from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

Has everyone regained their breath yet? As thrilling as Team USA's shootout win over host Russia was in the preliminary round, that game was a step behind the pace of Friday's sensational semifinal 1-0 victory by Team Canada over its North American rival. Quite the 24 hours for Canada over the U.S., eh? Ouch. What a game, though, at Bolshoy Ice Dome. You wish these two teams could play a best-of-seven.

Five things to know about the game:

1. The pace was outstanding. I mean, if this was the NHL every single night, I would do my job for free. It was breathtaking to see two great, evenly matched powerhouse teams go at each other like that, back and forth with so much speed and precision. For the most part, though, Canada dictated that pace and spent more time in the U.S. zone with an effective cycle and forecheck. It's clear that Canada was thrilled to be getting a chance to play some north-south, North American hockey after playing the likes of Latvia and Finland beforehand, both of those teams sitting back and forming a defensive shell around their goalie. This was Canada's kind of game and it showed in the comfort of its execution. The passes were crisper, the transition game more fluid, the decision-making more natural.

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