We witnessed a ton of hat tricks in the preliminary round. Which one was the most memorable for you and why?
Potts: I’ll go with Sven Andrighetto’s awesome foursome against Germany. Four-goal hauls are pretty rare at the best of times (even though Eeli Tolvanen was pulling the same stunt at the same time in Stockholm). Reeling off four straight like that is even rarer. With Denis Malgin assisting on each of them, you’ve got a “When was the last time…?” query to test even the most dedicated statistician. And let’s not forget that the Germans are no mugs: this isn’t a case of flexing on a rank outsider.
Aykroyd: Stian Solberg’s hat trick against the Americans stands out just because he’s a 19-year-old defenceman playing for a perennial underdog in Norway. He seemed to just go for it and have so much fun with it. Also, Solberg’s better-known for his physical, agitating presence. It made you wonder if we’ll see more offensive outbursts from him with Anaheim in the future or on an Olympic stage, or whether this was just a curious one-off.
Who from Group B is most likely to win the tournament scoring title?
Aykroyd: Would you believe David Pastrnak has already shattered his personal single-tournament high in points? The Boston superstar leads all skaters so far (6+8=14 in seven games). He’s had never had more than 10 points before (7+3=10 in seven games), dating back to 2022’s bronze medal run. Of course, there’s a big “if” associated with this pick, in that the Czechs will probably need to stun host nation Sweden in the quarter-finals for it to pan out. But given how the chemistry between “Pasta” and captain Roman Cervenka continues to build, I still like his odds.
Potts: Regular Ask The Experts readers (!?) may recall that I’m often dubious about the U.S.’s chances. But this year, the Americans have a “dark horse” vibe. They’ve quietly taken care of business up to now and seemed to get stronger as the preliminary round progressed – culminating in an impressive win over the Czechs. Frank Nazar is already riding high in the scoring race, and you sense that if the U.S. medals, he’ll likely be on the scoring…
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