We’ve talked a lot in DtFR Podcasts about who is – and maybe even more about who isn’t – going to the XXIII Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. However, we haven’t had too many discussions yet about the tournament itself.
What nations are going to be there? What is the format of the tournaments? What time will those games be? Will the United States get those games broadcast live? And, most importantly, who’s taking gold?
Let’s tackle those questions one at a time.
What nations are going to be at the Olympics this year?
In total, there will be 14 nations represented between the two tournaments – though that number does come with a catch.
Starting with the women’s tournament (which drops the first puck February 10 at 2:40 a.m. Eastern time), there will be two groups of four sides apiece competing to qualify for six spots in the knockout tournament.
Group A consists of:
- Canada
- Finland
- Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR)
- United States of America
One of these things is not like the others, so now sounds like as good a time as any to discuss one of our “wildcard” nations.
With a press release on December 5, 2017, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended the Russian Olympic Committee for the 2018 Games for “the systematic manipulation of the anti-doping system” during the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi.
While that is a hefty charge, the IOC did offer an avenue for clean Russian athletes to compete. Every Russian who passes the IOC’s drug tests is eligible to compete for the Olympic Rings instead of for the Russian Federation, meaning any medals won by Russian athletes will not count towards Russia’s all-time medal counts. No Russian flags will be raised, nor will the State Anthem of the Russian Federation be heard, but at least those athletes will still have an opportunity to compete.
Group B consists of:
- Japan
- Korea
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Ooh, our other “wildcard!” It’s hidden a bit better than the Russian situation, but there’s a hint in one team’s name.
You probably noticed there was no specification associated with Korea. That’s because North Korea and South Korea are fielding a unified team of 35 players (the standard 23 from South Korea with an additional dozen from North Korea) in the women’s hockey tournament.
This is a weird and highly politicized (Politics at the Olympics? *insert sarcastic ‘No!’ here*) decision that was finalized only 24 days before Korea’s first game, and that crunched timeline may yield unfortunate results on the ice. Steve Mollman of Quartz provides some excellent information about the politics of the situation, but the only rule Head Coach Sarah Murray, a dual-citizen of Canada and the USA, must follow is three North Korean players must be active for each game.
Meanwhile, the men’s tournament is a bit larger and features three groups of four teams for a total of 12 nations.
Group A consists of:
- Canada
- Czech Republic
- South Korea
- Switzerland
…Group B:
- Olympic Athletes from Russia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- United States
…and Group C (the group I’m affectionately calling “The Euro Cup.” Original, I know):
- Finland
- Germany
- Norway
- Sweden
All 12 squads will qualify for the knockout stage, but there is a major reward for each nation that wins its group: an automatic entry into the quarterfinals. The best second-place team will also earn a bye in the playoff round that will feature the remaining eight teams.
What is the format of each tournament?
Like many international sporting events, both the men’s and women’s Olympic hockey tournaments will begin with a group stage.
Each team in a given group will play one game against the other three teams in its section. For example, the unified Korean team in the women’s tournament will play Switzerland (February 10 at 7:10 a.m. Eastern time), Sweden (February 12 at 7:10 a.m. Eastern time) and Japan (February 14 at 2:40 a.m. Eastern time).
Standings will be tabulated in a way similar to the NHL, however there are a few differences: wins count for three points, while overtime and shootout wins only count for two. Overtime and shootout losses will still count for one point, and a regulation loss is… well, a major bummer.
Okay, we’ve completed the group stage. How does this turn into a knockout tournament?
This is the phase where things start to look a bit different between the men’s and women’s tournaments. Let’s start with the women’s competition, which will begin its knockout stage on February 16 at 10:10 p.m. Eastern time.
Did you notice how stacked Group A is? The IOC and IIHF did that intentionally, but they also paved the way for those teams into the tournament as all four will qualify for at least the quarterfinals. The top two teams from the group (A1 and A2) will receive automatic bids into the semifinals, while the remaining sides will square off against the winner and runner-up of Group B (A3 versus B2 and A4 versus B1) in the quarters. B3 and B4 will continue play, but the best they’ll be able to finish in the consolation tournament is fifth place.
The winner of A3vB2 will take on A1 in the semis, and A2 will square off against the victor of A4vB1. Once those tilts are done, it will boil down to the Gold Medal game, which is scheduled for February 21 at 11:10 p.m. Eastern time. The Bronze Medal match is slated for February 21 at 2:40 a.m. Eastern time.
