From here on…
Tämä sivu on saatavilla myös suomeksi. This page is also available in Finnish.
The 2000s
Canada continued making history by moving the Edmonton Mercurys to history as the latest Canuck Olympic gold-medal team. The Slovakians made their share of hockey history by winning the World Champion title for the first time on their own, not as part of Czechoslovakia... Russia made history by winning for the first as Russia, the performances of the others might be called routine-like!
2009
Bern, Kloten
Finland started its tournament with a rock-solid routine. But then Belarus continued its glorious history against the Scandinavian national teams; this time it was Finland’s turn to lose against them. The Maple Leaf team winning Finland wasn’t as surprising...
In this tournament the US team didn’t make quite the same performance as a few times in a World Championship before the World Cup; not a bronze medal in a pre-Vancouver Olympic tournament. But one has to say, again; The Swedes took the medal in their style. When the Americans took their goalie to the bench, they got two penalties. Thus Sweden scored the final goal: 4-2.
The final can be called a repitition of the previous year. This time, though, the Canadians didn’t play the way they did in 2008; now they didn’t start to think themselves as the winners a bit too soon and vs. a wrong team. The Russians showed, that they had found their way to World Championship success properly after the USSR –times. But one has to say, that the NHL didn’t have a role in this tournament as much as earlier...
Russia: Bryzgalov , Jerjomenko; I. Nikulin, Proshkin, Visnevski, Tverdovski, Kalinin, Atjusov, Kornejev, Grebeshkov, Morozov, Tereshenko, Kovaltshuk (5+9), Peretsogin, Zinovjev, Frolov, Radulov, Gorovikov, Saprikin, Mozjahin, Kurjanov. (11 10 1 0 0 52-21)
Canada: Roloson, Mason; S. Weber, Hamhuis, Doughty, Vlasic, Phillips, Coburn, Horcoff, Fisher, Zajac, St. Louis (4+11), Stamkos, Roy,Heatley, Spezza, Doan, Lombardi, Armstrong, Upshall. (11 9 0 1 1 56-19)
Sweden: Liv, Gustavson, Holmqvist; Oduya, Tärnström, Magnus Johansson, Gunnarsson, K. Jönsson, Stralman, Akerman, Grossman, Nilson, Wallin, Huselius, Weinhandl, Martensson, Eriksson, Omark (2+8), Harju, Thörnberg, Berglund, Persson, Andersson. 11 5 2 3 1 46-33)
Finland: Rinne, Rämö; M. Lehtonen, Kukkonen, Niskala, Salmela, Jaakola, Niinimaa, Miettinen, N. Kapanen (5+3), Hagman, Pihlman, Immonen, S. Kapanen, Hyvönen, Pyörälä, Hytönen, Santala, Komarov, J. Ruutu. (9 5 2 1 1 32-16)
The best of the decade:
Goalie: Roberto Luongo (Canada)
Defenceman: Petteri Nummelin (Finland)
Forward: Miroslav Satan (Slovakia)
The team of the decade: Russia 2008
The medals:
Canada 3(Olympic:1)-2-0
Czech 3-0-0(Olympic:1)
Russia 2-1(Olympic:1)-2
Sweden 1(Olympic: 1)-2(Olympic:1)-3
Slovakia 1-1-1
Finland 0-2(Olympic: 1)-3(Olympic: 1)
USA 0-0(Olympic: 1)-1
2010
The Olympics: Vancouver
Canada lost its position in the all-time olympic medal stats number one in 1988 and got it back in 2010. Both events taking place in Canada: the first one in Calgary and the latter one naturally in Vancouver. They reached the gold medal in the traditional Canadian style: an awkward start and a brilliant ending. So, the most secure team in the tournament, USA, finally lost the final...
The Russians failed badly, when they faced Canada before the final. When their feeling got wrong, Canada made their better performance clear by 7-3. This made them feel so well, that they almost lost their position in the final, when the Slovak oldtimers almost tied the game. But the lead by 3-0 was enough for the Maple Leaf team, so all the Slovaks had, was a great feeling for the bronze-medal game.
The Finnish even more oldtimer-team lost its game vs. Sweden by 0-3 in the qualification stage, but a nice piece of actio took place vs. the Czech team: a victory by 2-0. The game vs. USA wasn’t that brilliant at all: they scored 6-0 already in the first period. Though the goali Kiprusoff gave the first goal to the Americans, in general one can say, that the situation was somewhat like USA vs. USSR, described by Herb Brooks: “We had played together about a year. The Russians had played together for 10-15 years and that was a bit too much...”
In the final game the Canadians got even with the Americans – to the team, against which they had lost the only time in the qualification group – by winning 3-2 in the overtime. The goalie Roberto Luongo and the scorer of the final goal, Sidney Crosby, became the national heroes of Canada. The Finnish team continued its stumbling in the bronze-medal game, the Slovaks leading by 1-3 after the second period. Then the Finnish team surprised itself by winning the final period in the American Style: 4-0. This meant, that Finland got the bronze-medal.
