By Alan Adams | NHL.com columnist
PRAGUE - Peter Laviolette is getting his wish.
Walking into the Sazka Arena Monday night for the World Hockey Championship game between Canada and the Czech Republic, Laviolette mentioned he thought it would be best if the United States faced the Czechs when the medal round starts Wednesday.
"It's their rink, their fans and you might as well play them off the bat," said Laviolette, head coach of the United States. "We worked hard to get to this point and we might as well enjoy it."
The Czechs then went out and whipped Canada 6-2 to clinch first place in the pool of four teams playing here in the Czech capital and their next opponent is the United States.
The Americans came to the Czech Republic wanting to a) avoid going to the relegation round for a second-straight year and b) clinch an invitation to the 2006 Winter Olympics in Italy.
It's mission accomplished on those fronts and now the Americans are thinking of winning a medal here at the '04 Worlds. A win over the favored Czechs would be an upset and make the Americans the team to beat.
"We've played well," said Laviolette. "The guys are in a good mood and I like what we've done."
There was only one medal round matchup not resolved by the end of play Monday and that will be sorted out Tuesday when Germany plays Switzerland in the final qualifying game that means anything.
The Czechs are first and Canada is second in E Group. Latvia finished third and will move on, while Germany is fourth with three points and Switzerland follows with a pair of points.
In the pool being played in Ostrava, Slovakia clinched top spot thanks to a 0-0 draw with Sweden and won on goal differential. Sweden finished second. Finland was third and the United States fourth.
When the medal round begins Wednesday, it's the Czechs vs. the United States and Sweden vs. Latvia. On Thursday, Slovakia plays the winner of Germany-Switzerland and Canada plays Finland.
The Americans are used to having a tough opponent. The Ostrava qualifying group features Finland, Sweden, Russia and Slovakia, while the Czechs and Canadians were the class of the group here in the Czech capital.
The Americans play Denmark tonight and the Americans won't take the Danes lightly. The Danes beat the Americans a year ago.
"Different team," says Laviolette, comparing last year to this year.
In Tuesday's games, Russia lost 4-0 to Finland and the Russians will finish out of the medal round.
"It's always tough to lose, whether it's in the NHL or here," said Russian forward Ilya Kovalchuk of the Atlanta Thrashers. "We tried, but it just didn't work out. You always try to represent your country with pride and, at the same time, try to win. It's difficult when you can't do both."
In typical fashion, Russian coach Viktor Tikhonov refused to shoulder any blame.
"First of all, it's the mistakes of the players [that led to us being eliminated]. Second, the lack of time (to prepare)," he said.
The Czech-Canada game marked the first time they each played a tough opponent and there is no love lost between these teams. It was a hard-hitting affair that featured a wild melee at the end of the second period.
The 18,000 fans at the Sazka Arena were singing before the game and the Czechs took to the ice supported by a deafening roar that is usually reserved for Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. It was so loud that Canadian head coach Mike Babcock had to tap his players on the shoulders to get their attention.
The Czechs had the game well in hand when tempers and frustrations surfaced late in the second period. The period ended with an all-out melee featuring Jaromir Jagr and Dany Heatley, and 14 minutes in minor penalties were called.
The Czechs were the better team by a country mile.
"The bottom line is today we leave the rink with some humble pie, no doubt about it," said Babcock. "But if we do not have the emotions under control now, we know what happens. We had a real good message and we can't play like that."
Former Edmonton Oiler Josef Beranek scored twice, while Milan Kraft of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vaclav Prospal of the Mighty Ducks, Martin Rucinsky of the Vancouver Canucks and former NHLer Jiri Dopita also scored.
Tomas Vokoun of the Nashville Predators was solid in net.
Which is really why guys like Kevin Hatcher used to tick me off - all that size wasted on a guy who played as soft as Phil Housley at times. 
