SWITZERLAND 3, BELARUS 2 (SO)
Switzerland's best asset - their goalie - almost cost them this game. Less than a minute in, he horribly mishandled a routine softshot (my word for when the puck just drifts in on the goalie from like a deflection at the blue line), and Alexei Kaliuzhny hacked away until the puck went in. But the Swiss rebounded with a big power play goal, and eventually won in the shootout. If Jonas Hiller and the Swiss decide to show up, they could harass the US.
CANADA 8, GERMANY 2
Well, Canada might have impressed some people with this win, but I'm not sold... yet. Germany has been awful in this competition. Crushing them 8-2 doesn't mean much. But at least maybe the Canadians can take some confidence out of such a lopsided win. Iginla scored twice, so he now has 5 goals, but 0 in tight/meaningful games. Eric Staal had 3 assists, and Drew Doughty was +4. Canada vs. Russia in the quarterfinals.
CZECH REPUBLIC 3, LATVIA 2 (OT)
Another scare for a top team. Latvia finished 12th in the Preliminary Stage, so needing OT to beat them is pretty sad. David Krejci had the game winner in OT (why can't he do that for us once and awhile?) and an assist in regulation. The Czechs face Finland in the quarterfinals.
SLOVAKIA 4, NORWAY 3
I picked Norway to beat the Slovaks, and they put up a damn good fight. But Miroslav returned from injury and netted the game winner in the 3rd. Richard Zednick had 2 assists, and Zdeno Chara had 1 assist. The Slovaks face Sweden in the quarterfinals.
A comprehensive preview of the Quarterfinal Round shall be forthcoming a bit later today.
-The Commodore
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