Updated Olympics men’s hockey bracket following the completion of the first quarterfinal matchup.
One team is through to the semifinals and it’s the Czech Republic. On the back of a shootout goal by Petr Koukal, Czech Republic knocked off Team USA in the quarterfinal round. Here is a look at the updated bracket:
The Czech’s will meet the Olympics Athletes from Russia, who beat Norway in the quarterfinals. Sweden will face Germany while Finland and Canada meet in the most anticipating quarterfinal showdown on the schedule.
Things are winding down in the tournament and Czech Republic certainly has a lot of momentum right now. It remains unbeaten in four games, with shootout victories over USA and Canada. Its defensive style is tough to play against and it’ll have to be sharp if it ends up meeting OAR in the semifinal game.
Looking ahead, Canada and Finland promises to be barnburner. Finland was by far the best team to not receive a bye into the quarterfinals. South Korea put some fear into it, but it looked to be playing that contest at half-speed. Expect a much sharper Finland squad when it takes the ice against Canada later tonight.
Sweden should advance without too much trouble. Germany did play Sweden to a 1-0 loss in group play, but it doesn’t have the firepower to survive multiple goals by Sweden.
Next: Czech Republic sends USA home with shootout victory
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