As stated before, the group stage in the men’s tournament has no bearing on which nations advance into the knockout – all 12 teams will do just that. However, playoff matchups are dependent on success in the group stage.
Once group play is complete, all 12 teams will be pooled into one table with the three group winners listed 1-3, the runners-up 4-6 and so on, so forth. Within those four trios, they’ll be ordered by the number of points they earned in the group stage. Should there be a tie in points, it will be decided by goal-differential, then goals for, then – hopefully it doesn’t come to this one – the superior 2017 IIHF ranking.
I won’t bore you with the seeding process, but the first round of the men’s knockout tournament will begin February 19 at 10:10 p.m. Eastern time. The top four teams from the group stage enter during the quarterfinals, which are scheduled for February 20 at 10:10 p.m. Eastern time, followed by the semifinals three days later. Bronze medals will be awarded after the game at 7:10 a.m. Eastern time on February 24, followed by the Gold Medal tilt at 11:10 p.m. Eastern time that night.
What time are these games happening, and are they being televised?
To our readers not from the United States, the broadcasting part of this section doesn’t apply to you. Then again, most of you probably don’t want puck drops listed in Eastern time anyway, so thanks for reading this far if you’re still here!
Since the women’s tournament begins first, let’s start with their schedule. Remember, OAR means Olympic Athletes from Russia.
| 2018 Women’s Tournament |
| Date/Time in PyeongChang |
Date/Time (EST) |
Group/
Round |
Matchup |
USA Live Broadcast |
| February 10 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 10 at 2:40 a.m. |
B |
Japan v Sweden |
|
| February 10 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 10 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
Switzerland v Korea |
USA |
| February 11 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 11 at 2:40 a.m. |
A |
Finland v USA |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 11 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 11 at 7:10 a.m. |
A |
Canada v OAR |
|
| February 12 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 12 at 2:40 a.m. |
B |
Switzerland v Japan |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 12 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 12 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
Sweden v Korea |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 13 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 13 at 2:40 a.m. |
A |
Canada v Finland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 13 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 13 at 7:10 a.m. |
A |
USA v OAR |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 14 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 13 at 10:10 pm |
B |
Sweden v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 14 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 14 at 2:40 a.m. |
B |
Korea v Japan |
USA |
| February 15 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 10:10 pm |
A |
USA v Canada |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 15 at 2:40 a.m. |
A |
OAR v Finland |
USA |
| February 17 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 10:10 pm |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
CNBC |
| February 17 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 17 at 2:40 a.m. |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
USA |
| February 18 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 10:10 pm |
CONS |
Classification (5-8 place) |
|
| February 18 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 18 at 2:40 a.m. |
CONS |
Classification (5-8 place) |
|
| February 19 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 11:10 pm |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 19 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 7:10 a.m. |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 10:10 pm |
CONS |
Classification (7-8 place) |
|
| February 20 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 20 at 2:40 a.m. |
CONS |
Classification (5-6 place) |
|
| February 21 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 21 at 2:40 a.m. |
BMG |
Bronze Medal Game |
USA |
| February 22 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 11:10 pm |
GMG |
Gold Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
And now, the men’s tournament:
| 2018 men’s Tournament |
| Date/Time in PyeongChang |
Date/Time (EST) |
Group/
Round |
Matchup |
USA Live Broadcast |
| February 14 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
Slovakia v OAR |
USA |
| February 14 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
USA v Slovenia |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 10:10 pm |
C |
Finland v Germany |
CNBC |
| February 15 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 15 at 2:40 a.m. |
C |
Norway v Sweden |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 7:10 a.m. |
A |
Czech Republic v South Korea |
USA |
| February 15 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 7:10 a.m. |
A |
Switzerland v Canada |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 16 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 10:10 pm |
B |
USA v Slovakia |
CNBC |
| February 16 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 16 at 2:40 a.m. |
B |
OAR v Slovenia |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 16 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 7:10 a.m. |
C |
Finland v Norway |
USA |
| February 16 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 7:10 a.m. |
C |
Sweden v Germany |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 10:10 p.m. |
A |
Canada v Czech Republic |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 17 at 2:40 a.m. |
A |
South Korea v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
OAR v USA |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 7:10 a.m. |
B |
Slovenia v Slovakia |
USA |
| February 18 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 10:10 pm |
C |
Germany v Norway |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 18 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 18 at 2:40 a.m. |
A |
Czech Republic v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 18 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 7:10 a.m. |
A |
Canada v South Korea |
USA |
| February 18 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 7:10 a.m. |
C |
Sweden v Finland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 10:10 pm |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 20 at 2:40 a.m. |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 7:10 a.m. |
Q |
Qualifications |
USA |
| February 20 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 7:10 a.m. |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 10:10 pm |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
CNBC |
| February 21 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 21 at 2:40 a.m. |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 7:10 a.m. |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 7:10 a.m. |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
USA |
| February 23 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 23 at 2:40 a.m. |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 23 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 23 at 7:10 a.m. |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 24 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 24 at 7:10 a.m. |
BMG |
Bronze Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 25 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 24 at 11:10 pm |
GMG |
Gold Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
A master schedule is available at the bottom of this article, but there’s one question left to answer first.
