Toronto Maple Leafs legend and Hockey Hall of Famer Mats Sundin joined TSN Radio 1050s Jim Tatti and Jeff ONeill on Friday to give his thoughts on the Olympic hockey tournament ahead of Sundays gold medal match-up between his native Sweden and Canada.
George Gervin Spurs Jersey . While there is a lot that Sundin has liked in the tournament so far, the performance that Russia put forth against Finland in the quarterfinals left a bad taste in his mouth. "I was almost disgusted by their performance when they played Finland," said the 43-year-old who played 18 seasons in the NHL. "I look at the Finnish team and theyre missing key players. They dont have any of their big stars and now [Rask] is hurt and that Russian team is stacked with great players and to come out and have that performance they had in the quarterfinals. It was an absolutely heartless performance. "It was very disappointing and I dont think its very good for hockey either to have them out of their home tournament. You wonder when you have Putin in the stands on home ice and you cant get heart out of these guys? Whats going to bring it out? I dont know," he said. Sundin believes simply chalking up Russias crashing out of the tournament to the tremendous pressure the team was under is a bit of a cop-out. "Even though youre nervous or you have a lot of pressure built up, you can always still get into the motions and show that youre actually trying," said the former first-overall pick by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft. "We didnt see anything of that in the quarterfinal." The captain of the gold medal-winning Swedish team in the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Sundin believes that its impossible to compare trying to capture a Stanley Cup to winning Olympic gold. "You cant even compare it to me," said Sundin. "I mean, the Stanley Cup is the biggest thing you can win playing for a club team in the world. Its over a [full] season and you try to get that, but saying that, international hockey and the Olympic Games go to a little bit of a higher level. You have all the absolute best players in the world competing. Its a short tournament, but its the absolute best, biggest thing you can win as a hockey player today where you face every countrys best players on the ice. And also, for any athlete, women or men, winning an Olympic medal is a little bit beyond just the sport of hockey, as well. You cant compare them, but obviously, you want to be part of both for sure." Sundin thinks that an unfamiliarity with the larger ice surface is one of the main reasons why Canadas offence has yet to really click in Sochi, despite the team being undefeated. "The last time the Olympics were around, the tournament was held on a smaller ice surface, an edge to the North American teams, no doubt," said Sundin. "The US and Canada were more comfortable. You look at the tournament right now, you can tell [Canada] is not as comfortable on the big ice surface...with the bigger ice surface, it becomes a little bit of a different game." The all-time Leafs leader in points acknowledges that an adjustment needs to be made for North American teams playing on the big international ice. "Just one big difference is when you come into an end, whether its your own end or youre in the offensive zone, youre further away from your opponent," explained the nine-time NHL All-Star. "Theres a little bit more room for a forward to slip away or get out of the way, out of position, so when that happens, and I think a North American feels that, you get a little more tentative and if youre tentative in hockey or you wait a little bit, then youre a step behind. I think thats the biggest thing." With NHL participation up in the air for the 2018 Olympic Games to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Sundin believes it would be a mistake for the league to stop sending its best to the tournament as its a perfect opportunity to put a spotlight on the sport. "For me, its a no-brainer," said Sundin. "I think youve got to look at the broader picture. For the game of hockey, and if you want the game to continue to grow, theres no better window than the Olympic Games, where you can get new fans watching our great game, people from different parts of the world. I dont really see a reason why not. I know it affects the game short term. Some guys get hurt (and) when they get back they might not perform as well. But if you look at a long term picture, I think its just too big of a window to promote our sport to not be part of it." As for Sundays clash between his home country and the country he spent 18 years playing in, Sundin gives the edge to Canada. "Theres no doubt that the Swedish team...are not where you would think to call them a gold medal favourite at this point [without] Henrik Sedin and Henrik Zetterberg, two of the best centremen we have playing right now," said Sundin. "For them to get to the finals here, to get by Finland...Ill hold Canada as the favourites to win the gold medal, but if you have [Henrik] Lundqvist playing an enormous game in the final, theres a shot. But its a long shot for sure."
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Custom San Antonio Spurs Jerseys . With Washington teammate Nene drawing double-teams coming off his big game against the Lakers, Gortat scored 25 points on 11-of-12 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Wizards to a 100-92 win in overtime over Milwaukee on Wednesday night.JACKSON, Miss. - Sebastian Cappelen narrowly missed earning his PGA Tour card last season and needed a sponsor exemption to make the field in the Sanderson Farms Championship. The 24-year-old from Denmark is making the most of his opportunity. Cappelen shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday in his first PGA Tour round to take the lead at the Country Club of Jackson. He opened with a bogey before making eight birdies to take a two-shot lead over Robert Streb, Scott Pinckney and Canadas Nick Taylor. I couldnt be happier, to be honest, Cappelen said. Obviously, I came here just trying to get a new experience and get a feel of how it feels like to play on the real tour, and I had a great time out there today. Hit a lot of good shots. Cappelen was an All-American in college at Arkansas. He won the Air Capital Classic in June on the Web.com Tour. He was in good position to earn his PGA Tour card, but a poor performance in the final regular-season Web.com Tour event dropped him to 26th place on the money list — one spot shy of the top 25 finish needed to make the PGA Tour. I mean, obviously, its a heartbreaker being so close and then not getting it, Cappelen said. So getting a chance here where I felt like I should been, its everything. II couldnt thank the sponsors here more for what theyve done.
Marco Belinelli Spurs Jersey. Cappelen said he had some nerves before the round, but the early bogey was a sobering moment. Thats usually how it is for me when I have a good round, Cappelen said. I usually start with a bogey on the first hole, and then just kind of like, OK, Ive got to get going. Play was suspended because of darkness with 15 players unable to finish. The tournament is being played at the 7,354-yard Country Club of Jackson, a course about 10 miles south of Annandale Country Club, where the tournament was held for 19 years. Overnight rain made for a soft course early, but players said it firmed up as the day progressed. Streb is back in contention two weeks after winning the McGladrey Classic in a playoff for his first PGA Tour title. After taking a week off to relax at home and watch his hometown Kansas City Royals in the World Series, Streb made six birdies and just one bogey Thursday. I didnt play a whole lot of golf last week, Streb said. But a little bit of work on the range, and it didnt take too long to find it, so it was pretty exciting. Defending champion Woody Austin had a 70. There were 13 players within three shots of the lead. ' ' '
