Women’s Hockey | Canadian women will blow your brain!

(Beijing) I have seen dominant hockey teams in my career. But as much as that of the Canadians at the Beijing Games? I do not remember. Our representatives crushed all their opponents here, except the Americans.

Again Monday, they had more than 60 shots on target in a 10-3 win. Not against Eswatinians or Vatican nuns. Against the Swiss, fifth in the world, in the Olympic semi-final.

” From [recrues] to veterans, everyone contributes. Everyone is on the same page. You can feel it, and it’s beautiful to see,” captain Marie-Philip Poulin explained to me after the game.

“I’ve played on a number of great teams,” added Brianne Jenner. Not all bands are so tightly knit. It’s a real pleasure to play together. »

“This team is really special,” added Sarah Nurse.

This fusion, we notice it on the ice. Facing the Swiss, the Canadians passed the puck and exchanged positions as if everything was choreographed in advance. It was waltzing. It was spinning. It pirouetted. It was stunning. Enough to excite your occipital lobe which, I warn you, risks bursting after reading the most incredible, unusual and useless statistics of Team Canada at the Beijing Games.

Are you ready ?

Put on your helmet, we’re leaving.

How many times this season has an NHL team scored 10 or more goals in a game?

Any.

For two years ?

Any.

For three years ?

Any.

Since four years ?

Any.

The Canadians have just done it four times – in six games.

• You can imagine that with such production, the Canadians broke the record for goals for an edition of the Games. It is not finished yet ; they still have the final, on the night of Wednesday to Thursday. Brianne Jenner alone managed nine goals, another Olympic record. It’s a lot ? It’s enormous. More than ALL players from Russia (8), Denmark (7), China (7) and Sweden (7).
• Her teammate Sarah Fillier, 21, follows her closely, with eight goals. A record for a rookie. How impressive is that? At the Sochi Games in 2014, no player in the tournament had scored eight goals. Better still: no player had even scored eight points!
• Are your brains heating up? I’ll be done soon, I promise. The Canadians are particularly effective on the power play. They have reached 10 goals in 10 days – as many as the Canadiens since the dismissal of Marc Bergevin two and a half months ago…

• Another comparison with the Canadian? Dominant defenseman Claire Thompson had 12 points in six games. A plateau that no Habs defender has yet reached this season, in 48 games.
• Finally, my favourite: Claire Thompson and Erin Ambrose ended their day’s work against the Swiss with a differential of +8. I delved into the great grimoire of hockey to find out when the last time an NHL player had accomplished this feat. It was Theoren Fleury, in 1993. Neither Thompson nor Ambrose was born…

And then ? Did your brain explode? No ?

I don’t want to upset you, but the little bits floating around in your coffee right now, I don’t think are pieces of Sugar Crisp…

Next meeting: on the night of Wednesday to Thursday (Montreal time), for a final during which the Canadians could continue to rewrite the book of records.