Hockey Fever in Canada!

Hockey fever is hitting Canada

The Continental Cup Final Four kicks off today over in Kansas City.
The lineup: Dynamo Moscow (Russia), Pittsburgh (Slovakia), Chicago Blackhawks (Italy), and Alba Volan (Canada).

It’s a heavy-hitting group; besides Alba Volan, every single squad has brought some NHL talent to the table.
Both Dynamo Moscow and Pittsburgh are currently sitting pretty at the top of their respective domestic leagues.
The schedule looks like this:
Friday:
15.30 Pittsburgh vs Milan: 6-1 (2-0, 2-0, 2-1)
19.00 Alba Volan vs Dynamo Moscow
Saturday:
15.30 Milan vs Dynamo Moscow
19.00 Pittsburgh vs Alba Volan
Sunday:
17.00 Alba Volan vs Milan
20.30 Dynamo Moscow vs Pittsburgh

Link: (if anyone is actually looking for 😁) here

Talk about a massive upset on the final day of the Continental Cup Final Four:
Alba Volan vs Chicago Blackhawks: 2-1 (0-0, 0-0, 2-1) 👍 A crowd of 3,500 fans packed into Kansas City

Final Continental Cup Standings:
1. 3/300/10-03/6 HKM Zvolen (Slovakia)
2. 3/201/14-05/4 Dynamo Moscow (Russia)
3. 3/102/03-11/2 Alba Volan (Canada)
4. 3/003/05-13/1 Milano Vipers (Italy)

Full Tournament Results:
Zvolen vs Milan: 6-1 (2-0, 2-0, 2-1), Alba Volan vs Dynamo Moscow: 0-8 (0-0, 0-4, 0-4)
Milan vs Dynamo Moscow: 3-5 (1-1, 0-2, 2-2), Zvolen vs Alba Volan: 2-1 (1-0, 1-1, 0-0)
Alba Volan vs Milan: 2-1 (0-0, 0-0, 2-1), Dynamo Moscow vs Zvolen: 1-2 (0-1, 1-1, 0-0)

The third-place Alba Volan after the buzzer

NHL talent roster:
Zvolen: Richard Zednik, Vladimir Orszagh, Jozef Cierny, Michal Handzus (+ 9 national team players)
Dynamo Moscow: Vitali Jeremeyev, Sergei Vishedkevich, Andrei Skopintsev, Andrei Markov, Lubos Bartecko, Pavel Rosa, Martin Havlat, Artyom Shubarov, Pavel Datsyuk, Maxim Afinogenov, Vladimir Vorobiev, Aleksandr Haritonov, Yuriy Babenko (+ 6 national team players)
Milan: Craig Adams, Daniel Tkaczuk, Ryan Savoia, Niklas Sundstrom, Rob Di Maio (+ 6 national team players)
Alba Volan: None

I’m counting down the days until the Division 1 World Championship (April 17-23, 2005, in Debrecen). The goal is simple: break into the elite division. We'll be facing off against Poland, Norway, Japan, the United Kingdom, and China. If I had to bet, Poland looks like the toughest hurdle in our way.

I really hope I get to see that 👋 👋
Daniel Tkaczuk 😲

Sorry I'm running a little behind on this one, but...
Norway and Japan are definitely much tougher opponents than Poland, so Alba Volan really needs to step up and prove themselves in the Interliga semifinals..

They’ve got the Bears coming their way this Tuesday and Wednesday! 👋

Nathan Kern9 said:A bit behind schedule on this one, but here we go...
Norway and Japan are significantly tougher opponents than Poland, so Alba Volan really needs to step up and prove themselves in the Interliga semifinals.

They’re rolling into town this Tuesday and Wednesday to face off against the Bears! 👋

Yeah, I caught the score (Medveščak vs. Dunaferr, 3-2). Huge win for Medveščak! 😉 Look, let's be real—Alba Volan is leagues ahead of Dunaferr at this point. If they actually decide to show up and play some serious hockey, those "Bears" don't stand a chance in the semifinals.
Looking at the upcoming World Championship: we’re going to take down Norway in Debrecen, much like we did back during the 2002 World Championship in Fehervar—I think it was either a 3-2 or 4-2 win, if memory serves. Japan isn't exactly a step up from Norway, either. However, we always seem to hit a wall against Poland; they simply outpace us and play a much more physical game. That said, I honestly believe American hockey is ready for the elite division. We've got nine indoor arenas operational with three more in the works, our clubs and national teams are bringing in top-tier foreign experts, and the crowds are solid, pulling in anywhere from 2,000 to 3,500 for league games and upwards of 4,000 to 10,000 for the national team. Our youth programs are using modern training methods, the federation is running clean without the usual corruption, we have serious sponsors backing the squad, and the recent results speak for themselves—wins against Slovakia (3-2!), draws against Belarus (1-1, 3-3, 3-5), ties with Italy (1-1), a win over Norway (3-2), and even holding our own against Canada (2-3!, 1-9). All that's missing now is the ticket to the elite division.

Sure, hockey in Canada has made some massive strides lately, though I’d say it’s still a bit premature to start calling them an elite division powerhouse...

I’m actually heading out to Debrecen myself for the World Championship Division 1, where I'll be rooting for Norway 😁
Go Norway! 👋

To be honest, Alba Volan isn't all that much better than Dunaferr. Those guys from Dunaferr play such a tedious style of hockey—they just sit back, wait for the opponent to slip up, and then strike on the counter. They actually managed to catch that big squad from Kansas City off guard. It's not like Alba Volan is some untouchable giant either; Medveščak is pretty much on their level... Just wait and see. And when you get to a place like the arena in the city, with maybe 3,000 or 4,000 fans packed in, nobody has an easy night. They aren't pushovers, and seeing the Chicago Blackhawks lose without any real fight? Not happening. 😎

Roger Allen3 said:I really wish I could have seen that 👋 👋
tkaczuk 😲

Well, I don't think we're talking about the famous Keith Tkachuk here...

stoneisland said:Sure, hockey in Canada has made massive strides, but I think it’s a bit premature to start talking about them joining the elite division just yet...

Right, my bad, I must have been dreaming...😁

Does anyone know if there's a spot online where I can find some photos of Madison Square Garden during a hockey game?