So, who’s going for the gold?
Ah, perhaps the most important question of them all.
As we’ve been doing this whole time, we’ll stick with tradition and predict the women’s tournament first.
Just examining the format of the tournament, the IIHF and the IOC are simply begging for another Gold Medal Game between Canada and the United States, the world’s top-two ranked women’s teams.
There’s obviously potential for either team to stumble in a group that features the four best squads in the world and be forced to play in the quarterfinals, but I just don’t see it happening. Should my prediction prove correct, the world’s best teams would square off in a third-straight Olympic Final, with Canada playing for its fifth-consecutive gold.
As for the men’s tournament, it’s been well reported that the NHL keeping its players at home will play a major role in determining which nations are taking home hardware.
In my opinion, that leaves the door wide open for the Olympic Athletes from Russia, especially since they’re playing in what I believe to be the weakest group of the bunch. The OAR boasts players such as F Pavel Datsyuk, C Mikhail Grigorenko, W Ilya Kovalchuk, D Alexey Marchenko, D Nikita Nesterov and F Vadim Shipachyov – all of whom have NHL experience. Tack on the fact that they all play in the second-best league in the world, and they’re more than prepared for every challenge that can come their way in Pyeongchang.
Of course, we all saw what happened the last time the Russians were favorites to win the Olympics. Should this team crumble like 2014’s squad (even though F T.J. Oshie will be preoccupied playing with the best Russian player in the world, W Alex Ovechkin), I’m leaning towards the winner of the mini Euro Cup taking full advantage. All four of those teams are in the top-10 of the current IIHF World Rankings, with Sweden and Finland respectively leading the way as numbers 3 and 4.
But don’t leave the predicting work to me. Here’s what all of us here at Down the Frozen River – and even our old pal Frank Fanelli, now of Student Union Sports – think is going to happen:
| Down the Frozen River’s Olympic Picks |
|
Cap’n |
Colby |
Connor |
Frank |
Jordan |
Nick |
Pete |
| Women’s Tournament |
| Gold |
Canada |
Canada |
Canada |
USA |
USA |
USA |
USA |
| Silver |
USA |
USA |
USA |
Canada |
Canada |
Canada |
Canada |
| Bronze |
Finland |
Sweden |
Finland |
Sweden |
Sweden |
Finland |
Sweden |
| Fourth |
Sweden |
Japan |
OAR |
Finland |
Finland |
Sweden |
Finland |
| Men’s Tournament |
| Gold |
Sweden |
Sweden |
OAR |
Sweden |
OAR |
Sweden |
Sweden |
| Silver |
Canada |
USA |
Finland |
USA |
Canada |
OAR |
OAR |
| Bronze |
Finland |
Canada |
Sweden |
Canada |
USA |
Canada |
Canada |
| Fourth |
OAR |
OAR |
Canada |
Finland |
Sweden |
USA |
USA |
It seems I’m not alone in my prediction of a Canada-USA Gold Medal match in the women’s tournament! All seven of us have the two squaring off in the final, with a slim majority believing Captain Meghan Duggan and co. can lead Team USA to its first gold since 1998.
As for the women’s Bronze Medal game, we’re leaning towards a Scandinavian country taking home some hardware – with most of us favoring Sweden over Finland. However, Colby and I think underdogs are going to make it to the semifinals before falling, as I’m pegging the fourth-ranked Olympic Athletes from Russia to end up in fourth and Colby’s picking ninth-ranked Japan.
