USA-Canada Too Close to Call, So Root for a Classic

The Olympic final between the United States and Canada on Sunday will be the most-watched hockey game played in North America this year -- maybe this decade. Thankfully, unlike the endless build-up to a Super Bowl, there is not enough time to analyze this one electrifying hockey game to death. Instead, analysts are electing to predict along national lines.

"The key to the game is whether Canada can regain the hellacious forecheck it employed against Russia," Pierre McGuire told FanHouse on Saturday. The NBC and TSN color commentator was born in New Jersey but has been a resident of Montreal for the last two decades. "If that happens, you have to like Team Canada's chances."

"Ryan Miller plus the power play and overall team speed will prevail," said NBC and Hockey Night in Canada studio analyst Mike Milbury, born and raised in Massachusetts. "I'm going with my gut. You have to know that, either way, the reaction in Canada is going to be memorable."

Since this is an unpredictable hockey game we're talking about, most of the chatter in the prelude is about how much a victory would mean to Canada and the United States. Or -- as Milbury pointed out with a needle -- how devastating a loss would be to the Canadians.

Otherwise, analysis of this game, featuring five players each from the Ducks and Sharks and four members each from the Kings and Blackhawks, is fairly simple.

Heatley: Canadians 'Confident':
On the eve of the gold medal game against USA, Canada star Dany Heatley discusses the Canadian mindset and what they have to do to win.
-- Susan Slusser

Inside the Gold Medal Game:
Christopher Botta and Bruce Ciskie go in-depth to break down the gold medal game between USA and Canada.
-- Read MoreTeam USA has an undeniable edge in goaltending. No one would argue against the wondrous talent of Canada's Roberto Luongo. However, he is untested in big-game climates. Incredibly, he has been the victor of three win-or-go-home Olympic games in the last four days, but questions remain. Until the third period against Slovakia -- when he allowed one weak goal but was sharp in the tense final minutes -- the Vancouver Canucks' all-star hardly broke a sweat in those three games.

At the other end, USA's Ryan Miller has not allowed a goal in 111 minutes. If he has not been the best player in the tournament, he has undoubtedly been the most valuable.

Everywhere else on the rink, Canada has the edge on paper. Team USA's triumph -- take a bow, manager Brian Burke and your half-dozen advisors -- was cultivating a lineup of artists and carpenters to counter-attack more skilled opponents. As a result, the Americans play like a team with two first lines and two third lines. The proof has been in the results.

The roster of the host country is merely a collection of many of the greatest forwards in the NHL. Most nights, the talent has been enough. Only in the blowout of Russia and the first two impressive periods against Slovakia has Canada looked like a team that's only practiced together three times.

On the blueline, a lineup that includes future Hall of Famers Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger has an advantage in a winner-take-all single game over a team counting on heart-and-soul warriors like Tim Gleason and Brooks Orpik. Nevertheless, Ron Wilson's defenders play for the only undefeated team in the tournament.

Be honest: no one saw the U.S. getting that early goal last Sunday against Canada. No one predicted the Americans' response after Canada tied it at 2. Everyone knew Miller was Team USA's saving grace. No one dreamed of Martin Brodeur not finishing the tournament for Canada.

This is hockey. This is what makes the game so great in the crucial moments, from the Frozen Four and Memorial Cup to the World Junior Championships and the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The showdown at high noon Vancouver time on Sunday justifies the NHL's decision to unleash its athletes on the Olympics. Whether the Games are in Salt Lake and Vancouver or Sochi and Mars, we'll take two weeks of brilliant artistry and high drama every four years.

For Sunday, never mind the predictions. Just root for a classic game.