Barring a miracle – and that is not an exaggeration – it will be Canada versus the United States in the womens hockey gold medal game Feb. Nigel de Jong Maglia . 20 in Sochi. Why? Because they always meet in the final, right? Well, nearly always. Sweden somehow managed to make it into the gold medal game at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. But in the 19 Olympic and World Championship final games since womens hockey arrived on the international stage in 1999, it has been Canada against the United States 18 times. Canada begins by facing Switzerland on Saturday at 8:00 a.m. in their first game of the tournament - watch it live on CBC TV and streaming at cbc.ca/olympics. The mere fact Canada has won the past three of four gold medals at the Olympics – losing only in Nagano in 1998 – would make them the favorites in the eyes of many. However, their victories in the last three Olympic Games really have nothing to do with this years tournament. More relevant is the fact the United States defeated Canada in the last four meetings of their seven-game pre-Olympic exhibition series. Canada is the defending Olympic champion, but the Americans have a little swagger. Dan Church knows that as well as anybody. Church resigned as coach of the Canadian womens Olympic team in December and was replaced by former Florida Panthers coach Kevin Dineen. Team USA is deep at every position. They also have scoring at every position – forward and defence – and they have a lot of speed. “Their young forwards especially are extremely quick,” Church said. “If you give them room in the neutral zone theyll always find a way to create. They are really gifted at getting the puck into the scoring area; even if its not a direct shot just getting it there so now your defenders and goaltender really have to be on top of things. They are always creating offence with their speed.” Canada will need to have a forward to force the Americans to one half of the ice surface and break off their speed and their ability to attack or counterattack. Scoring problems Even if its overall team speed doesnt match that of the United States, Canada traditionally can hold its own with any team in the world in terms of offence, and is better than most. That said, Canada has had some difficulty scoring, particularly against the United States, leading up to the Sochi Games. Rebecca Johnston, a scoring machine at Cornell for four seasons, has speed and skill and the ability to take it to the front of the net. The 25-year-old had a goal and six points in five games at the 2010 Olympics and will be expected to exceed those numbers this year. Jenn Wakefield, 24, has plenty of international experience, but is making her Olympic debut. She is another go-to forward for Canada. Of course there are also veterans Hayley Wickenheiser, Jayna Hefford and Caroline Ouellette, all of whom can dominate a game. Wickenheiser in particular can be a dangerous scorer when she is shooting the puck. Hefford is strong around the net and Ouellette remains an offensive catalyst. As for Canadas young players, Natalie Spooner is a power forward with great hands and Megan Agosta-Marciano can be a world beater when shes playing at her best. Countering for Team USA will be Kelli Stack. She is a game-breaker and every time shes on the ice she can create for herself and her teammates. Stack has great vision. “She is an offensive threat every time she touches the puck,” Church said. “You always have to worry about her. She is the offensive catalyst for the team.” Amanda Kessel, the younger sister of Toronto Maple Leafs star Phil, is also a really strong player. Like her brother, she has speed to burn and plenty of offensive upside. She was the collegiate national player of the year with the University of Minnesota in 2013. Physically, Canada has an edge over the United States, but the Americans do not fear Canadas physical game - just as Canada believes it can overcome USAs speed. In the end, it could come down to goaltending. Canada believes its three goalies, Shannon Szabados, Charline Labonte and Genevieve Lacasse, could all backstop the team to a gold in Sochi. Szabados will be the starter and is looking for her second Olympic gold medal as a starter. Early in the season it seemed like Team USA was leaning toward Jessie Vetter getting the job as the starter, but down the stretch, Molly Schaus got more action. Schaus is better technically, but Vetter is very athletic. The starter will likely be the goalie the coaching staff feels is the hotter of the two entering the tournament. The bottom line for Canada is that it can win a fourth straight gold in Sochi, but reputation at this tournament means squat. Its not about what was; its about what is. Suso AC Milan Maglia . The top-seeded Anaheim Ducks can clearly see they are in quite a fight now. Eakin scored on Dallas first shot of the third period, Alex Goligoski scored on the next one 1:22 later and the Stars beat the Ducks 4-2 in Game 4 on Wednesday night to even the