The preliminary round is over and the top three teams remained idle in the third edition of the Olympic hockey power rankings.
The Americans were flat-out dominant in two of its three contests while Sweden and Canada showed flashes of brilliance.
Russia suffered a tough shootout loss on home ice but they remain one of the contenders for gold.
Throughout the tournament, sportsnet.ca will provide power rankings for all 12 participating nations in the men’s hockey event.
1) USA (2-0-1-0) — The United States did not land the top seed but the team was the most complete team throughout the opening round of the tournament. The Americans were sound in all three zones and got all-world performances from Phil Kessel, T.J Oshie (in the shootout against Russia) and Jonathan Quick throughout the first three games.
2) Sweden (3-0-0-0) — The Swedes may not be as talented up front as they were in 2006 but the team continues to get it done. Daniel Alfredsson and Erik Karlsson (calm down, Sens fans) have been especially impressive in all three of Sweden’s preliminary round victories.
3) Canada (2-0-1-0) — Drew Doughty has been phenomenal but the Canadian team has yet to click on all cylinders. The team defence has stood out but the offence is not generating enough high quality scoring chances, despite controlling the puck for most of their games. Adding P.K. Subban and Marty St. Louis back into the lineup could help.
4) Russia (1-0-1-1) — The Russians need better play at even strength. The hometown squad has gone to the shootout in two of its first three games and need to create more at 5-on-5 with their dynamic group of play-making forwards. Even though they will did not finish in the top four, the Russians remain in good shape.
5) Finland (2-0-0-1) — Finland maintained their rock-solid play with a tough effort against a more-talented Canadian squad. The Finns lack the fire power up front but the goaltending and disciplined defensive style has Finland looking to grab another medal event.
6) Switzerland (2-1-0-0) — Switzerland allowed just one goal in three games, a testament to the goaltending and defensive play of one of the tournament’s sleepers. Scoring remains a question mark but the Swiss will be a difficult out for anyone in a one-and-done scenario.
7) Czech Republic (1-2-0-0) — The Czechs battled in all three of its games but only came out on top in one of them. They are not getting enough consistent offence and will need more from players such as David Krejci and Patrik Elias in the next round. Jaromir Jagr, even at his age, has been a pleasant surprise for the club.
8) Slovenia (1-2-0-0) — What a encouraging showing by the Slovenians in their first ever appearance in the event. They entered the tournament with little chance at contending but were able to upset Slovakia. The lack of talent was clear against the Americans, though.
9) Slovakia (0-2-0-1) — Slovakia rebounded after two discouraging showings to start the preliminary round with a better performance against Russia — though they did not pick up a victory. Holding the Russians without a goal in regulation was the kind of defensive performance that was expected against Slovenia and the US.
10) Austria (1-2-0-0) — The Austrians can score in bunches as Islanders forward Michael Grabner netted five goals in the first three goals. With a solid effort against Latvia, the Austrians were able to set up a matchup with Slovenia in the qualification round.
11) Latvia (0-3-0-0) — Latvia competed in all three of its losses but were not sound enough in their own end against Sweden or the Czech Republic. They landed a rematch with Switzerland where they lost 1-0 on a late goal in its first game of the Olympics.
12) Norway (0-3-0-0) — Norway was unable to pick up a victory in the preliminary round but battled hard in two of its three contests. The loss to Austria especially hurt, though, because the Norwegians will have to face hometown Russia in the qualification round. The hopes of advancing are extremely slim.