‘94 WINTER OLYMPICS / LILLEHAMMER : Top-Seeded Russians Storm Past Norway : Hockey: Despite Dmitriev’s disclaimers, the 5-1 victory over the 11th-seeded hosts is impressive.

Igor Dmitriev’s mood was as dark as his sober wool suit, his face fixed in a frown that transcended the language barrier.

“We were lucky,” the assistant coach of Russia’s Olympic hockey team said through an interpreter after a 5-1 victory over Norway here Saturday. “It was obvious with our defense, because they were not ready for such sharp and speedy moves of the forwards of the Norwegian team.”

Dmitriev’s poor-mouthing didn’t go over well with Norwegian Coach Bengt Ohlson, who was sitting a few feet away. “This Russian team is very strong,” Ohlson said. “Even if they say something else, they know it’s strong.”

Perhaps not as dominant as the Soviet and Unified teams that won seven of the last eight Olympic gold medals, the top-seeded Russian team was more than capable of manhandling the willing but overmatched Norwegians. The 11th-seeded host team, backed by a crowd of 5,200, kept the score close through two periods but was thrashed in the final 20 minutes.

A short-handed goal by wing Valeri Karpov, the Mighty Ducks’ 56th pick in last June’s draft, deflated the Norwegian players with 7:24 to play and gave Russia a 4-1 lead. Sergei Sorokin’s wrist shot, set up on a drop pass by Ravil Gusmanov, sent the fans streaming to the exits with 5:21 to play.

“They don’t seem to be as sharp as I’ve seen them play before,” Norwegian goaltender Robert Schistad said. “They’re certainly not the machine they were in the ‘70s.”

Schistad is a native of Wingham, Canada, northwest of Toronto. He moved to Norway seven years ago and was eligible for the Olympic team because his father was born in Norway.

“I really enjoy playing against the Russians,” Schistad added. “It’s a challenge, and I usually play much better against them than against other teams, so today is a bit of a letdown.”

Schistad was in goal for Norway’s surprising 2-2 tie with Russia at the Izvestia tournament last December in Moscow and for a 5-2 victory in the Telehockey tournament in Norway in November. The Russian team has changed significantly since then, however, blending players from the Russian teams that finished 1-2 in the Izvestia competition.

The first period provided Norway reason for optimism, even though the Russians took a 2-0 lead before the game was four minutes old.

Capitalizing on a defensive breakdown, Gusmanov came around from behind the net and was unchecked, allowing him to flick a shot inside the right post 23 seconds into the game. Sergei Berezine scored at 3:27 on a short-handed breakaway.

The Norwegians made the score 2-1 at 18:19, when Marius Rath took a cross-ice pass from Espen Knutsen and got behind defenseman Oleg Chargorodski for an unchallenged shot at Andrei Zuev.

“The boys never gave up,” said Ohlson, a Swede. “But then they scored the fourth goal, and it was over.”

Russia will play seventh-seeded Finland, which scored a 3-1 upset of the third-seeded Czech Republic, on Monday. This Russian team doesn’t appear to be in danger of disgracing its great Olympic hockey tradition.

“We must be frank,” Dmitriev said, smiling for the first time. “There is no team here with the idea that it is here to lose. Every team will be disappointed if they are losing.”

In Saturday’s other game, Germany beat Austria, 4-3.