Sochi Olympics: Viewer's guide

ByESPN.COM
February 7, 2014, 2:59 PM

— -- Here is a look at some of the events on our radar at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia:

Friday, Feb. 7

What: Opening Ceremony
Where: Fisht Olympic Stadium
When: 11 a.m. ET

Summary: What type of show will Russia put on? Sabre dances? Russian folk music? Vladimir Putin taking off his shirt? We'll see, but do not expect James Bond sky-diving into the stadium (darn) or Yoko Ono singing (good!).

Saturday, Feb. 8

What: Figure Skating
Where: Iceberg Skating Palace
Events/When: Ice Dance Team short dance, 9:30 a.m. ET; Women's Team short program, 11:10 a.m. ET; Pairs Team free program, 1:05 p.m. ET

Summary: Thanks to this fun new event, figure skaters will be competing more for their countries than just themselves. Here's how it works. Countries will have an individual man, individual woman, one pair and one ice dance couple competing in team short and long programs. The performances receive points in the order of how they finish, and the country with the best total score wins. Canada, the U.S. and Russia are the top contenders. Unfortunately, the U.S. will not be wearing team uniforms -- so no star-spangled sequins, feathers, tassels or corsets.

What: Freestyle Skiing
Where: Rosa Khutor Extreme Park
Events/When: Women's Moguls Qualification, 9 a.m. ET; Women's Moguls Finals, 1 p.m. ET

Summary: 2010 Olympic champ Hannah Kearney is back and surrounded by a strong U.S. team that includes two-time Olympian Heather McPhie and rookies Heidi Kloser and Eliza Outtrim.

What: Ice Hockey
Where: Shayba Arena
Events/When: Women, Group A: United States vs. Finland, 3 a.m. ET

Summary: Early round-robin matches in the women's hockey tournament often shape up as cakewalks for the perennially strong U.S. team. Not so this time. Finland stunned the U.S. 3-1 at the Four Nations Cup in Lake Placid, N.Y. in November and became the first team other than Canada to defeat the Americans in a non-medal round at a major international event -- a 161-game streak. The U.S. women will try to solve goalkeeper Noora Raty (University of Minnesota), who made 58 saves in that game.