leads all skaters in goals scored and is second overall in points. His speed will likely be a tremendous cause for concern for Slovenia in the next round.
7. Czech Republic
Ondrej Pavelec has proved the critics wrong with two strong performances for the Czechs; he could potentially lead his nation on a deep run in this tournament if he continues his terrific play. The team also has the likes of Patrick Elias, Martin Erat, Michael Frolik, Ales Hemsky, David Krejci and Jaromir Jagr leading the way offensively. This is a dangerous team and one that could do serious damage to an underachieving Slovakia team.
6. Switzerland
The Swiss have arguably the best defense in the entire tournament; through three games they have only conceded one goal. The problem, however, is that the Swiss do not have a strong offense. With only two goals scored in the tournament thus far, the team is tied with Slovakia for fewest goals scored in the tournament.
This team will surely make a solid run if it continues its defensive play, but it will not be able to sustain its run of 1-0 games against teams like Russia and Canada in the later rounds.
5. Finland
The Finnish were terrific in the first round but suffered the unfortunate fate of being paired with Canada in the opening round. The team's offense managed 15 goals in the first round and were tied with the Americans for goals scored. The goaltending was not as solid as many expected, conceding seven goals in three games. This team could do better defensively and must in order to make a run at the gold.
4. Russia
Once seen as the undeniable favorite to win the gold, the Russians have not met expectations. The loss against the Americans was unfortunate, but the team only managed eight goals in the opening round despite possessing Evgeni Malkin, Pavel Datsyuk and Ilya Kovalchuk in its ranks. The poor performance against Slovakia could come back to haunt them. Goaltending has not been bad by any means but it has been far from exemplary.
3. The United States
The Americans annihilated Slovakia and Slovenia and managed to defeat Russia in one of the most exciting games of the tournament. Jonathan Quick has been spectacular in goal, but it will be interesting to see if this team can maintain its level of play in the latter rounds when any mistake could be the final one.
2. Sweden
The Swedes were the only team to manage nine points from the opening round and have been diligent offensively and defensively. The team did seem a bit disorganized in its final game against Latvia, creating some concern about its defensive play heading into the final rounds. Henrik Lundqvist will have to be better to help his country earn the goal.
1. Canada
After a horrific start against Norway the Canadians have found their form. The team destroyed Austria 6-1 and topped Finland in a great match. The team is getting offensive production from surprising sources, which is both a good and bad thing. She Weber, Drew Doughty and Jeff Carter are the team's leading scorers thus far but captain Sidney Crosby only managed two assists in the entire round. John Tavares, who is third in the NHL scoring race, has yet to register a point in the entire tournament and has only averaged 10 minutes per game. Despite these factors, the team has gotten solid goaltending and has Michael Babcock at the helm. Canada is still the favorite to win it all.