Canada: J.Iginla 5+2, S.Crosby 4+3, D.Heatley 4+3, J.Thornton 1+1, M.Richards 2+3, S.Weber 2+4, R.Getzlaf 3+4, S.Niedermayer 1+2, J.Toews 1+6, P.Marleau 2+3, D.Boyle 1+5, R.Nash 2+3, C.Perry 4+1, E.Staal 1+5, B.Morrow 2+1, B.Seabrook 0+1, D.Keith 0+6 D.Doughty 0+2, Ch.Pronger 0+5, P.Bergeron 0+1. (6 4 1 0 1 32-14)
USA: 6 5 0 1 0 24-9 B.Ryan 1+1, D.Backes 1+2, R.Malone 2+1, P.Kessel 1+1, R.Malone 1+1, C.Drury 2+0, P.Kane 3+2, Z.Parise 4+4, B.Rafalski 4+4, J.Langenbrunner 1+3, R.Kesler 2+0, P.Statsny 1+2, E.Johnson 1+0, R.Suter 0+4, R.Callahan 0+1, J.Johnson 0+1, R.Miller 0+1, J.Pavelski 0+3. (6 5 0 1 0 24-9)
Finland: 6 4 0 0 2 18-11 O.Jokinen 3+1, N.Hagman 4+2, J.Pitkänen 1+2, V.Filppula 3+0, J.Ruutu 2+1, T.Ruutu 1+0, K.Timonen 2+2, A.Miettinen 1+0, S.Lepistö 0+1, M.Kiprusoff 0+1, S.Koivu 0+1, T.Selänne 0+2, M.Koivu 0+4, L.Kukkonen 0+1, J.Niskala 0+2, S.Salo 0+1, V.Peltonen 0+1, N.Kapanen 0+2. (6 4 0 0 2 18-11)
The World Championships: Cologne, Dortmund, Mannheim
This tournament meant the celebration of the nations with less success, like so many tournaments held in the Olympic years earlier. Well, the Czech republic got its first World Championship title for five years. One thing worth to remember is the World record in spectators, 77 805. Germany got its greatest success after the Olympic tournament bronze of 1976 and the 1953 silver-medal on the World Championship level. One has to mention, though, that these took place as West-Germany. Germany would have needed a little bit more routine against the Russians and the Swedes, while chasing the medals.
Denmark took the biggest steps forward, first by winning Finland. The next vicotry over USA showed, that the first one didn’t take place by accident. When they finally won Slovakia by 6-0, one has to believe, that one day Denmark might be one of the Great Nordic hockey nations. Meanwhile, Norway’s win over the Czech was just one surprise...
Finland had an awkward beginning and mostly continued the same way. The only light in the wind was the victory over Slovakia by 5-2. The only game, where the team seemed to be doing the goalscoring very well. Then Finland met the Czech team in the quarter-finals. They had to defend practically ever since the opening goal by the Finnish team. So, Czech won the penalties. Despite this, the Olympic bronze-medal team of the year made it better in the World Championship than the silver-medal winner; USA remained on pool A by qualification. Canada remained in seventh place, behind Finland.
The final meant the ends of two eras; Bykov didn’t get a gold-medal this time. Naturally, he compared the current rate to the 2000 disaster in St. Petersburg, when the Russians only reached the 11th place. At the same time, Ruzicka ended his career as a head coach the best way, but up around many hard bends, to a somewhat suprising World Champion title.
Czech: Hubacek 1+0, Jagr 3+4, J.Novotny 1+5, Gregorek 1+0, K.Rachunek 2+2, Klepis 3+4, Kaspar 2+1, Blatak 1+1, Rolinek 4+1, Hubacek 1+0, Cervenka 1+0, Marek 2+0, Mojzis 1+0, Voracek 0+1, Novak 0+1, Vampola 0+2, Rozsival 0+2, Vokoun 0+1, Koukal 0+2, Nemec 0+1. (9 5 0 2 2 25-16)
Russia: Afinogenov 3+4, Kozlov 1+1, Kuliomin 3+2, Ovetshkin 5+1 Treshenko 0+1, Sjomin 1+4, S.Fjodorov 2+3, Kovaltshuk 2+10, Grebeshkov 1+0, Mosjakin 1+1, Anisimov 1+2, Jemelin 1+1, Datshjuk 6+1, Malkin 5+2, Gontshar 0+2, Kulikov 0+2, Gontshar 0+2, Kalinin 0+1, Fjodorov 0+1, Sushinski 0+1, Nikulin 0+2, Atjushov 0+4, Frolov 0+1, Viktor Kozlov 0+1. (9 8 0 0 1 32-11)
Sweden: Weinhandl 3+0, Pääjärvi-Svensson 5+4, Karlsson 1+3, Wallin 1+5, Engqvist 1+3, Gunnarsson 1+1, Omark 1+2, Andersson 6+0, Nylander 1+2, Harju 4+1, Hedman 1+1, Ekman Larsson 1+2, Pettersson 1+1, Maartensson 2+3, Nilson 1+1, M.Johansson 0+4, Backlund 0+1, Ömark 0+1, Martensson 0+1, Persson 0+4, Bäckman 0+3, J.Ericsson 0+3. (9 7 0 1 1 30-15)
Finland: Kontiola 3+0, Aaltonen 1+2, Nummelin 1+6, Immonen 2+2, J.Jokinen 2+2, Komarov 1+0, S.Kapanen 1+1, Hytönen 1+0, Miettinen 0+2, Pihlström 0+1, Jaakola 0+1, Hahl 0+1, Niskala 0+2, Puistola 0+2, Mäenpää 0+1.(7 5 0 1 1 13-15)