Gar Bercury —
The 2010 Olympics in Vancouver will be remembered for one of the truly epic games in Olympic hockey history, USA vs Canada, winner gets the gold. Ultimately, Sidney Crosby’s game winner sent Canada into a frenzy, and for Team USA, bitter disappointment. Four years later, Canada and the US are two of the favorites going into the Sochi games. Could we see a repeat final match up between these two hockey powers? In a rematch, it would be easy to make a case for either team, but to me, Canada has everything in place to repeat.
Star power? Check. Incredible depth throughout the team offensively and defensively? Not even a question. Experience and a track record of success in goal? You bet. A coaching staff that understands how to win the ultimate prize both in the NHL and internationally? Absolutely. Nearly half the roster has Olympic experience, as 10 players have won at least one Stanley Cup, and five players are team captains for their respective NHL teams. Its hard not to love this group.
Looking at all of these factors, it would be difficult to bet against Canada. Let’s look at some specifics.
First off, you will be hard pressed to find a better coaching staff than that of Team Canada. Led by Mike Babcock, the Red Wings coach is widely regarded as the best in the game. Babcock’s resume is undeniable, and he is the first head coach in history to win Olympic Gold, World Championship Gold and a Stanley Cup. Babcock’s assistants include Stanley Cup winners Ken Hitchcock (1999 with Dallas) and Claude Julien (2011 with Boston). Add longtime Buffalo and current Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff, and you have the makings of a coaching staff that is second to none.
When it comes to forwards, no team has the depth of talent, or star power that Canada has. With team captain Sidney Crosby leading the way, this unit has five of the top 10 scorers in the NHL. Sitting just outside of that top 10 list include some of the NHL’s best; Jonathan Toews, John Tavares, Patrick Marleau and newest addition as injury replacement for Steven Stamkos, veteran sniper, Martin St. Louis. Though one can argue that scoring will be difficult with top goaltenders like Ryan Miller and Jonathan Quick playing for Team USA, Canada has six forwards that have scored 25 or more goals this season, which is absolutely ridiculous.
This group lacks any real weaknesses. Skill, scoring touch and the skating ability up and down the lineup to play on the larger international playing surface. Though its easy to simply look at the incredible scoring abilities of this group, add solid two-way players like Chris Kunitz, Jamie Benn and Patrice Bergeron, and you have players capable of matching up against any opponents top forwards. This is an unheralded, but important advantage for Canada, and it will be something that will come in handy going against top scoring threats for the USA like Patrick Kane and Phil Kessel.
Speaking of a group that has it all, look no further than Team Canada’s defense. With Shea Weber, Drew Doughty and Duncan Keith leading the way, it would not be hard to conclude this is far and away the best defensive group in the Olympics by a comfortable margin. Weber, Doughty and Keith all return from the 2010 team, and each are playing at a Norris Trophy level. Much like the forwards for Canada, the superlatives come easy when discussing this talented group. Physical presence, skating, scoring; there really seems to be no flaws. It’s a pretty scary thought for opponents when 2013 Norris winner, P.K. Subban will likely be fighting for consistent minutes.
A potential pairing of Keith and Doughty, along with Weber playing with a shutdown defenseman like Marc-Edourd Vlasic, could mean quality chances for opponents will be few and far between. Blues teammates Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Pietrangelo solidify a likely third pairing. From a penalty kill standpoint, the idea of having players like Doughty and Weber on the ice with proven PK forwards like Bergeron means goals will be very hard to come by for any opponent in Sochi.
Goaltending has been pointed out as a potential weakness. 2010 gold medal goalie Roberto Luongo, though proven, will have to fight off the challenge of Canadiens goalie, Carey Price. In either case, both players have not only been excellent this season, but have been considered among the NHL’s elite at their position. I, for one, believe Price could emerge as Canada’s go-to guy. Whether its Price or Luongo, with so much talent in front of them, and a defense that looks to be the best unit of the Olympics, teams will be hard pressed to score enough to beat Canada.
Count me in as one of the people who believe that Canada is in position to repeat as Gold medal winners. With the USA, Sweden, and host country Russia all looking like formidable challengers, this tournament guarantees to be one worth watching. Here’s to a USA-Canada gold medal rematch, one can at least hope.
Derek Markovitz —
The United States men’s Hockey team executive board went through a very thorough process to find the best team to compete for gold at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. For most teams, difficult decisions had to be made and Team USA was no different. In the end, this team is built with expectations with one goal in mind.
