Ice hockey at the 1998 Winter Olympics – Men's tournament
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |
 Japan |
| Dates | 7–22 February |
| Teams | 14 |
| Venue(s) | Big Hat, Aqua Wing Arena (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |
 Czech Republic (1st title) |
Runner-up  |
 Russia |
Third place  |
 Finland |
| Fourth place |
 Canada |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 35 |
| Goals scored | 210 (6 per match) |
| Scoring leader(s) |
Teemu Selänne10 points |
The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, was the 19th Olympic Championship. The Czech Republic, which emerged from the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, won its first gold medal, becoming only the seventh nation to ever win Olympic ice hockey gold. The tournament, held from February 7 to February 22, was played at the Big Hat and Aqua Wing arenas.
This was the first Olympics in which the National Hockey League (NHL) took a break allowing national teams to be constructed using the best possible talent from each country. The 1998 Olympic tournament therefore came to be known as the "Tournament of the Century". Unlike previous Olympics where athletes could choose five-star hotel accommodations (such as the USA Men's Basketball team), NHL players were required to stay in the Olympic Village like other athletes.
Both Canada and the United States were heavily favoured; they had previously faced off in the final of the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. After a below-expectations performance in the tournament which included only one win, however, several American players trashed their rooms in the Olympic Village. Although the Americans quickly paid for the damage, they never apologized.[1] The Canadian team, despite a strong start in the round robin, failed to play well after losing their semifinal match against the Czech Republic, and played a lackluster bronze medal game, disappointing Canadians who wished for Wayne Gretzky to get an Olympic medal. Nonetheless, Gretzky encouraged all of his teammates to attend the closing ceremony.
With political struggles and problems within the Russian hockey program at the time, Russia was missing most of its top NHL stars that refused to participate for political or personal reasons, and were not expected to medal. Among the missing were Nikolai Khabibulin, Alexander Mogilny, Igor Larionov, Viacheslav Fetisov, Vyacheslav Kozlov, Oleg Tverdovsky, Vladimir Malakhov and Sergei Zubov[2] Alexei Kovalev missed the tournament due to injury where he was replaced by Sergei Fedorov, who called the president of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation and offered to be a substitute, who had not played in nearly a year and was currently in a holdout with the Detroit Red Wings.[3]
In large part due to the goaltending of Dominik Hašek, who was considered the best goaltender throughout Olympic play as well as the NHL, the Czech Republic shut-out Russia to win the gold medal.
The format of the men's tournament was criticized because the National Hockey League (NHL) clubs would not release their players for the preliminary round. This severely hampered the campaigns of Germany and Slovakia, both of whom failed to qualify for the final group stage. Also the final group stage was criticized as being meaningless since all of the teams qualified for the quarter-finals. The format was eventually changed for the 2006 tournament in an effort to address these criticisms.
Qualification
Preliminary Round
Group A
Top team (shaded) advanced to the first round.
| Team | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Kazakhstan |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 11 | +3 | 5 |
 Slovakia |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 3 |
 Italy |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
 Austria |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 12 | -3 | 2 |
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 7 February 1998 | Kazakhstan |
5 – 3 (1-3, 1-0, 3-0) |
Italy |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,634 |
| 7 February 1998 | Austria |
2 – 2 (1-0, 1-2, 0-0) |
Slovakia |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 4,315 |
| 8 February 1998 | Austria |
5 – 5 (2-2, 2-1, 1-2) |
Kazakhstan |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,410 |
| 8 February 1998 | Slovakia |
4 – 3 (1-2, 3-1, 0-0) |
Italy |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,620 |
| 10 February 1998 | Italy |
5 – 2 (2-0, 2-0, 1-2) |
Austria |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,473 |
| 10 February 1998 | Slovakia |
3 – 4 (1-1, 1-0, 1-3) |
Kazakhstan |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 3,659 |
Group B
Top team (shaded) advanced to the first round.