In the men’s tournament, it seems Sweden is the nearly consensus favorite to come away with the medals that match its tri-crowned sweaters. However, who Captain Joel Lundqvist‘s – yes, the twin brother of the Rangers’ G Henrik Lundqvist – team beats in that Gold Medal game is anyone’s guess, as we’ve picked four different teams to take home silver.
We seem to be in a bit more agreement about the winner of the bronze medal, as four of us have pegged Captain Chris Kelly‘s Team Canada to come home with its third-consecutive medal.
While we may all have our own rooting interests, I think we can all agree that this should be a fun and exciting two weeks of hockey.
| 2018 Olympic Hockey Tournament |
| Date/Time in PyeongChang |
Date/Time (EST) |
Sex |
Group/
Round |
Matchup |
USA Live Broadcast |
| February 10 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 10 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
B |
Japan v Sweden |
|
| February 10 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 10 at 7:10 a.m. |
W |
B |
Switzerland v Korea |
USA |
| February 11 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 11 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
A |
Finland v USA |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 11 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 11 at 7:10 a.m. |
W |
A |
Canada v OAR |
|
| February 12 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 12 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
B |
Switzerland v Japan |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 12 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 12 at 7:10 a.m. |
W |
B |
Sweden v Korea |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 13 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 13 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
A |
Canada v Finland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 13 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 13 at 7:10 a.m. |
W |
A |
USA v OAR |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 14 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 13 at 10:10 pm |
W |
B |
Sweden v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 14 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 14 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
B |
Korea v Japan |
USA |
| February 14 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
B |
Slovakia v OAR |
USA |
| February 14 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
B |
USA v Slovenia |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 10:10 pm |
W |
A |
USA v Canada |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 14 at 10:10 pm |
M |
C |
Finland v Germany |
CNBC |
| February 15 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 15 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
A |
OAR v Finland |
USA |
| February 15 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 15 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
C |
Norway v Sweden |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 15 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
A |
Czech Republic v South Korea |
USA |
| February 15 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
A |
Switzerland v Canada |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 16 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 15 at 10:10 pm |
M |
B |
USA v Slovakia |
CNBC |
| February 16 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 16 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
B |
OAR v Slovenia |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 16 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
C |
Finland v Norway |
USA |
| February 16 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
C |
Sweden v Germany |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 10:10 pm |
W |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
CNBC |
| February 17 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 16 at 10:10 p.m. |
M |
A |
Canada v Czech Republic |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 17 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
USA |
| February 17 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 17 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
A |
South Korea v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
B |
OAR v USA |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 17 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
B |
Slovenia v Slovakia |
USA |
| February 18 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 10:10 pm |
M |
C |
Germany v Norway |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 18 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 17 at 10:10 pm |
W |
CONS |
Classification (5-8 place) |
|
| February 18 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 18 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
A |
Czech Republic v Switzerland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 18 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 18 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
CONS |
Classification (5-8 place) |
|
| February 18 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
A |
Canada v South Korea |
USA |
| February 18 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
C |
Sweden v Finland |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 19 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 18 at 11:10 pm |
W |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 19 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 7:10 a.m. |
W |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 10:10 pm |
M |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 19 at 10:10 pm |
W |
CONS |
Classification (7-8 place) |
|
| February 20 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 20 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 20 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 20 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
CONS |
Classification (5-6 place) |
|
| February 20 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
Q |
Qualifications |
USA |
| February 20 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
Q |
Qualifications |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 12:10 p.m. |
February 20 at 10:10 pm |
M |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
CNBC |
| February 21 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 21 at 2:40 a.m. |
W |
BMG |
Bronze Medal Game |
USA |
| February 21 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 21 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 21 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
QF |
Quarterfinals |
USA |
| February 22 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 21 at 11:10 pm |
W |
GMG |
Gold Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 23 at 4:40 p.m. |
February 23 at 2:40 a.m. |
M |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 23 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 23 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
SF |
Semifinals |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 24 at 9:10 p.m. |
February 24 at 7:10 a.m. |
M |
BMG |
Bronze Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
| February 25 at 1:10 p.m. |
February 24 at 11:10 pm |
M |
GMG |
Gold Medal Game |
NBC Sports Network |
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