We’ve made it, folks. More than a year’s worth of anticipation and build up will come to a conclusion Sunday morning as team Canada takes on team USA for a gold medal. The elimination games in Milan have been nothing short of incredible and now it’s time for the matchup the hockey world has been waiting for. There will be three Winnipeg Jets in attendance, but just one is likely to be on the ice competing for all the marbles. Let’s get into the Jets angles on the gold medal game.
Josh Morrissey ruled out for Sunday
This is a heartbreaker for Josh. As the schedule shifted to the quarterfinals it seemed there was hope he could return before the medal rounds. Mike McIntyre has speculated there could have been a setback in his recovery. Morrissey also missed the 4 Nations final against the US last winter due to an illness so this is especially disappointing for one of the most talented defencemen in the game. Team Canada could certainly use his ability to move the puck against a physical forecheck from the Americans, but they proved last February they still have enough talent in the lineup to be crowned best-on-best champions again. Sidney Crosby has not been ruled out, but you have to think there’s nothing that would keep him from putting on that sweater in this one. Being down Morrissey, and potentially Crosby, would be a challenge but with how Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini have been playing Canada still has every chance at the gold medal.
Kyle Connor likely watching on
The Michigan native was scratched for the third straight game, taking in team USA’s semifinal victory over Slovakia from the press box. He had two games to impress head coach Mike Sullivan and without a shot on goal, he became the fourteenth forward. He doesn’t play a physical game and with the tight nature of what’s expected Sunday, team USA will be looking for more muscle than finesse. It’s disappointing for Connor, but he’ll return to first line minutes in Winnipeg next week.
Connor Hellebuyck will need a big game
For the Americans to win, Connor Hellebuyck needs to play the game of his life. There’s been a lot of talk about his career regular season save percentage and how it has dropped in the postseason. So far in Milan, Hellebuyck has been very good as the pressure has increased. Until the semifinal, he had only given up one goal per game. One of the goals given up to Slovakia was on a play where the puck was mishandled behind his net and he wasn’t quick enough getting back into the crease - it could be chalked up to being up 5-0 at that point. But with all due respect to Sweden and Slovakia, they’re no team Canada.
A lot of banter has gone back and forth about which groups are better on paper. Especially without Josh Morrissey, the edge on defence would go to team USA. But there’s no mistaking team Canada has the better bunch of shooters and playmakers that will bear down on Hellebuyck Sunday morning. His opposite number, Jordan Binnington, has been impressive as well in net for team Canada. For team USA, Hellebuyck has to be exceptional to give them a chance to win, especially if his teammates start to give up penalties which seems likely. He’s been stalwart so far but the difficulty level and pressure are about to hit another level.
A few other thoughts on the game
This game feels like it could come down to special teams. Team USA has had the best penalty kill of the tournament so far, but they haven’t faced anything like the Canadian power play. That top unit was built to destroy. If the Americans start a parade to the penalty box it won’t bode well for them.
Can we as hockey fans request to have 5 on 5 if this goes to overtime? The 3 on 3 format is fun, especially for NHL games in November where it’s just one point in the standings at stake. But for many of the players on Sunday this will be one of the biggest games of their career - if it goes to overtime it should be played the right way.
What a tournament it’s been. Assuming the gold medal game is competitive as expected, it has checked every box fans, media, and players were hoping for. The compressed NHL schedule and the injuries to players like Josh Morrissey and Kevin Fiala have been an issue, but the games have been incredible. The NHL has committed to participating in France in 2030, let’s hope they stick to it.