Russia square off with Slovakia as the men’s hockey competition gets underway. Here’s how to watch the live stream of the game.
The “Olympic Athletes of Russia” are undoubtedly the favorites to bring home the gold this year. With the exclusion of the NHL players, the United States team is severely weakened. This leaves only Canada with a shot at defeating the Russians. The favorites kick their games off with a match up against Slovakia which should be as straightforward as it gets.
The Russian team is comprised mostly of KHL players, which is commonly accepted as the second best league in the world. This advantage gives the Russians a huge boost, and their captain, Pavel Datsyuk made the move from the NHL to the KHL prior to last season. This means the future NHL Hall of Famer is eligible to play for his country, unlike many of the NHL’s best players.
Slovakia, despite having little to no chance of upsetting Russia, has an outside shot at making some noise in the group. With Slovenia and the United States as the other two nations in the group, the opportunity is there. Every team makes it on to the knockout stage, but the top two teams in each group earn a bye. Perhaps Slovakia could sneak past the Americans to steal second place.
Russia enters the Olympics ranked second in the IIHF rankings, with Slovakia down at eleventh. The disparity between the two is obvious, but it is the Olympics, anything can happen. Remember the “Miracle on Ice”? Granted, that was a gritty American team and the victory meant more on a global level outside the games. But the point remains, anyone can win.
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 14
Time 7:10 a.m. ET
Television: NBCSN (United States)
Live Stream: NBC Olympics
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Regardless of the team’s rankings, the game will surely be entertaining.