I can’t go anywhere on the internet today without being reminded of the ugly scene that occurred in front of me last night. Canada held a 3-0 lead heading into the third period against the Russians in the gold medal game of the World Junior Hockey Championship. Just as the Russians were making a charge in the second Canada scored to make it 3-0, which seemingly sealed the deal. However, the Russians came back from a 3-1 deficit in the third against the Fins in the quarter-final to win 4-3 in overtime and they erased a 3-2 deficit to beat Sweden in a shootout in the semi-finals, so Canada should have been wary entering the third.

Instead, the Canadians figured the game was over, sit back, and in less than five minutes the Russians tied the game at 3 and quickly poured it on – ending the game with a decisive 5-3 victory. That’s five unanswered goals in the third. That’s Torontonian (a bit of a stretch to assume the Leafs actually can get a lead).

This is the second year in a row the Canadians have suffered a bitter defeat. Last year John Carlson scored in overtime to win gold after Jordan Eberle scored two late third period goals to force the extra frame and now the Russians throttle Canada in the third.

All the attention that gets paid to this tournament is a little overblown considering these are just teenagers. This isn’t the end of the world. The Russians get some revenge for the Jordan Eberle magic a few years ago and we Canadians get to feel the sting of defeat. I guess that’s just sports.

Losing two straight gold medal games hurts, but Canada has been in ten straight finals and recently strung together five straight gold medals. It wasn’t always like this.

It’s a bit of an understatement to suggest that the men’s Olympic hockey tournament is important. It’s especially important for Canadians, not only because it’s in Canada, but because of the absolute debacle in Torino four years ago. Too bad USA Basketball already coined the Redeem Team. There is a lot at stake for the Russians as well. This is a chance at the ultimate retribution for the game 8 loss incurred in Russia over 30 years ago during the Summit Series. Teams like Sweden and Finland are being overlooked by the media as serious contenders for the Gold medal, despite being the two finalists in 2006. They have motivation to defend their national honour and prove that Gold isn't just a two-nation race.

There is not only a lot at stake for each country, but there is a lot at stake for certain players. Of course we all understand the pressure on players like Crosby and Ovechkin, but it’s highly probable that these players will perform to our expectations regardless of how high they are. We know how good these guys are. It's unlikely they will change our perception of them, barring some cataclysmic collapse. But there are many players throughout the tournament that have something to prove. 

Who will use this tournament to catapult themselves into national superstardom like Jarome Iginla did in 2002? Who will elevate their game to the next level and prove their critics wrong? Who will become this year’s Tommy Salo and have their career self-destruct before our eyes?

Here is a list of the players with the most to prove and those with the most to gain from these Olympics.

It’s time to introduce a new segment here at 5 Minutes For Fighting. We’re calling this Point/Counterpoint (What? 60 Minutes already has that? Who cares about that two-bit operation, it'll never catch on). We’ll have a debate on certain subjects. Sometimes the debate will be between Rick and I (hopefully these don’t descend into me calling him stupid for all my counterpoints) and other times we’ll have special guests on to give their opinions. This time the point/counter-point will feature only myself. This is because I’m having an internal battle over one topic of importance: Russia’s vast superiority at the 2010 Olympics. One side of me is examining their team rationally and finding overwhelming evidence to suggest they will cake-walk to the gold medal. The other side of me is desperately grasping at any sort of counter argument to this. My Canadian patriotism is taking over. I’m about ready to go Joseph McCarthy on everybody’s ass. Ring the bell.