2008 world hockey championship Canada v. USA

"Canada's roster is like an all-star team," said Tim Thomas, who will be in the U.S. goal.

"This is going to be one of the toughest games in the tournament, if not the toughest."

— Roy MacGregor, The Globe and Mail

The tournament finally starts to get interesting.

The problem with the world championship is always in the early going, as with a 16-team field and only six (maybe seven) teams with realistic hopes of competing for a medal, there's an awful lot of cannon fodder there.

Although the Latvians get points for being interesting in terms of their "evil henchmen" outfits.

This game will generate a little buzz in Canada, although the 3:30 game time from Halifax doesn't exactly encourage much of a TV audience. And, as Greg Wyshynski points out, Americans will have a heckuva time trying to tune into this one.

I think the U.S. did a smart thing in going with an extreme youth movement, but that won't necessarily translate to wins at this event. They've got their eyes on 2010 in Vancouver.

Canada should win today.
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