I was already invested in the men’s hockey tournament at the Pyeongchang games, now it’s must-see TV.
Canada’s men’s hockey team has not played a game yet, but Wednesday’s action proves that this tournament is wide open.
The Olympic Athletes of Russia are the odds-on favourites in the minds of many. That team has the most notable players — Pavel Datsyuk, Ilya Kovalchuk and Mikhail Grigorenko, to name a few. They are likely still the tournament favourites. Yet in the opener, Slovakia beat OAR 3-2.
An American team that features Brian Gionta and James Wisniewski fell to Slovenia 3-2.
So tomorrow a Canadian team, that was put together 32 days ago, starts pursuit of a journey that could be history making if they win a gold medal. This tournament will be a career highlight for many players on every roster.
Those who can’t get past the fact that current NHL players aren’t playing, and in doing so ignore this tournament, run the risk of missing out on something pretty special.