Welcome to the Olympics, guys

Russians we expected to see show up in bronze medal rout

Will the real Russian team please stand up? Saturday, it did. After the disappointing loss to Team USA not more than 18 hours old, Russia came out and played with emotion against Belarus.

Coach Slava Fetisov quit crying foul long enough to conjure up some different line combinations and to find meaning and inspiration in the bronze medal contest. Was Russia perfect? No, but who is in the game of hockey? Maybe the Russians learned a valuable lesson on their way to bronze -- it is OK to aspire to play a "perfect game" as long as you compete every step of the way.

Look at Belarus -- overmatched in every game, blown out in every other game, with the backup goaltender as likely to finish the game as the starter. This time, starter Andrei Mezin was out of magic and on the bench before the first period ended. Yet, Belarus found a way to hang around, despite the shaky early netminding. In fact, it had the score tied at two early in the second, capitalizing on a beautiful breakout pass from the goal line to center ice that led to a breakaway goal.

However, Russia responded with two quick goals for its first two-goal cushion since the first game of the tournament, a 6-4 win over Belarus. In the third, Russia denied Belarus any substantial scoring chances, finally putting the game out of reach with a couple of goals by stars Alexei Kovalev and Pavel Bure. So, Russia finally got its attack untracked. It proved that winning ugly has its rewards, namely the peace of mind that you gave it your all.

In the end, Russia earned the bronze medal, which is an accomplishment -- not something that carries shame -- even if it is not the ultimate prize.

Game's best

Goaltender: Nikolai Khabibulin again made the requisite saves, especially early in the game when Belarus had three quality chances before his teammates got going.

Defenseman: Darius Kasparaitis played hard at both ends, scoring his first Olympic goal in his third Olympiad. With the bronze, he now has an Olympic set -- gold in 1992, silver in 1998 and bronze in 2002. His leadership was evident throughout -- necessary in a game that was more challenging mentally than it was physically.

Forward: Alexei Kovalev was the most noticeable forward on either side. He scored twice and played with a lot of aggression on the forecheck. He was another veteran who made sure his team had the necessary energy to get the job done.

Darren Eliot, a former NHL goaltender, is a hockey analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and will provide Olympic hockey commentary throughout the Games for CNNSI.com.

 

Related information
Stories
Russia beats Belarus 7-2 to win bronze medal U.S. beats Russia to reach title game CNNSI.com's Darren Eliot: Thrilling U.S. victory sets up NHL's dream gold medal game
Multimedia
Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video
Search our site	Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day
	Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call your cable operator or DirecTV.