Sweden vs Canada. Who will advance to the semi-finals?
Already at the quarterfinal stage of the tournament, fate brought the favorites together - the teams of Sweden and Canada. The game will take place on May 26 in Tampere, at the local ice arena "Tampere Dec".
For more than a decade, the Swedish team has been one of the leading hockey powers on the planet. At the same time, Tre Krunur failed the last two major tournaments. A year ago, at the world championship in Latvia, the Swedes for the first time in their history could not leave the group, and in February, at the Winter Olympics, they were left without medals, sensationally losing in the bronze match to the Slovak team. For Johan Garpenlev, the mentor of the Swedes, the current championship is the last chance to win something with the national team. Even before the start of the championship, it was known that next season the Swedish team would have a new coach.
While the game of the Swedish national team in the tournament causes only positive emotions. The Swedes went through the group stage almost perfectly, allowing the only misfire in the game against the American team, losing to that 2-3 in overtime. At the same time, the powerful Finns were beaten 3-2 and the traditionally uncomfortable Czechs 5-3, which allowed the Swedish team to finish in second place in group B. If we single out individual hockey players, then Rasmus Dalin should be noted first of all. The Buffalo guard, selected first overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, is once again proving his level of excellence. Despite playing as a defender, Dalin is the most productive among the Swedes, scoring two goals and giving five assists.
Canada
But the Canadians left an ambiguous impression with their performance at the group stage. Powerful by the names of the line-up, where there was a place for such stars from the NHL as Shabo, Barzal, Dubois, played the first part of the championship extremely unevenly, alternating bright matches with frankly disastrous ones. The North Americans dealt with the outsiders of the group without any problems (France 7-1, Kazakhstan 6-3, Italy 6-1), but experienced serious problems in matches against the national teams of Switzerland and Denmark. In the match against the Swiss, the Canadian team tried to play open hockey, for which, in the end, they paid the price. The fast Swiss simply tore the Canadians apart on the counterattack, eventually beating the North American stars 6-3. In the game with Denmark, the opponent's layered defense became a problem, which the Canadians were able to break through only twice in 60 game minutes,
Nevertheless, the Canadian team left the group quite confidently, taking third place after the teams of Switzerland and Germany. Forward Pierre-Luc Dubois is the best among the Canadians so far, with 6 goals and 4 assists. Disappointing is Matthew Barzal, who was presented as the main star before the start of the tournament. In six matches played, Barzal has never scored, scoring only three assists.
Our Expert Predictions & Analysis on Sweden vs Canada
SwedenFor more than a decade, the Swedish team has been one of the leading hockey powers on the planet. At the same time, Tre Krunur failed the last two major tournaments. A year ago, at the world championship in Latvia, the Swedes for the first time in their history could not leave the group, and in February, at the Winter Olympics, they were left without medals, sensationally losing in the bronze match to the Slovak team. For Johan Garpenlev, the mentor of the Swedes, the current championship is the last chance to win something with the national team. Even before the start of the championship, it was known that next season the Swedish team would have a new coach.
While the game of the Swedish national team in the tournament causes only positive emotions. The Swedes went through the group stage almost perfectly, allowing the only misfire in the game against the American team, losing to that 2-3 in overtime. At the same time, the powerful Finns were beaten 3-2 and the traditionally uncomfortable Czechs 5-3, which allowed the Swedish team to finish in second place in group B. If we single out individual hockey players, then Rasmus Dalin should be noted first of all. The Buffalo guard, selected first overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, is once again proving his level of excellence. Despite playing as a defender, Dalin is the most productive among the Swedes, scoring two goals and giving five assists.
Canada
But the Canadians left an ambiguous impression with their performance at the group stage. Powerful by the names of the line-up, where there was a place for such stars from the NHL as Shabo, Barzal, Dubois, played the first part of the championship extremely unevenly, alternating bright matches with frankly disastrous ones. The North Americans dealt with the outsiders of the group without any problems (France 7-1, Kazakhstan 6-3, Italy 6-1), but experienced serious problems in matches against the national teams of Switzerland and Denmark. In the match against the Swiss, the Canadian team tried to play open hockey, for which, in the end, they paid the price. The fast Swiss simply tore the Canadians apart on the counterattack, eventually beating the North American stars 6-3. In the game with Denmark, the opponent's layered defense became a problem, which the Canadians were able to break through only twice in 60 game minutes,
Nevertheless, the Canadian team left the group quite confidently, taking third place after the teams of Switzerland and Germany. Forward Pierre-Luc Dubois is the best among the Canadians so far, with 6 goals and 4 assists. Disappointing is Matthew Barzal, who was presented as the main star before the start of the tournament. In six matches played, Barzal has never scored, scoring only three assists.
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