Olympics-Ice hockey-Sweden beat gritty Latvia to stay undefeated

SOCHI, Russia, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Sweden will take an unbeaten record into the quarter-finals of the men's ice hockey tournament at the Sochi Olympics after defeating a gritty Latvia 5-3 on Saturday. Jimmie Ericsson's powerplay goal with 73 seconds left in the second period held up as the game winner for Sweden, who are looking to return to the podium for the first time since winning the gold medal at the 2006 Turin Games. Latvia went ahead early in the second period but that lead lasted just 83 seconds as Erik Karlsson tied the score with his team-leading third goal of the tournament. Winless through the three-game preliminary stage, Latvia will play a qualification game against an as-yet undetermined opponent with a berth in the quarter-finals on the line. The Swedes went through the group stage winning all three games. (Reporting by Frank Pingue; Editing by Peter Rutherford)