from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,
"I think the biggest difference for me right off the hop and kind of knowing coming into this tournament is just the difference in the style of game on the ice sheet in Sochi compared to the NHL sheet here in Toronto," said Team Canada forward Jonathan Toews. "You're going to see way more offense right away. It's almost a very neutral game when you're in Europe when you're on that big Olympic-size sheet. It's tough to create offense, it's tough to shoot from the right areas. It's just a whole different animal."
On the smaller NHL ice on Saturday night, Canada smothered the Czechs in their breakouts attempts, forced turnovers and created puck-possession changes and of course, ultimately, scoring chances.
"It's a completely different game playing on the big ice than it is the smaller ice," said Team Canada defenseman Alex Pietrangelo. "One, I think we're all used to this ice, which makes it a lot better. When you have the size and the speed that we have [among the forwards], put that with the skill and smarts -- these guys know where they're supposed to be at all times. They're some of the most dominant forwards in the league in terms of occupying the offensive zone. It's part of the reason it looked like [the Czechs] were having such a hard time getting the puck out."
Create an Account
In order to leave a comment, please create an account.