Something I found interesting, now that I understand football (soccer) better, was the strategy employed by many of the lesser Olympic men's hockey teams.

They've taken a page straight from footballers.. play passively and defend for all but the final few minutes of a game, and then go all out with your few good players for the final 2-3 minutes trying to win.

That method allows a team with only a few good players to be competitive against a powerhouse where even the fourth line is comprised of all-stars.

Weird, but almost effective enough in some of the games.

-ml