1. Jonathan Quick may not have a pulse. Here was his response when asked how he stayed “even” during such a wild shootout: “You go through shootouts during the regular season. You get put into situations like that a lot. You know what to expect.” Yep, just another shootout at the ol’ Bolshoy Ice Dome. Ho-hum. No different than a Tuesday night in Columbus. I guess there’s a reason he plays well under pressure. Anyway, Quick’s obviously the man for the United States going forward. Dan Bylsma called his performance “exceptional,” though the coach did leave the door open to giving Ryan Miller the start tomorrow versus Slovenia.
2. Yes, Zinetula Bilyaletdinov could really scratch Alexander Radulov. I don’t think it was an empty threat. The “among other things” was. Probably. But Russia plays the disaster that is Slovakia tomorrow. If it were an elimination game, maybe it would be different. But when a player takes two needless penalties that result in the only two goals the other team scores in regulation, on a stage like the Olympics, well, his coach is going to be upset. Maybe Bilyaletdinov will reconsider after sleeping on it, but then how would that look after what he said?
VIDEO: Watch Oshie’s entire shootout performance
3. The crowd is a factor. “For sure, for sure. Definitely,” said Sergei Bobrovsky when asked if the home fans gave his team a lift. “I’m obviously focused on the game, but it’s easy to hear the crowd,” he said. “They were great. They support us very well, so thanks.” On the other side of the coin, here was Ryan McDonagh on the atmosphere: “We knew it was going to be loud with that crowd. We talked about controlling our emotions, and discipline. I think we did a good job of that, not falling into a run-and-gun style of game.” I’ve been in loud North American rinks during the playoffs, and what I heard tonight was just as loud, if not louder. When Russia scored, the sound was physically jarring. Pretty impressive given it’s a smaller rink than the ones in the NHL. Tonight’s attendance was 11,678. (Though I’m not sure that counted Putin. Does he need a ticket? I feel like he doesn’t.)
4. They may have lost, but the Russians were good. “I think our team played great tonight, but our result was not good,” is how Pavel Datsyuk put it. I admit I was skeptical that the Russians were good enough to win gold — I think a lot of people were (and some still will be) — but my opinion of them went up tonight. One thing Bilyaletdinov mentioned is that the power play needs to be better. It scored once tonight, but with all that talent out there, it maybe should’ve done better with the 8:18 it had to work with.
5. I’m fine with how that game ended. Regular readers will know I care little for NHL shootouts, but it’s never been because shootouts, in and of themselves, aren’t entertaining. I just don’t think it’s a fair way to decide so many games. Tonight was something else. “I’ve never seen anything like that,” said Zach Parise. And neither have I. It was fantastic drama. Ultimately, tonight’s result isn’t going to cost anyone a medal. It may mean the Russians will have to play an extra game, but that may not be such a bad thing for them anyway. Worked for Canada in 2010.
