Final groups set for men's hockey at 2018 Olympics
Norway, Slovenia, Germany qualify for final three spots
By Daniel Goffenberg, CBC Sports
Qualification for men's ice hockey at the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang has ended, with Norway, Slovenia, and Germany earning the final three spots.
The teams each had to win their respective groups in order to qualify for the 12-team tournament.
Norway beat France 2-1 in the final game of Group F to secure their spot. Mats Zuccarello, of the New York Rangers, and Mattias Norstebo scored for Norway, which finished 12th in Sochi 2014.
Norway has clinched a spot in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic men's hockey tournament.
—@reporterchrisSlovenia topped Group D with a shootout victory over Belarus. Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar scored once in regulation and again in the shootout for Slovenia, which has now qualified for two consecutive Games. Former NHLer Andrei Kostitsyn hit the post in Belarus' final attempt to give Slovenia the win.
Team Slovenia clinched a spot in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, won Belarus 3:2 in SO
—@IgorEronkoIn the final game of Group E, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Tom Kuhnhackl scored a power-play goal with 5:09 remaining in the third period to give Germany a 3-2 lead over Latvia, which held, to return the German national team to the Olympics after it failed to qualify in 2014.
Now we wait and see if NHLers will even be at the Games in South Korea.
—@mirtleWhat remains to be seen is whether the NHL will allow its players to go to the 2018 Olympics, with time running out to find a deal with the IOC to see who will cover travel and insurance costs for the players.
Groups set for 2018 Games
With qualification finished, the three groups for 2018 Pyeongchang have now been set.
Canada will play in Group A with the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and South Korea.
Russia, the U.S., Slovakia, and Slovenia are in Group B, while Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Germany round out Group C.
The top eight teams as ranked by the IIHF had automatically qualified for Pyeongchang, with host nation South Korea also given a spot in the tournament.