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Canada

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Top to bottom, Canada is the most talented team of the tournament with enough depth to fill two medal contending teams. Team Canada will also benefit from the decision to use NHL-sized ice and the motivation to capture gold on Canadian soil. Canada has an abundance of scoring at their disposal thanks to the supreme playmaking abilities of Sidney Crosby and Joe Thornton along side snipers such as Dany Heatley, Jarome Iginla and Rick Nash. Canada will also feature an embarrassment of riches on the blueline thanks to Norris Trophy winners such as Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer as well as up-and-comers Drew Doughty and Duncan Keith. Canada's biggest strength may be in net with Martin Brodeur being pushed by both Roberto Luongo and Marc-Andre Fleury.

Russia

While Canada may have more depth, the Russian's might be the most offensively dynamic team in the tournament with tons of firepower at their disposal. Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk all star for their NHL clubs but also take their respective games to another level when they play for their country. Evgeni Nabokov and Ilya Bryzgalov should provide solid goaltending. While the defence corps is not littered with super stars, players like Sergei Gonchar and Andrei Markov should provide two-way play. With the 2014 Olympic Games being played in Sochi, Russia would certainly love a chance to defend Olympic gold on their home soil.

Sweden

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The Tre Kronor are the defending Olympic champions and will not easily relinquish their crown. Team Sweden will feature a very strong group of returning players including Henrik Zetterberg, Nicklas Lidstrom and Daniel and Henrik Sedin. ‘King' Henrik Lundqvist will once again be between the pipes for the Swedes to provide stellar goaltending.

Finland

One of the biggest surprises in Turin thanks to the silver medal performance, you can bet that teams will not underestimate the Finns once again. Finland will once again turn to proven veterans such as Teemu Selanne, Saku Koivu and Olli Jokinen to provide offense and leadership. The key to the Finns' success is once again their goaltending where Miikka Kiprusoff and Niklas Backstrom are amongst the best on the planet.

WOMEN:

Canada

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The gold medalist from the 2002 and 2006 Olympics will have a nice combination of new talent and veteran experience. Hayley Wickenheiser is still likely the best scorer in the women's game, improving through her play with a Swedish men's club team. Also coming into her fourth Olympics, Jayna Hefford is a natural scorer. Caroline Ouellette's imposing size and ability to play forward or defense make her an incredible force. And look out for up-and-comer Marie-Philip Poulin, who will drive to make her first Olympic team at age 18 with incredible hands that have many thinking she could be the "next one" in women's hockey.

United States

This team went from Olympic gold in 1998 to silver in 2002 to bronze in 2006 but won both the World Championships and the Four Nations Cup in 2008. Newly-hired coach Mark Johnson, a two-time national champion at The University of Wisconsin, will provide much-needed consistency. A long-time pillar of the program, defender Angela Ruggiero is big, strong, and has put off a career to seek one last Olympic gold medal. Forward Natalie Darwitz is a scorer and a leader, and is back as captain, having been with the team since she was 15 in 1999. Kerry Weiland, who was cut repeatedly by former coach Ben Smith, aims to show she belongs. Goalie Jessie Vetter was sensational for the U.S. at the 2008 Four Nations Cup and is thought to have the inside track on the 2010 starting job.

Finland

This team won a bronze medal at the 2008 World Championships, but its greatest achievement in that tournament was upsetting the USA 1-0 in the qualifying round. The Finns play a grinding game and effectively clog up the middle of their defensive zone in front of their goalie. Goaltender Noora Räty was the star of the upset over the U.S. at the 2008 Worlds with 30 saves. Powerhouse Heidi Pelttari has the versatility to be dominant on defense or offense and has racked up numerous NCAA college hockey honours under former Canadian Olympic coach Shannon Miller at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Sweden

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Sweden provided two significant moments in international women's hockey to open up the competitive playing field beyond North America. The Swedes upset the U.S. in the semifinals at the 2006 Olympics en route to a silver medal, and also beat Canada during the 2008 Worlds. One of the stars of those great victories was goaltender Kim Martin, who was stellar particularly in the shootout against the U.S. in 2006 and was named the top goaltender of that tournament. With her success in Swedish men's club hockey and NCAA hockey at Minnesota-Duluth, she will be even stronger in 2010. Look for impressive scoring talent from veterans Maria Rooth and Pernilla Winberg.