Stars und Sternchen! » Canada in the Olympic mens hockey final

SOCHI, Russia -- Swedish centre Nicklas Backstrom watched from the athletes village as his teammates lost 3-0 to Canada in the Olympic mens hockey final because he failed a doping test for a substance found in an allergy medication. "I was ready to play the biggest game of my career," Backstrom said Sunday following the game. "And two-and-a-half hours before the game, I got pulled aside." Backstrom paused, choked with emotion and appeared to be on the verge of tears. "Its sad," he said. The Swedish hockey team, meanwhile, was simply mad at the International Olympic Committee. "We are all very upset," said Tommy Boustedt, the teams general manager. "Our opinion is that IOC has destroyed one of the greatest hockey days in Swedish history." Boustedt lashed out at the IOC about the timing of its decision, saying it was "political" because it would make news. The governing body refused to fire back. "We will not comment on any potential process until it has concluded," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. The International Ice Hockey Federation is taking the silver medal that would have been given to Backstrom in the post-game ceremony to its offices in Zurich while it waits for the IOC to decide whether it can be sent to Backstrom, according to IIHF spokesman Adam Steiss. Backstrom was punished more than another player was in the same situation four years ago. While playing for Slovakia at the 2010 Olympics, defenceman Lubomir Visnovsky tested positive for the same banned substance -- pseudoephedrine -- and was only reprimanded by the IOC because it said he declared on his doping control form that he was taking the medication. Backstrom, likewise, said he hasnt hid the fact that he takes the substance that is banned by the IOC during competition and was told by his Olympic team doctor he could take one pill a day without possible penalty. He was tested Wednesday after helping the Swedes beat Slovenia in the quarter-finals. He was pulled out of Swedens locker room four days later, just two-plus hours before the Sochi Games finale, and was informed he couldnt play. The Washington Capitals standout was supported by his Olympic team, NHL franchise, NHL Players Association and the IIHF. "I am convinced that Nicklas and the NHLPA will take this further," Boustedt said in Swedish during a news conference that lasted about 40 minutes. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Day issued a statement saying the substance Backstrom tested positive for is not on the leagues list of banned substances. "We do not anticipate there being any consequences relative to Nicklas eligibility," Daly said. The Capitals sent out a statement saying Backstrom has been taking the allergy medication intermittently for seven years, including this season, to cope with severe allergies. "The test was done on Wednesday and he was pulled out two hours before a game on Sunday, I think thats certainly flawed," NHLPA special assistant Mathieu Schneider said. Dr. Mark Aubry, chief medical officer of the IIHF, said Backstrom provided information correctly to the IOC about the medication he was taking. "He is the innocent victim of circumstances," Aubry said. Backstroms suspension from the gold-medal game may be a point of contention when the NHL and NHLPA negotiate with IOC about whether to let their players participate in the 2018 Olympics. He was listed in the team lineups distributed before the game, and his teammates later found out he wouldnt be with them on the ice. "Its too bad he couldnt play," Sweden winger Carl Hagelin said. "We lost a really good player." Backstrom is the sixth athlete to fail a doping test at the games. Five of the six, including Backstrom, tested positive for minor stimulants that are often found in food supplements. 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But Chelsea failed to make the most of its counterattacks and the Turkish champions equalized in the second half after gaining in confidence and cutting out their defensive mistakes. Bobby Orr Jersey .C. - Canadian ice dancing, it seems, is in good hands. Derek Sanderson Jersey .com) - The Eastern Conferences best team takes on one of its worst Tuesday night when the Atlanta Hawks pay a visit to the Wells Fargo Center to take on the Philadelphia 76ers.With the Toronto Maple Leafs mired in an eight-game losing streak, head coach Randy Carlyle is feeling the heat as the team continues their downward spiral. And former Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson certainly knows his pain. "Its pretty hard to coach there without allowing some of these things to kind of affect you," Wilson told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun in his ESPN.com blog on Monday. "That goes for the coaches, but the players, as well. You cant go anywhere without hearing about whats going wrong or all this kind of stuff. "I really feel for the coaching staff and, above all, for Randy right now. Hes got the same thousand-yard stare that I had. But at the end, you almost feel like its completely out of your control, everything takes on a life of its own. Its unbelievable." Wilson worked nearly four seasons as head coach of the Maple Leafs before he was fired with 18 games remaining in the 2011-12 season and replaced by Carlyle. "In Toronto, everything is always out of perspectiive; theyre either winning games and theyre planning the parade route," Wilson said.dddddddddddd. "Or you lose a couple of games and everything gets over-exaggerated." Wilson, who has watched the Maple Leafs, said the team hasnt had much luck and the players are responding to the pressure by gripping their sticks too tightly. "I watched the last two games this weekend; I thought they played OK in those games, but right now theyve got no puck luck," he explained. "Its like maybe they used up all their puck luck earlier in the season when they were getting outshot but still won games. You might say they had a lot of puck luck in those games and its dried up now. A lot of the players are squeezing their sticks right now, which tends to happens in these situations." The Maple Leafs are still in the wild card hunt with six games remaining in the regular season. They sit two points back of Columbus entering Monday nights game, but the Blue Jackets have two games in hand. 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