U.S. now Canada's real rival
By JIM KERNAGHAN -- London Free Press
The border war resumes tonight.
It is only natural, since hockey has placed geographic boundaries on rivalries from the Battle of Ontario to the Battle of Alberta, that Team Canada and Team USA should be embroiled in such a conflict.
The difference is this one is more real.
"A huge rivalry has developed between us," said Calgary Flames Jarome Iginla after last night's Team Canada scrimmage in preparation for tonight's exhibition game against the Americans.
Nobody on either team would disagree. The teams met in Columbus on Monday night, Team USA emerging with a 3-1 win in what some Americans considered anything but an exhibition.
"It was a playoff game," said U.S. assistant coach Barry Smith of the Detroit Red Wings.
Most players on both squads would agree. At one time, the hot rivalry was Canada and the Soviet Union. Now, a border, not an ocean separates the combatants.
Veteran American hockey man Art Berglund says Russia is no longer Team Canada's biggest threat, Team USA is.
"In 1972, at the time of the series of the century (Canada-Soviet Union), we didn't have enough good players to play either team," USA Hockey's senior director said. "Now, we can put two teams out there. Canada's rival is not Russia any more. It's the U.S.A."
U.S. coach Ron Wilson echoed the comments.
"Canada is still No. 1 in terms of depth but at the elite level, we're pretty equal," Wilson said.
For all that, tonight's pre-tournament game between the two still doesn't mean a lot. Although the result still is meaningful to the players, neither team is in game form.
A predicted sellout at the Corel Centre tonight indicates fans, normally reluctant to reach into their pockets for "friendlies" feel the same way. Subscribers to Leafs TV can catch tonight's game and Saturday's game here against Slovakia.
Last night, 8,159 paid $7 a head to watch an intrasquad game of three-on-three hockey that highlighted individual skills as only a no-hit contest can. The skills most under scrutiny belong to captain Mario Lemieux, playing his first hockey since he was knocked out with a back injury last fall.
He declared himself fit afterward, about where he felt he should be at this point. He looked a bit ponderous amid one of the youngest and fastest teams Canada has ever assembled from an NHL selection.
"Three-on-threes is a good way to get the rust off and it opens up the ice for players to pick people up," Team Canada coach Pat Quinn said. "And it's a good way to introduce what we want from them. It's all about transition."
Prior to the intrasquad affair, assistant coaches Jacques Martin and Ken Hitchcock took turns setting up rushes. Hitchcock, the defensive strategist, set up pressure situations presenting a two-man forecheck against the rival defencemen.
That's what led to Team USA's victory. Quinn noted while Wilson doesn't take that approach with his club, San Jose, his history indicates it.
"I was a bit surprised until I remembered the '96 (Team USA) squad and they were successful with it," Quinn said. "Maybe he's a bit superstitious and went back to it."