best-of-seven series.Davide Calabria AC Milan Maglia . Seattle Seahawks superstar Richard Sherman, widely considered to be the leagues top cornerback, is carrying his war of words with Michael Crabtree into the off-season.MONTREAL -- It looks like the Montreal Impact have chosen the hard road to the Major League Soccer playoffs. Jose Goncalves scored the only goal in the 31st minute as the New England Revolution downed the listless Impact 1-0 on Saturday afternoon, extending Montreals winless run to five games. The Impact (13-11-7), who were on top of the league in June with a 9-3-2 record, began the day in a playoff position in fourth place, but the race got tighter after losing a third home game in a row. They have three games remaining in the regular season, including a match Wednesday night in Los Angeles and a must-win game at home next Saturday against Philadelphia. A victory against the Revolution would have greatly strengthened the Impacts hopes of reaching the post-season in only their second year in MLS, but they came out flat. New England (12-11-9) had the lions share of scoring chances and allowed Montreal few opportunities. "I think were all a little bit shocked," said Montreal captain Davy Arnaud. "Considering how big the game was, something was missing. "We werent ourselves. We just didnt have our normal urgency going forward to get chances. We lost some duels we normally win at home. I cant put my finger on it." Montreal will play in Los Angeles without Arnaud or defender Matteo Ferrari, who each will serve one-game suspensions for picking up their fifth yellow card. Coach Marco Schallibaum and the players spoke all week of the importance of beating New England, but they werent in the game from the opening kick-off. "We werent good today," said Schallibaum, whose team has one of a possible 15 points from its last five matches. "We didnt get much penetration in the box. "It was more in the head than in the legs. Now we have to pick ourselves up and get ready for the next game." Arnaud was at the centre of a grim moment in the 19th minute when New England forward Sene Sene was wheeled off the field on a stretcher and taken to hospital with what the Revolution later said was a dislocated left ankle and broken left fibula. The less than sellout crowd of 18,917 went silent when Sene went down after going for a ball in the Montreal penalty area. His foot got caught between Arnauds legs and appeared to snap. It was pointing the wrong way as he lay on the pitch in agony. "I feel really bad about what happened," said Arnaud. "It looks like its a really bad injury. "I think it was a good tackle. Christian Abbiati AC Milan Maglia. I won the ball clean, but his foot might have got caught underneath me. You never want to see that happen. I still feel bad about it. I hope hes OK." No foul was called as Arnaud got to the ball first. "You run into situations on the field that are bigger than the game," said Revolution coach Jay Heaps. "Everyones heart went out to him. "Its devastating for both teams. But the response from our guys -- you just felt there would be a moment when our guys had a chance to make a play. We got that goal almost 10 minutes after that incident, so I was really happy with that." Juan Agudelo just missed heading in a free kick, but New England got the ball back for Diego Fagundez to slip it across the area for Goncalves to score his second of the season. The New England defence did the rest as they clogged up the middle of the field and allowed league scoring leader Marco Di Vaio and his Impact teammates few looks at goal. The win stretched the Revolutions unbeaten string to four games and kept their playoff hopes alive. "It was crucial," said Heaps. "We knew these three (points) were the most important because they were pulling away. "Now its anyones ball game here for the last two (playoff) spots. Thats all you can ask for." The Impact got some life after bringing in three substitutes early in the second half but New England still got the best chance on a Chris Tierney free kick that went off the crossbar. The Impact have a handful of players playing through minor injuries, including Di Vaio, Patrice Bernier and Justin Mapp. But Arnaud dismissed the notion that the Impact, an older than average team, is wearing down at the end of the season. He feels they just need a spark to feel young again. "You need a positive result to get you back on track," he said. "When youre so close and you feel youre almost there in the post-season and things arent going well, you just need a bounce, something to go your way. "Maybe scrape out a win you dont deserve. Something that can turn things around." Notes: Alessandro Nesta returned to Montreals lineup after missing two games with a groin injury and Hernan Bernardello was back after sitting out five contests with a sprained ankle. Sanna Nyassi moved into the starting 11 in place of Felipe Martins. Maxim Tissot replaced injured fullback Jeb Brovsky. 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