Canadian women set record vs. Italy
Canada still perfect on defense and offense
While relaxing over the weekend, I found myself watching Olympic Women’s Hockey. Saturday afternoon I watched the Canadians decimate Italy 16-0 (while outshooting the Italians 56-5), and yesterday morning I watched them annihilate Russia 12-0. To be honest, the games weren’t that interesting, but I discovered early on that I was experiencing a rather sick desire to see just how bad the carnage became.
At least the Italians didn’t give up. They were just completely outmatched. If it wasn’t for the stellar play of their goaltender, Debora Montanari, who absolutely did everything short of standing on her head during the first two periods (when she was replaced), the final score could well have been 30-0.
The Russian women, who managed to be competitive on Saturday, losing 3-1 to Sweden, looked completely lost. Not exactly the Big Red Machine of the Soviet era, eh? The Canadians controlled the front of the Russian net, constantly buzzing the Russian goalkeeper with pinpoint passing and unstoppable deflections. It’s just too bad that there isn’t a mercy rule in international hockey. Both of these games should have been stopped on a TKO early on.
Though many of the Canadian women practically grew up on skates, most of the Russian team didn’t really even begin skating seriously until a few years ago, and as recently as the 2001 World Championships the team had to borrow skates to even be able to compete. Of course, most Russians still think that their women are better off barefoot and pregnant, so it’s not as if the women’s team has been suffering from an embarrassment of riches when it comes to support.
Though there is clearly still a huge gap that countries like Italy and Russia have yet to make up, there is something I find very appealing about the women’s game. The enthusiasm is contagious, the skill level is surprisingly high, the puck handling and passing is excellent, and there is no checking or fighting. The women’s game is hockey- pure and simple. No goons, no enforcers, no thuggery. It’s a refreshing change from the overamped, testosterone-fueled “Friday Night Fights on Skates” atmosphere that characterize so many NHL games.
These girls are good.
PS- The American women beat Switzerland 6-0 and Germany 5-0 over the weekend. It may not be a stretch to envision a gold medal game between the US and Canada. After all, neither the US nor Canada has ever lost to any other country in international competition.
