No two medals mean more to the host country than the gold in men's and women's ice hockey, which sets the stage for an Olympic tournament that has everyone in the hockey world excited. Here is a look at some of the top story lines for both the men and women in Vancouver.

Men: Sid the Kid leads Canada
If there were one athlete who could be considered the "face of the Games," it would be Sidney Crosby. The Pittsburgh Penguins' captain will be asked to lead Canada to the prize the home nation covets most at these Games - gold in men's ice hockey. Crosby, 22, was left off the 2006 Canadian team in his rookie season, and that became a controversial decision. In Torino, Canada finished a disappointing seventh overall after losing to Russia in the quarterfinals. Further increasing the pressure, Vancouver may be Crosby's only Olympic appearance - it is unclear whether or not the NHL will permit its players to compete in 2014. Canada is coached by Mike Babcock, head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, and former Detroit captain Steve Yzerman is the executive director of Hockey Canada for 2010.

Red ambition
Canada's toughest opponent appears to be the two-time defending world champion Russians. Both wins came against Canada in the final -- and even though the rosters won't be the same, the prospect of a rematch is daunting. Of the top six NHL scorers in the 2008-09 season, four were Russian. The formidable offense will be led by Alexander Ovechkin, the energetic Capitals' superstar, who finished second in the scoring race. Evgeni Malkin, who led the league in scoring, also won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins alongside Crosby. Rounding out the top four are Pavel Datsyuk of Detroit and Ilya Kovalchuk of Atlanta. They also have two solid goaltenders to split time, with Ilya Bryzgalov and Evgeni Nabakov in net. In the past, Russia has been handicapped by a lack of unity among its talented stars, but this talented group has proven the ability to work as a team. With a loss in the bronze-medal game in Torino, and the 2014 Games set for Sochi, Russia, this team will be motivated to ruin the show for the home crowd.

U.S. Team: Younger=better?
Ever since Brian Burke, the president and general manager of the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs, was named general manager of the U.S. men's hockey team for Vancouver, he has emphasized that the U.S. squad will be a young group featuring names the average American fan might not recognize. Burke's hope is that young blood will revitalize the Americans. A team stocked mostly with veterans -- who led the U.S. to a silver medal in Salt Lake -- sputtered to an eighth-place finish in Torino.

Burke chose his coach in Toronto, Ron Wilson, to lead the United States in 2010. At an orientation camp in August for a pool of Olympic hopefuls, only five players had prior Olympic experience, headlined by Mike Modano, the NHL's all-time leading scorer among American players, but there is no guarantee that Modano or the other veterans (Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, Jamie Langenbrunner, Brian Rafalski) will be on the final roster.

Some of the first-time Olympians likely to be key contributors for the United States in February include forwards Zach Parise of the New Jersey Devils and Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks. Also likely to be there is Nashville Predators' defenseman Ryan Suter, whose father, Bob, was a member of the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" team.

Sundin-less Sweden for 2010
Veteran center and past captain of the Swedish team Mats Sundin, 38, decided he will not play for the defending Olympic champions in Vancouver. But there are plenty of Swedes waiting to take his place at center, including Washington's Nicklas Backstrom and the Vancouver's Henrik Sedin, both of whom scored more than 20 goals last season. In addition to playing in Vancouver all season, Sedin has the added benefit of sharing a line with his twin brother, Daniel, who is also a sure thing for Team Sweden. It is unclear whether hockey icon Peter Forsberg will be competing for Sweden. Though named to the preliminary Olympic roster, Forsberg has been plagued with foot troubles recently. Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom is likely to be one of the leaders of the Swedish squad. Always a deeply talented team, Sweden should contend for another medal in Vancouver. 

Women: U.S., Canada expected to meet for gold
Torino was a shock to the women's hockey world - not because Canada won gold, but because it didn't beat the United States to earn it. Sweden stunned the Americans in the semifinal game and claimed the silver medal. The United States and Canada had met to contest the gold medal at every women's world championship since the event's inception in 1990 had met in the final game at both the 1998 and 2002 Games. The loss led to a significant overhaul within the ranks of USA Hockey- highlighted by a new head coach, Mark Johnson, one of the heroes of the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" team.

The Americans have won the last two world championships, and those results have increased pressure on Canada in the lead-up to its home Olympics. The U.S. roster has only six players with previous Olympic experience, highlighted by Jenny Potter and Angela Ruggiero, who have been on all three previous Olympic teams.

Canada plays a very disciplined brand of hockey under coach Melody Davidson, who led the Canadians to gold in Torino. While the U.S. and Canada often play tight games and are very evenly matched, it is not because their styles are similar. The U.S. tends to be more creative offensively, which leads to more scoring chances at the risk of defensive exposure. Canada is more conservative offensively, meaning fewer opportunities to score but also fewer chances for the opponent. U.S. vs. Canada could well come down to goaltender play. The top U.S. goalie is Jessie Vetter, who led the University of Wisconsin to three national titles in four years under coach Johnson. Davidson has had trouble deciding which of her two goalies - Kim St. Pierre or Charline Labonte is the starter, and has rotated them. Both have the ability to frustrate opposing shooters.

And Sweden vs. Finland for Bronze
After the United States and Canada, Sweden and Finland are the next two teams in the women's hockey pecking order. The Nordic neighbors should square off for the bronze medal, as they have established some distance between themselves and the remaining four teams in the women's field. Both squads are young and feature very talented goaltenders - Noora Raty for Finland and Kim Martin for Sweden.