Throughout the 2011 IIHF World Championship I have been keeping an eye on three teams: Team Canada because of Matt Duchene, Team Norway because of Jonas Holøs, and Team USA because TEAM USA RULES!

Sorry, my American got away from me for a minute there. It’s back under control. I promise.

The first two rounds, the top eight teams of the tournament have been identified and will be moving on to the quarterfinals. On Wednesday May 11 the USA will play the Czech Republic. On Thursday May 12 Norway will play Finland and Canada will play Russia. Any winners will proceed to the semifinals beginning Friday May 13. The USA would take on the winner of Sweden/Germany, while the winners of the Finland/Norway and Canada/Russia games would go head to head. The medal games will take place on Sunday May 15.

Matt Duchene has been sadly quiet for Team Canada during this tournament. Through 6 games he has put 13 shots on goal, earned over 89 minutes of ice time, served 2 penalty minutes, and is a +1. I’m sure he’s upset about his performance, though he must be pleased with the play of his team. Maybe in the next couple games he’ll get a few more chances.

Jonas Holøs, on the other hand, has been very effective for Team Norway. He has scored 2 goals and 3 assists, served 2 penalty minutes, had 142 minutes of ice time, put 15 shots on goal, and is a +6 for the tournament. Too bad he wasn’t able to put up numbers like these for the Avs this season.

The Avs don’t have anyone playing for Team USA…unless you count Kevin Shattenkirk, as many fans would still love to do. (Shatty has 1 goal, 2 assists, 6 penalty minutes, 114 minutes of ice time, and is a +1, by the way.)

Currently Derek Stepan is the USA’s golden boy with 2 goals and 5 assists. Craig Smith leads the team with 3 goals. Defensemen Mike Komisarek and Jack Johnson are -3 for the tournament while forwards Chris Porter and Paul Gaustad are at -4 and -3, respectively.

Jack Johnson leads the team (excluding goalies) with 142 minutes of ice time. The next closest is Stepan with 120.

Team USA is still a dark horse in this race. The team is not as strong as it has been in the past and certainly has some glaring weaknesses. Team Canada is a heavy favorite, and with Norway picking up the pace who knows what the next few days will bring.

My only comment is this: Get after it, Duchene; keep at it, Holøs; and go get ‘em USA!