Canada looked to a mix of youth and experience in their quest for an Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey, despite the absence of their NHL players.
Eric Staal, 37, and Mason McTavish, 18, will be two centers that make up the formation of 25 players announced Tuesday, for the Beijing Olympics.
Staal will be looking for a second Olympic gold medal, having won her first in Vancouver 12 years ago.
19-year-old defenseman Owen Power, first overall pick in the 2021 draft, 20-year-old goaltender Devon Levi and 22-year-old forward Jack McBain will also head to China, after the NHL withdrew his presence to the tournament due to COVID-19 concerns.
Discover Team Canada! ??
25 players have been selected to represent the ?? at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
TRAINING ➡️ https://t.co/tIVi9B28x5@Team_Canada | #Beijing2022 pic.twitter.com/m8lGyNDXyK
— Hockey Canada FR (@HockeyCanada_fr) January 25, 2022
Although Sidney Crosby or Connor McDavid won’t be there, Canada has plenty of NHL experience in its roster, which also includes professional players currently playing in North America, Europe and Russia.
Team general manager Shane Doan and Hockey Canada officials also selected veterans Daniel Winnik (36), Adam Cracknell (36), David Desharnais (35), Jason Demers (33) and Mark Barberio ( 31) to press Staal.
“I have so many wonderful memories of my participation in the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver and our conquest of gold on Canadian soil; I’m honored to be nominated again for the Games,” said Staal. The Olympics are the pinnacle of our sport and I know our entire team is grateful to have the opportunity to fight for a gold medal in Beijing and to be part of Team Canada. »
Five Quebecers are part of the team, namely Levi, Barberio, Demers, Desharnais and defender Maxim Noreau. Noreau was Canada’s top scorer at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.
Hockey Canada had relied on the presence of NHL players in Beijing until last month, when the league changed its plans after about 100 games were postponed due to COVID-19.
“The management group and coaching staff have been working hard evaluating and selecting the players who will give us the best chance of winning a gold medal,” Doan said. It is truly a special honor to be able to represent your country at the Olympics. We are sure these athletes and staff will relish this opportunity and make all Canadians proud. »
There hasn’t been as much prep time as in 2018, when the NHL pulled out of the Pyeongchang Games for financial reasons. Ten of the players named Tuesday represented Canada at the Channel One Cup, which was played in Russia in December, when Claude Julien was behind the bench.
Doan and Julien were also scheduled to lead Canada at the Spengler Cup, but it was canceled due to COVID-19. They were on standby to replace if the NHL skipped the Games.
Following a training camp and a game in Switzerland, the Canadians will travel to Beijing before playing a preseason game against the United States.
Canada will open their tournament on February 10 against Germany before facing the United States on February 12 and China on February 13 to conclude the Group A round robin.
Canada struggled to score goals four years ago in Pyeongchang when it won the bronze medal.
McTavish, selected third overall in the 2021 draft, was still in diapers when Staal was picked second overall in the 2003 draft. Power had yet to celebrate his first birthday.
Staal, who also won the Stanley Cup in 2006 and the World Hockey Championship in 2007, hasn’t played in the NHL since the Montreal Canadiens lost in Game 5 of the last Stanley Cup Final. However, he played in four American League games, with the Iowa Wild, to prepare for the Beijing Games.
Power is a household name on defense, but he’s at least 10 years younger than all the other defensemen on the Canadian team.
Levi, who was named the 2021 World Junior Hockey Championship Most Valuable Player, helped Canada claim silver at that tournament. This season at Northeastern University, he has a .948 save percentage and a 1.47 goals-against average.
Besides Noreau, Mat Robinson and Eric O’Dell will be back after participating in the Pyeongchang Games.
Canada won Olympic gold in 2002, 2010 and 2014, with NHL players, but it hasn’t been on the top step of an Olympic tournament podium without the NHL since. 1952.
The NHL has taken part in five consecutive Olympic Games, between 1998 and 2014, but it wasn’t there four years ago when Olympians from Russia won gold.