IGINLA SCORES THREE AS TEAM CANADA ROMPS TO 8-0 VICTORY OVER NORWAY

VANCOUVER – It was a coming out party that was four years in the making.

Team Canada stepped back on to the biggest stage in international hockey and delivered a crowd-pleasing performance, formally kicking off its quest to erase the memory of Turin with a comfortable 8-0 victory over Norway on Tuesday.

With the building painted a patriotic red and white by fans who showed up en masse in Canadian jerseys, Jarome Iginla scored three goals and hometown hero Roberto Luongo stopped all 15 shots he faced. By the time the final buzzer sounded, people were dancing in the aisles and no doubt dreaming about a golden ending to the biggest hockey event played in this country since the 1972 Summit Series.

The anticipation for the Olympic tournament has been building for Canadian hockey fans since the country crashed out of the Olympics four years ago with a disastrous seventh-place finish, the worst-ever in history. It was worth the wait.

“You know it's going to be cool, but when you actually see it, it feels like a totally different place,” said Iginla. “We've been looking forward to this for a long time and it's finally here. The crowd was awesome – it was actually more red and white than I imagined.”

Several fans threw hats on the ice when Iginla tipped home a shot with less than two minutes to play, but the goal was originally awarded to Rick Nash. Iginla didn't officially get his hat trick until around four hours after the final buzzer, when the International Ice Hockey Federation awarded the goal to the Calgary Flames captain after a review.

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The Canadian team showed off a number of its weapons against the overmatched Norwegians. Dany Heatley scored twice while Mike Richards, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry added singles for a young squad that looked fairly composed after skating into the spotlight for the first time.

Even though the roof didn't come off Canada Hockey Place, as Norwegian captain Tommy Jakobsen predicted it might, the crowd of 16,652 roared throughout the game and alternated between chants of “Go Canada Go!” and “Let's Go Canada!” The building is known as GM Place when the Olympics aren't in town so it was only fitting that it had a different feel for the only Team Canada member who plays for the Canucks.

“I think obviously there was much more electricity in the air,” said Luongo. “This is big for Canada and for Vancouver.”

It was a marvellous platform for Canadian hockey – even though the Norwegians didn't play the part of willing victim early on. The underdogs showed plenty of pluck in the first period, clogging the neutral zone and collapsing around goalie Pal Grotnes to keep Canada from scoring in the opening 20 minutes.

The attack started to get more organized in the second after Iginla found himself elevated to the top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Rick Nash. Crosby had assists on all three goals the unit accounted for and was pleased overall with his first taste of the Olympics.

“I thought we were really patient,” said Crosby. “We didn't force things, we stuck with things early on when we couldn't have.”

Having the chance to open the tournament against Norway was a nice bonus for a Canadian team that only got one practice in ahead of the event. Coach Mike Babcock tried a number of different line combinations and spread the ice time around – forward Brenden Morrow received the least with 7:50, defenceman Dan Boyle the most at 20:12.

It was important for the coach to see all of his guys in action as the games will only get more important from here.

“As much as the coaches know these players and have watched them, until you coach them you don't (totally know them),” said Babcock. “As I said before, we're a work in progress. We're trying to get better. In order to get better, we've got to understand a little bit how they play and put them in the right situations to be successful.”

Canada's next action comes Thursday against Switzerland – the country it was memorably upset by at the Olympics four years ago – and wraps up the preliminary round versus the U.S. on Sunday. Every game beyond that will be a must-win.

It's a short event and the Canadians know they'll need to keep improving to achieve a golden result.

“This is a tournament where we have to get better every game,” said Heatley. “It was a good start tonight, but games are going to get tougher and we've got to get better. We've got a lot of great players in there that just have to stick to the game plan, stick to what we do, and things are going to be good.”

Lost in all of the focus on Team Canada was just how big the game was for the visitors as well. Norway hadn't qualified for the Olympics since participating on home ice at the 1994 Lillehammer Games and was thrilled to receive an invite to the big party.

They enjoyed the atmosphere as much as the guys wearing the Maple Leaf.

“Unbelievable, I've never seen that kind of thing before,” said Norwegian defenceman Juha Kaunismaki. “I was really proud to play here and play against one of the best teams in the world right now. I like this culture here, everybody is really into the hockey and you can see that. They love the game.”