Team USA has 13 players returning from the 2010 Olympics: nine forwards, two defensemen and two goalies. This is quite the upgrade when you consider four years ago, the silver medal-winning 2010 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team featured just three players with Olympic experience.
The American squad is in fact a veteran group, solid in every position, built on steady goaltending, with forwards and defensemen that excel at both ends of the ice. While Team USA may not have the star power that Team Canada has, this team does have an edge where it counts the most which we will cover in this article.
At the helm for Team USA is Dan Bylsma, who has worked wonders this year in the city of Pittsburgh. The Penguins coach has endured a carousel of injuries thus far into the season and sits comfortably atop the Metropolitan Division. Bylsma deploys an open ice transitional attack that will be fun to watch and dangerous to defend on the much larger ice rink in Sochi. Bylsma will be joined by assistant coaches Peter Laviolette, Tony Granato and Todd Richards.
“When it comes to a captaincy, you are looking for people who embody who you are and how you want to play,” Bylsma said to reporters. “I can’t think of a captain better than Zach Parise to lead our team.”
Parise, who forced overtime for the Americans in 2010, is back again to lead the Americans to gold.
While Parise will be relied upon heavily to produce offensively, the US captain is not this team’s most explosive weapon. Enter Patrick Kane. Kane is without question America’s best offensive option, whether he is lighting the lamp, scoring goals on his own or putting pucks on tape, setting up teammates with crisp passes.
The wild card at the forward position for Team USA is James Van Riemsdyk. While Team USA certainly has better options in the aforementioned Parise and Kane, JVR could be the dark horse this team was looking for. One interesting fact is that since being traded by the Flyers to the Maple Leafs two years ago, JVR ranks third in goals among left wingers behind James Neal and Chris Kunitz.
Team USA’s defensive squad as previously mentioned has only two defensemen returning from 2010: Brooks Orpik and Ryan Suter. Paul Martin was originally selected for the 2010 squad but was replaced due to injury. However, what this defensive squad lacks in experience, more than makes up in youth and speed.
Kevin Shattenkirk has both of these qualities. However, Shattenkirk is no stranger to lacing up his skates for Team USA. The young defenseman played in the Men’s Under-18 World Championship, the World Junior Championship and the Men’s World Championship. However, the Olympics is on a completely different level.
“With the bigger ice surfaces here, they want guys who can move the puck, transition well and be more poised with the puck as well,” Shattenkirk told the St. Louis Dispatch. “Puck possession is a huge part of playing on the bigger ice surface. I can’t give the puck away. With the group of defensemen, you can tell that the team is built so we can all transition, skate well and move the puck. If I can bring that to the table as best as I can and chip in, then I’ll be happy.”
If team USA can follow those directions, this team will be destined for gold.
Orpik may be on the decline of his career, but the steady defenseman will be leaned onto for his intangibles of leadership and experience. Orpik is a seasoned veteran who has played and excelled in big time situations when the game was on the line. Orpik’s skill set isn’t what it used to be, though his knowledge of the game and vision for the younger players is unmatched.
The anchor of the defensive squad will be one of the NHL’s best blue liners in Suter. Suter, the nine-year veteran leads the NHL in average ice time this year and was a finalist last year for the Norris Trophy. Suter, also named an alternate captain by the coaching staff, will be very busy in Sochi, presumably leading the way in average ice time.
As we know, Team Canada is stacked with star power at the forward and defense position. However, the Canadians do have one glaring hole that the Americans are actually rich in and that is goaltending depth. Team USA’s two-headed monster in net is simply far and above better than any tandem heading into the Olympics.
On the season, Ryan Miller has an impressive .925 save percentage for the basement dwelling Buffalo Sabres. Miller’s strengths will be on display at Sochi as he is very steady in net with great positioning and tremendous athleticism. For his career, Miller has been voted the league’s best goalie in the CCHA, the AHL, the NHL and even in the Olympics, where he stole the show in the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.
Jonathan Quick has amazing technique that allows him to move quickly from one position to another. Even though he may be the backup to Miller, Quick was chosen for his experience as he was a reserve on the 2010 Olympic team.
So whether it’s the 2012 playoff MVP and Vezina Trophy nominee in Jonathan Quick or the former Vezina Trophy, 2010 Olympic MVP winner in Ryan Miller. Team USA has a clear advantage in net and for that reason alone, I’m taking Team USA.
