At long last, hockey-starved fans have some high-quality on-ice action to divert their attention from the NHL’s tiresome labor dispute.

The World Hockey Championship, which kicked off this week in Austria, traditionally receives much more attention in Europe than it does here in North America, largely because it takes place during the Stanley Cup playoffs. In the absence of the NHL, however, larger contingents of elite players are available for the International Ice Hockey Federation tournament this year, and the quality of play is vastly improved.

One of the most interesting storylines of this tournament is the revamping of Team USA, which has largely discarded the corps of aging superstars that won gold at the 1996 World Cup. This faster, younger American squad got off to a good start in the round-robin phase of the tournament, notching a 7-0 laugher against Slovenia on Sunday.The Americans struggled a bit in their second matchup against Latvia, mostly due to the stellar goaltending of sometime NHL standout Arturs Irbe, but the 3-1 win ensured that the Americans would advance to the tournament’s elimination round, which they kick off today against Finland.

Yesterday, the Americans faced off against the two-time defending champions from Canada, and though they lost 3-1, there were some positive signs that the U.S. team is on the right track. It is also abundantly clear, however, that they’ll need some more time to gel before they can once again be considered a legitimate world hockey power.

Only Mike Modano and Doug Weight remain from that 1996 team, and alongside them is a band of relative unknowns brought aboard to provide some much-needed youthful energy. From top to bottom, the U.S. lineup is the fastest it’s been in a decade, which has given the team a boost on the larger European ice surface.

Perhaps the most compelling story is that of Philadelphia Flyers forward Mike Knuble. A grinder with the Rangers in the late ’90s, Knuble specialized in flubbing wondrous scoring chances while playing on a line with Wayne Gretzky. Then-Rangers coach John Muckler was vilified for pairing the Great One with a fourth-line winger, but it is now apparent that he knew more than his critics. The late-blooming Knuble is now one of the NHL’s most effective power forwards. He scored Team USA’s only goal yesterday when he stole the puck from Ed Jovanovski (Vancouver Canucks) on the Canadian blue line and fired a wrist shot past Devils goalie Martin Brodeur.

The Devils’ Brian Gionta and the Islanders’ Mark Parrish also looked quite good against Canada.Parrish has scored two goals thus far, and nearly scored a third yesterday when his deflection of a Weight shot missed the goal by mere inches. Gionta, meanwhile, was named Team USA’s best player yesterday,largely for his tenacious pursuit of the puck.

Team USA’s improved speed was also noticeable on the blue line, where grizzled veterans Brian Leetch, Derian Hatcher, and Chris Chelios have been replaced with younger, more agile players, most of whom have remained active during the NHL lockout.Of the seven defensemen dressed for yesterday’s game, only the Sequoia-like Hal Gill and the hard-hitting Aaron Miller lack in foot-speed.

This revamped defense corps enabled the Americans to rush the puck out of their zone with a zeal unseen since Leetch was in his prime. Particularly impressive were John-Michael Liles (Colorado Avalanche) and Jordan Leopold (Calgary Flames), two slickskating blueliners with end-to-end speed and stellar puck-carrying skills.

In goal, the Islanders’ Rick DiPietro was solid but unspectacular yesterday. The first goal was the only one for which he could be legitimately blamed, as he allowed Rick Nash to pick up a rebound of his own wraparound attempt and bury the puck on the far side. DiPietro also demonstrated a worrisome propensity to over-handle the puck, a possible sign that a year of inactivity has allowed him to revert to some bad habits.

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For their part, the Canadians looked a bit lost yesterday, despite boasting by far the most talented roster in the tournament. The Americans out-shot them 14-6 in the opening period (and 34-23 overall), keeping the favorites on their heels throughout. But stellar performances by Nash and Brodeur ended up being enough to sway the tide in the Canucks’ favor.

Nash was in DiPietro’s face all game long, generating numerous scoring chances and wreaking havoc with linemates Joe Thornton (Boston Bruins) and Simon Gagne (Philadelphia Flyers). Having led the NHL with 41 goals last season, Nash has remained active this season playing for HC Davos in Switzerland alongside Thornton, and that fitness was obvious yesterday. Nash scored Canada’s second goal when he received a breakout pass from the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Dan Boyle, raced into the offensive zone unencumbered, and lifted the puck past a sprawling DiPietro. Thornton closed the scoring on the power play, when he was left alone on the goal line and buried a low shot.

In Canada’s goal, Brodeur showed no ill effects from a season of inactivity. He was sharp throughout, stopping 33 of 34 shots and showing his usual sound positional play. Given that the Canadian team contains many players who were inactive this year, they will likely lean on Brodeur quite heavily in this tournament. If he’s up to the task, Brodeur could prove to be the difference-maker in matchups against the best European nations, which are stocked with European League players in playoff shape.

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The Finns and Russians are playing with seriously depleted rosters, but the Czech team looks capable of challenging for the title. The Rangers’ Jaromir Jagr, who has decided to continue playing despite a fractured finger, scored 67 points in 49 European games this season (split between Czech team Kladno and Russian team Omsk Avangard). The Czechs will have to do without the Devils’ Patrik Elias, who contracted hepatitis A while playing in Russia, and endured a month-long hospital stay; he is expected to recover completely in about six months’ time. Nonetheless, Jagr – along with Martin Straka (L.A. Kings) and Ales Hemsky (Edmonton Oilers) – should provide the Czechs with enough firepower to reach the medal round.

Sweden defeated Finland in another important match-up on Wednesday, and they finished the preliminary round with a flawless 3-0 record. Despite going to battle without superstars Mats Sundin, Niklas Lidstrom and Peter Forsberg, the Swedes are probably the best team in this tournament.The key to their fortunes may be Rangers goaltending prospect Henrik Lundqvist, who is fresh off a championship run with Frolunda (Swedish Elite League). Lundqvist will likely get the chance to bring his goaltending show to Broadway when the NHL resumes play.

Look for Lundqvist to complete his storybook season and lead the Swedes to victory in the gold medal game over Canada. The Sedin twins will continue to assert themselves as elite-level scorers, while Henrik Zetterberg will also impress. There won’t be any miracles on ice for the Americans this time around, but a bronze medal-winning performance is quite possible. If DiPietro can manage to keep his focus, it will go a long way towards helping the U.S. team take what would be a very positive step forward.

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.