| Team | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Belarus |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 4 | +10 | 5 |
 Germany |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 9 | -2 | 4 |
 France |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 2 |
| Japan |
3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 1 |
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 7 February 1998 | France |
0 – 4 (0-1, 0-1, 0-2) |
Belarus |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 3,419 |
| 7 February 1998 | Germany |
3 – 1 (0-0, 1-0, 2-1) |
Japan |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,861 |
| 9 February 1998 | Germany |
2 – 8 (0-2, 2-3, 0-3) |
Belarus |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,063 |
| 9 February 1998 | Japan |
2 – 5 (2-1, 0-1, 0-3) |
France |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,930 |
| 10 February 1998 | Japan |
2 – 2 (1-1, 1-1, 0-0) |
Belarus |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 3,659 |
| 10 February 1998 | France |
0 – 2 (0-0, 0-1, 0-1) |
Germany |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 3,916 |
Consolation round
13th place match
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 12 February 1998 | Japan |
4 – 3 (SO) (1-2, 1-0, 1-1, 0-0, 1-0) |
Austria |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,495 |
11th place match
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 12 February 1998 | France |
5 – 1 (1-0, 0-0, 4-1) |
Italy |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,854 |
9th place match
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 12 February 1998 | Germany |
4 – 2 (0-1, 1-1, 3-0) |
Slovakia |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 8,670 |
First Round
Group C
| Team | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 3 | +9 | 6 |
 Sweden |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 7 | +4 | 4 |
 United States |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 2 |
| Belarus |
3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 15 | -11 | 0 |
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 13 February 1998 | Canada |
5 – 0 (2-0, 2-0, 1-0) |
Belarus |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,960 |
| 13 February 1998 | Sweden |
4 – 2 (1-2, 2-0, 1-0) |
United States |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,985 |
| 14 February 1998 | United States |
5 – 2 (2-1, 1-0, 2-1) |
Belarus |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,975 |
| 14 February 1998 | Canada |
3 – 2 (0-1, 3-0, 0-1) |
Sweden |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,945 |
| 16 February 1998 | Sweden |
5 – 2 (2-0, 1-1, 2-1) |
Belarus |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 4,235 |
| 16 February 1998 | Canada |
4 – 1 (1-0, 2-0, 1-1) |
United States |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9.451 |
Group D
| Team | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Russia |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 6 | +9 | 6 |
| Czech Republic |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 4 |
| Finland |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 2 |
| Kazakhstan |
3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 25 | -19 | 0 |
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 13 February 1998 | Russia |
9 – 2 (2-1, 5-0, 2-1) |
Kazakhstan |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 3,752 |
| 13 February 1998 | Czech Republic |
3 – 0 (0-0, 1-0, 2-0) |
Finland |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 5,050 |
| 15 February 1998 | Czech Republic |
8 – 2 (1-0, 3-2, 4-0) |
Kazakhstan |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,975 |
| 15 February 1998 | Russia |
4 – 3 (2-1, 1-2, 0-1) |
Finland |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,894 |
| 16 February 1998 | Russia |
2 – 1 (0-0, 0-1, 2-0) |
Czech Republic |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,847 |
| 16 February 1998 | Finland |
8 – 2 (3-1, 1-0, 4-1) |
Kazakhstan |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 5,544 |
Final round
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Gold medal game | |||||||||||
| C1 | Canada |
4 | |||||||||||
| D4 | Kazakhstan |
1 | |||||||||||
| C1 | Canada |
1 | |||||||||||
| D2 | Czech Republic |
2 | |||||||||||
| D2 | Czech Republic |
4 | |||||||||||
| C3 | United States |
1 | |||||||||||
| D2 | Czech Republic |
1 | |||||||||||
| D1 | Russia |
0 | |||||||||||
| C2 | Sweden |
1 | |||||||||||
| D3 | Finland |
2 | |||||||||||
| D3 | Finland |
4 | Bronze medal game | ||||||||||
| D1 | Russia |
7 | |||||||||||
| D1 | Russia |
4 | D3 | Finland |
3 | ||||||||
| C4 | Belarus |
1 | C1 | Canada |
2 | ||||||||
Quarter-finals
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 18 February 1998 | Canada |
4 – 1 (2-1, 2-0, 0-0) |
Kazakhstan |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,602 |
| 18 February 1998 | Czech Republic |
4 – 1 (0-1, 3-0, 1-0) |
United States |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,822 |
| 18 February 1998 | Finland |
2 – 1 (0-0, 0-0, 2-1) |
Sweden |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 5,044 |
| Jarmo Myllys | Goalies | Tommy Salo | Referee: Kerry Fraser Linesmen: Gérard Gauthier Václav Cesky | |
| Teemu Selänne − 44:12 Teemu Selänne − 52:43 |
1-0 2-0 2-1 |
59:48 − Peter Forsberg | ||
| 12 min | Penalties | 12 min | ||
| 18 February 1998 | Russia |
4 – 1 (1-0, 1-0, 2-0) |
Belarus |
Aqua Wing Arena, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 4,628 |
Semi-finals
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 20 February 1998 | Canada |
1 – 2 SO (0-0, 0-0, 1-1, 0-0) (SO: 0-1) |
Czech Republic |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,279 |
| Roy | Goalies | Hašek | ||
| Linden (Lindros) 58:57 Fleury  Bourque Nieuwendyk Lindros Shanahan |
Shootout: |
49:46 Šlégr (Patera) Reichel Ručinský Patera Jágr | ||
| 25 | Shots | 29 | ||
| 20 February 1998 | Finland |
4 – 7 (0-2, 3-2, 1-3) |
Russia |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,640 |
| Myllys | Goalies | Shtalenkov | ||
| Helminen (Lind) 23:28 Rintanen (Kurri, Timonen) 24:59 Selänne (Koivu, Kurri) 34:07 PP2 Koivu (Selänne) 45:15 |
9:51 P. Bure (Zhamnov) PPG 17:28 P. Bure (Mironov) 20:59 P. Bure 37:26 Zhamnov (Zhitnik) PPG 46:33 Kovalenko (Fedorov) 55:58 P. Bure 59:55 P. Bure (Yashin, B. Mironov) EN | |||
Bronze medal game
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 21 February 1998 |  Finland |
3 – 2 (2-1, 0-1, 1-0) |
Canada |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,875 |
| Sulander | Goalies | Roy | Referee: Fraser Linesmen: Broseker Poliakov | |
| Kurri (Tikkanen, Nieminen) 3:33 PPG Lehtinen (Koivu) 17:23 Peltonen (Koivu) 40:17 PPG |
1-0 1-1 2-1 2-2 3-2 |
16:50 Brind'Amour (Foote) 22:47 Shanahan (Gretzky, Recchi) PPG | ||
| 6 min | Penalties | 8 min | ||
| 33 | Shots | 39 | ||
Gold medal game
All times are local (UTC+9).
