Beijing (AFP) - The Beijing Winter Olympics men's ice hockey starts Wednesday with no clear-cut favourites and the tournament missing star power after National Hockey League (NHL) players stayed home because of Covid.
The decision by the world's top league has crippled perennial medal threats Canada and the United States, forcing them to throw together untested squads at the last minute.
"It's a level-playing field," said forward Valtteri Filppula, whose Finland are ranked second in the world, behind Canada.
"If a team gets hot, a goalie gets hot, any team has a chance."
European teams benefit the most from the NHL players not being in the Chinese capital, with particular eyes on the Russians, who are the defending champions, and Finland.
Both are stocked with top talent from the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), widely consider the world’s second-best, as well as players with past experience in NHL rinks.
The Russians still have several players from the crew that beat Germany to take gold in Pyeongchang four years ago, including current KHL points leader Vadim Shipachyov.
The battle-tested Russians are big too, none more so than two-metre (6-foot-6) goalkeeper Ivan Fedotov.
The Finns are among the most experienced teams, featuring several players who won the 2019 World Championship and managed a silver in that competition last year.
They are also cohesive, with most of the roster comprising teammates from various KHL squads.
"It is easier to build chemistry that way.The tournament is pretty short and it’s good to have great team chemistry," said Filppula.
'Group of Death'
The 12 teams are split into three groups for the preliminary rounds.
The Russians and Finns are expected to emerge from Groups B and C respectively, but a question mark hangs over Group A -- the "Group of Death" of Canada, the United States, Germany and hosts China.
Canada, birthplace of the game and winner of three of the last five golds, will rely on its natural depth in a squad that combines grizzled veterans with fresh faces from its seemingly inexhaustible pool of young talent.
The United States, meanwhile, comprises mainly top players from its national collegiate ranks, hoping to counter European experience with American youth and speed.
"When we looked at the player pool available to us, we thought speed, skill, pace and tempo was going to be the strength of our team," USA coach David Quinn said.
Germany, surprise silver medallists in 2018, will be primed to take advantage as they look to further an unexpected resurgence in the sport.
"We have built something in our mind.We started to believe in ourselves.That is something we have not done in a long time.That is how we have to keep going," said Germany forward Moritz Muller.
Group A gets under way on Thursday with one of the tournament's most anticipated matches: geopolitical rivals the USA against China, who make their first Olympic appearance in men’s ice hockey.
China has no hockey tradition and were nearly barred from the tournament by the sport’s governing body on concerns that they might get thrashed.
But they have been bolstered by several Canadian and American players with professional experience who switched to China, and the absence of NHL stars has added further fuel to Chinese hopes for at least a respectable showing.
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