Goals/Buts : 
---

Penalties/Pénalités : 
07:39 CAN Shea Weber (High Sticking/Bâton élévé)
13:03 NOR Tommy Jakobsen (Hooking /Accrocher)
17:56 NOR Lars Erik Spets (Holding/Retenir)

Goals/Buts : 
02:30 CAN Jarome Iginla (Sidney Crosby, Drew Doughty) PP
04:27 CAN Dany Heatley (Chris Pronger, Joe Thornton)
11:06 CAN Mike Richards (Patrice Bergeron, Shea Weber)

Penalties/Pénalités : 
00:43 NOR Mads Hansen (Holding/Retenir)
07:54 CAN Patrice Bergeron (Interference/Obstruction)
09:06 CAN Eric Staal (Tripping/Faire trébucher)
14:37 NOR Anders Bastiansen (Tripping/Faire trébucher)
18:33 CAN Dany Heatley (Slashing/Coup de bâton)

Goals/Buts : 
4:29 CAN Ryan Getzlaf (Scott Niedermayer, Jonathan Toews)
06:43 CAN Dany Heatley (Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle) PP
07:36 CAN Jarome Iginla (Rick Nash, Sidney Crosby)
11:03 CAN Corey Perry (Eric Staal, Dan Boyle)
18:11 CAN Jarome Iginla (Rick Nash, Sidney Crosby)

Penalties/Pénalités : 
01:23 CAN Sidney Crosby (Roughing/Rudesse)
06:13 NOR Tommy Jakobsen (Hooking /Accrocher)
18:57 NOR Anders Bastiansen (High Sticking/Bâton élévé)

ROBERTO LUONGO GETS START IN GOAL FOR TEAM CANADA AGAINST NORWAY

VANCOUVER – When Team Canada opens the Olympic men's hockey tournament, there will be no one more at home than the man in goal.

Roberto Luongo will start when Canada plays Norway on Tuesday, a somewhat surprising call from coach Mike Babcock. Then again the Vancouver Canucks goaltender is no stranger to Canada Hockey Place – better known as GM Place outside of the Olympics – and hopes the building provides the entire team with a lift.

Part of the reason Babcock decided to give Luongo the start in the opener is because the game will be played in his home NHL rink. The coach always intended to split the opening two starts and figured it made more sense for Martin Brodeur to play the second game against Switzerland on Thursday.

“I thought because (Luongo's) from here and I was playing one of them in (each) game,” explained Babcock. “Marty's played a ton of hockey and I thought this provides him a little time.”

Beyond that, the goaltending plans remain a work in progress – much like the rest of the team.

The Canadian players were put through their only pre-tournament practice Monday evening, a brisk workout that was very business-like. With so little time to prepare for as a group, it was important for the coaching staff to deliver a lot of information.

“We tried to get through our material, we tried to get everyone back on the same page,” said Babcock. “We're like all teams here – you've got to be a work in progress and you've got to try to get better each and every day. We think we're capable of doing that. If we don't we won't be in the tournament very long.”

Team Canada features 15 players who are set to get their first Olympic experience and two of them appear to have a spot on the team's top line. At practice, Sidney Crosby was centring fellow first-timer Patrice Bergeron and Rick Nash, who was a member of the 2006 squad that finished seventh in Turin, Italy.

It marks a huge jump for Bergeron, who wasn't even among the 46 players invited to the Olympic orientation camp in Calgary last summer and now has one of the most important jobs on the team. The Boston Bruins forward and Crosby have previously had success as linemates at the 2005 world junior championship and 2006 world championship.

“I just try to go out there and play my game,” said Bergeron. “It's a true honour for me, I've been saying that the whole time. To be on a line with Sid and Rick is amazing. So I've just got to go out there, play my game and not get too nervous.”

The second line features more built-in chemistry as Anaheim Ducks teammates Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry joined Eric Staal.

Getzlaf was added to the team after being put through a battery of tests by Team Canada's medical staff. They were satisfied that his sprained left ankle was good enough to play on so executive director Steve Yzerman included him on the team's final 23-man roster – a thrilling moment for the big centre.

“It means the world,” said Getzlaf. “This is the biggest stage you can play on. To get together with this kind of group of guys, it may never come along again. That's why I'm so happy to be here.”

Another guy who was wearing a wide smile was Crosby.

This tournament has been in the back of his mind since being left off the Olympic team four years ago and he's clearly thrilled to be here. It took him less than 24 hours to catch the spirit of the Games.

“It is kind of what I expected – just fun to be surrounded by so many athletes, especially Canadian athletes when you are around the village,” said Crosby. “When we are not having meetings, everyone is glued to the TV following what is going on with other sports and it is fun being part of the small community.”

It's nothing new to the veterans like Brodeur. The New Jersey Devils goaltender is attending his fourth straight Games and knows this experience will only be a positive one if he leaves with a gold medal.

While some of the younger players were bursting with enthusiasm, he was calm and cool.

“There's a long road ahead of us,” said Brodeur. “Today was the first step to getting on the ice and getting tested with the systems and stuff. The dance starts tomorrow.”

At that point, everyone involved with the team will finally get to see what it means to play an Olympics on home soil.

Norwegian defenceman Tommy Jakobsen says he thinks “the roof will come off” when Canada takes the ice and that seems especially true given that Luongo will lead them out. It's bound to be a special moment for the Canadian players.

“People love hockey here, it's as simple as that,” said captain Scott Niedermayer. “There's many, many people in Canada that love the game. They love playing it, they love watching it, they love cheering their team on. We're happy to be part of that.”