GANGNEUNG, South Korea — The blistering pace on the ice and the atmosphere in the arena were reminiscent of the epic showdown between the United States and Russia in Sochi, Russia, four years ago. That’s where the similarities ended.
When the teams met again at the Olympics on Saturday night without N.H.L. players, Ilya Kovalchuk and the Russians put on a clinic — outplaying, outhitting and outclassing the Americans in a 4-0 shutout.
The United States must now play in the qualification round on Tuesday, while the Russians finished first in the group and moved directly to the quarterfinals, hoping their dominance puts T.