| 22 February 1998 |  Czech Republic |
1–0 (0–0, 0–0, 1–0) |
Russia  |
The Big Hat, Nagano, Japan Attendance: 9,985 |
| Dominik Hašek | Goalies | Mikhail Shtalenkov | Referee: Bill McCreary Linesmen: Ulf Ronnmark Ray Scapinello | |
| P. Svoboda (P. Patera, M. Procházka) − 48:08 | 1–0 | |||
| 8 min | Penalties | 4 min | ||
| 21 | Shots | 20 | ||
Leading scorers
| Rank | Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Teemu Selänne (FIN) |
5 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 8 |
| 2 | Saku Koivu (FIN) |
6 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 4 |
| 3 | Pavel Bure (RUS) |
6 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 2 |
| 4 | Aleksandr Koreshkov (KAZ) |
7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 2 |
| 5 | Philippe Bozon (FRA) |
4 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 |
| 6 | Konstantin Shafranov (KAZ) |
7 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 6 |
| 7 | Dominic Lavoie (AUT) |
4 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 8 |
| 8 | Jere Lehtinen (FIN) |
6 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| 9 | Alexei Yashin (RUS) |
6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| 10 | Serge Poudrier (FRA) |
6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 |
| 11 | Sergei Fedorov (RUS) |
6 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 8 |
Medal-winning rosters
Source:
- Gold - "Team members CZECH REPUBLIC". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
- Silver - "Team members Russia". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
- Bronze - "Team members Finland". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
Roster notes
Several of general manager Bobby Clarke's selections for Team Canada were controversial. Eric Lindros was named captain over longtime leaders such as Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, and Ray Bourque (Clarke at the time was general manager of Lindros's NHL team, the Philadelphia Flyers).[4] Rob Zamuner was a surprise pick, while Mark Messier and Scott Niedermayer were omitted.[5]
Memorably, during the shootout in their semifinal match against the Czech Republic, Canadian coach Marc Crawford opted to have defenceman Ray Bourque shoot in the shootout instead of high-scoring forwards Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman. Hockey commentators alternatively criticized Crawford's decision (Bourque, like the other four Canadian shooters, failed to score) and praised it on the grounds that Bourque was one of hockey's most accurate shooters at the time and Gretzky had always been surprisingly mediocre on breakaways.
Japanese fans were disappointed when their adopted hero, Paul Kariya, a Canadian of Japanese heritage and one of Canada's best stars, failed to make the Games due to a crosscheck by Gary Suter during regular season NHL play.[6]
Records
Sergei Fedorov of Russia became the first player to win an Olympic silver medal in hockey and Stanley Cup in the same year.
Final rankings
| Team | |
|---|---|
| | Czech Republic |
| | Russia |
| | Finland |
| 4th | Canada |
| 5th | Sweden |
| 6th | United States |
| 7th | Belarus |
| 8th | Kazakhstan |
| 9th | Germany |
| 10th | Slovakia |
| 11th | France |
| 12th | Italy |
| 13th | Japan |
| 14th | Austria |
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ice hockey at the 1998 Winter Olympics. |
- ↑ http://www.canoe.ca/SlamNaganoHockeyMenArchive/feb20_angry.html
- ↑ http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1998/Czechs-Win-Hockey-Gold/id-1b8a324826480f0298c434dd488e0645
- ↑ "Winter Sports / Road To Nagano -- Street Crashes, Expected To Be OK For Olympics -- Binding Problem At 75 Mph Leaves Her With Concussion". The Seattle Times. 1 February 1998.
- ↑ MacGregor, Roy (1998-02-04). "All eyes on Eric: Is 24-year-old Eric Lindros ready to carry Canada's hockey hopes?".
- ↑ Willes, Ed (1997-11-30). "HOCKEY; Gretzky In, Messier Out As Canada Picks Team". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
- ↑ "Gary Suter hangs up skates". CBC News. September 10, 2002.
External links
- http://hokej.snt.cz/oh/oh1998.html (English)
- http://www.hockeyarchives.info/JO1998.htm (French)
- Hockey Nut - 1998 Olympic Hockey (English)
- Marcolympics - Ice Hockey 1998 (English)
- IIHF: Nagano 1998 in Web Archive (English)
- la84 foundation - Nagano 1998 Official Report (171-180) (English)
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