Set your alarm clocks, grab your teammates and get cozy in your Zach Parise and Anne Schleper jerseys: Team USA’s quest for Gold is about to get underway. Just three days before the opening ceremonies in Sochi, Russia, on Feb. 7, we want to make sure you’re prepared for Olympic action.

Use these helpful times and notes to make the most of your 2014 Olympic experience.

Wild For Olympians

Minnesota Wild standouts Zach Parise and Ryan Suter will represent the U.S. and were recently named captain and alternate captain respectively. The two aren’t the only players representing their country from our state’s pro team though. Mikko Koivu (Finland), Mikael Granlund (Finland) and Nino Niederreiter (Switzerland) bring the total to five current Wild players in Sochi.

NHL vs. Olympics

Fans of the Minnesota Wild may notice a different style of game being played on the ice in Sochi. For starters, the ice rinks will expand the typical NHL size of 200’ x 85’ to 200’ x 98’ per International Ice Hockey Federation rules.

IIHF tiebreaker rules may also throw some fans for a loop. The Olympics’ preliminary round will resemble the NHL’s regular season format, with a 4-on-4, five-minute sudden death overtime being played, followed by a shootout if a tie remains. Then, the overtime will expand to a 10-minute period in the qualification games, quarterfinals, semifinals and bronze medal games. To earn gold after regulation, one 20-minute sudden death overtime will be played before a shootout decides the game.

Check out all the rule differences between the NHL and IIHF.

Just Scratching the Surface

History shows that the U.S. has struggled on the bigger Olympic sheet of ice. The two gold medals won by Team USA in 1960 and 1980 were achieved on North American soil, as were the 2002 and 2010 silver medal finishes. 

Looking to turn that curse, the larger rink played a big role in the decisions made by the USA Hockey brain trust in forming this year’s squad. Blake Wheeler, Paul Martin and Phil Kessel used an Olympic sheet as home ice advantage when playing for the University of Minnesota. University of Wisconsin alums Derek Stepan, Ryan Suter, Joe Pavelski and Ryan McDonagh, along with Minnesota State-Mankato’s David Backes also skated on an expanded sheet in college.

Will this past experience help lift Team USA to a better finish? That’s the hope for those cheering U-S-A.

College Connection

Twenty of the 25 players on the men’s squad along with all 21 women’s players suited up for a Division I college team in their careers. Ten played their college minutes for a Minnesota school:

Men’s

Minnesota State-Mankato – David Backes

University of Minnesota-Duluth – Justin Faulk

University of Minnesota – Paul Martin, Blake Wheeler, Phil Kessel

Women’s

University of Minnesota – Megan Bozek, Gigi Marvin, Amanda Kessel, Anne Schleper, Lee Stecklein.

But Team USA isn’t the only squad with Minnesota ties. Former Gopher standout Thomas Vanek is a captain for the Austrian team. On the women’s side, a handful of U.S. Gophers will face off against a former teammate. Noora Räty, who backstopped the Gophers to back-to-back national championships, will be in net for Finland, the U.S. women’s team’s first opponent in the preliminary round on Feb. 8.

Familiar Faces

The majority of the US Men’s Olympic team has competed together on some capacity. Being past teammates on a college, pro or national team should bode well for chemistry.

Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh – These two New York Rangers skated together at the University of Wisconsin for two years and were on the 2011 U.S. World Championship team.

Zach Parise and Ryan Suter – Aside from joining the Minnesota Wild together in 2012, Parise and Suter have teamed up to represent Team USA a total of six times. They captured hardware three times with gold at the 2002 U18 and 2004 World Junior Championships and silver in Vancouver in 2010.

Brooks Orpik and Paul Martin – This pair should have little problem communicating on the international stage as they are one of the best defensive pairs in the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Blake Wheeler and T.J. Oshie – Though college rivals at Minnesota and North Dakota, Wheeler and Oshie joined forces for the U.S. National Junior Team in 2006.

More Than Just Hockey

Nineteen Olympians competing in the Winter Games claim Minnesota as their home – the second highest state representation behind California’s 20. As expected in the State of Hockey, 11 of those 19 athletes are hockey players. In addition to contributing to the U.S. Olympic hockey teams, Minnesotans make up 80 percent of the men’s curling team.

Here are other Olympians to check in on when hockey’s not on.

• Biathlon – Leif Nordgren (Marine on St. Croix)
• Men’s Curling – Jeff Isaacson (Lakeland), John Landsteiner (Mapleton), John Shuster (Chisholm), Jared Zezel (Hibbing)
• Women’s Curling – Allison Pottinger (Eden Prairie)
• Speedskating, Long Track – Anna Ringsred (Duluth)
• Cross Country Skiing – Jessie Diggins (Afton)

The clocks in Sochi run 10 hours ahead of Minnesota, forcing most of the Olympic hockey action to be played before dawn here. While all the games will be aired live, featured games will also be replayed during the evening (All start times are Central Standard Time).

All games, except the gold medal games (NBC), will be shown on NBCSN.

2014 U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey

Feb. 13 vs. Slovakia at 6:30 a.m.

Feb. 15 vs. Russia at 6:30 a.m.

Feb. 16 vs. Slovenia at 6:30 a.m.

Feb. 18 Qualification, time TBD

Feb. 19 Quarterfinals, time TBD

Feb. 21 Semifinals, time TBD

Feb. 22 Bronze Medal Game at 9 a.m.

Feb. 23 Gold Medal Game at 6 am NBC

2014 U.S. Women’s Olympic Hockey

Feb. 8 vs. Finland at 2 a.m.

Feb. 10 vs. Switzerland at 4 a.m.

Feb. 12 vs. Canada at 6 a.m.

Feb. 15 Quarterfinals, time TBD

Feb. 17 Semifinals, time TBD

Feb. 20 Bronze Medal Game at 6 a.m.

Feb. 20 Gold Medal Game at 11 am NBC