A Wealth of Riches

What’s Happening: The NHL is set to return to the Olympics (we think) in February. There was a growing sense that the NHL would pull out amid the latest COVID-19 development, but commissioner Gary Bettman last Friday said that the decision to go ultimately lies with the players. TSN’s and The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun told TSN radio that the sense he has is that the players overwhelmingly want to go. 

Onwards, then. 

With rosters set to be announced in early January, this is a good time to predict what those may look like. Today, we tackle Team Canada’s men’s team, which is looking for its fourth gold medal since 2002. 

Greg Wyshynski @wyshynski

Here's the article I mentioned on @TSN1260 today. NHLPA needs to hear a lot more from the IOC and Beijing Olympic organizers, as pessimism about the NHL participating in 2022 Games grows. @TomGazzola NHLPA: Olympic protocols have players waryNHLPA executive director Don Fehr said the lack of “concrete answers” from the Beijing Organizing Committee about COVID-19 protocols has led to uncertainty from the players about participation in the Winter Olympics.espn.com

December 13th 2021

3 Retweets3 Likes

Never short on talent, the discussion around Team Canada will come down to what talented players don’t make the cut. With Sydney Crosby, Connor McDavid, and Alex Pietrangelo already being named by GM Doug Armstrong, 19 skaters and 3 goalies remain.

Pregame Skate’s Pick ‘Em

*denotes players currently injured 

There’s no debate at the top of Canada’s lineup as there are clear locks to be on the team. 

The Locks:

Forwards: Jonathan Huberdeau, Nathan MacKinnon, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, *Brayden Point 

Defensemen: Shea Theodore, Cale Makar

The Decisions:

The remainder of the roster construction will come down to what kind of game head coach John Cooper and assistants Barry Trotz, Bruce Cassidy, and Peter DeBoer want to play. Do they want the most skilled roster? Do they want to have defensive responsibility and balance? How much emphasis will they place on experience? 

The most likely candidates up front include: 

Mark Scheifle - one of the best two-way forwards in the game

Steven Stamkos - now more one-dimensional, but can they leave him off? 

Ryan O’Reilly - shut down center

*Mitch Marner - currently injured, but as close to a lock as there is in this group

In the conversation:

Depending on the management team’s answers to those team-construction questions above, the depth up front gets interesting. If they go with the most skill, players like Mathew Barzal and Mark Stone draw in. If they want experience, John Tavares gets a look. If they value instant chemistry for a short tournament, Zach Hyman makes it to play with MacDavid (ala Chris Kunitz with Crosby in 2010). 

Other forwards worth considering include Sean Couturier, Claude Giroux, Tyler Seguin, Travis Konecny, Anthony Cirelli, and Taylor Hall. 

The Back End:

Beyond Pietrangelo, Theodore, and Makar, there are a lot of philosophical decisions to make here. Going with those who have got you there before means choosing *Drew Doughty and Brent Burns, who are both having renaissance seasons. Giving young blood a chance would mean the likes of Darnell Nurse, Dougie Hamilton, Aaron Ekblad, and even Thomas Chabot draw in. 

But what about defensive defensemen? Adam Pelech and Colton Paryko fit that mold. And we haven’t gotten to Morgan Rielly, Jakob Chychrun, and Josh Morrissey yet. A wealth of riches indeed.  

Between the pipes: 

For the first time in a long, long time, Team Canada doesn’t have a lock in goal. Carey Price is the obvious leading candidate, but he has yet to play a game this season. If they can’t bank on Price, it gets really interesting. 

The list includes:

Jordan Binnington

Marc-Andre Fleury

Darcy Keuemper

Mackenzie Blackwood

Carter Hart

There’s talent there, but between past success and untapped potential, there are many unknowns. 

The Projected Lineup 

With all that said, here’s our best guess of what Team Canada will look like. Ultimately, it’s a balanced roster with an eye towards the future and looking past the old guard. 

Forwards:

Hyman          McDavid        MacKinnon

Marchand      Crosby            Point 

O’Reilly        Bergeron         Scheifele 

Huberdeau     Tavares           Marner

*Extras: Mark Stone, Steven Stamkos 

Left off: Mathew Barzal, Taylor Hall, Sean Couturier 

Defense:

Theodore  Pietrangelo

 Pelech       Makar

 Nurse       Hamilton

*Extras: Ekblad, Chabot

Left off: Brent Burns, Josh Morrissey, Morgan Rielly, Bowen Bryam, Drew Doughty 

Goalies:

Binnington

Hart

Fleury

Left off: *Carey Price, Mackenzie Blackwood

*Things could change before January 10, but taking Price right now is too big of a gamble. If Price is in, Fleury is likely out. 

Links from the Rink

• Current SI Power Rankings: How does your team stack up?

• Career Over: Ben Bishop hangs ‘em up

• Game On: Bettman says players have control over Olympics

• Rent Due: Coyotes have unpaid bills 

• Goal of the Century? Chris Johnston talks Trevor Zegras