Posted on 02/19/2014 9:35:36 AM PST by chessplayer
SOCHI, Russia -- The Russians dutifully shook the Finns' hands and then skated to the center of a rink built to showcase their return to hockey dominance. When they raised their sticks in a mournful salute, they got more whistles than cheers from their devastated fans.
Alex Ovechkin, Pavel Datsyuk and their teammates had nursed dreams about this week for several years.
They were all dashed in 60 frustrating minutes.
Russia crashed out of the Olympics in the quarterfinals Wednesday with a 3-1 loss to Finland, extending a historic hockey nation's gold-medal drought past 22 years and putting an enormous damper on the final days of the Sochi Games.
"Inside, I'm absolutely empty,'' Datsyuk said through a translator.
A quarterfinal exit is excruciating for the proud Russian team, which pressed relentlessly and fruitlessly in the scoreless third period. After the final buzzer, several Russian players stood on the ice with their hands on their knees, while Malkin dropped to one knee.
Dozens of fans lingered in their seats long after the team left the ice, disconsolately folding their flags and staring at the ice. A few Finnish fans near center ice even went up to a group of Russian fans for a hug.
(Excerpt) Read more at sports.espn.go.com ...
Canada and Latvia are tied 1-1 after the 2nd.
There will be mass suicides in Canuckistan if they manage to lose THAT one.
Sports entertainment spoilers ain’t “news.”
Tuuuuuuk!!
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