A year ago, you could have been forgiven if you assumed Team Canada's starting goaltender for the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver would be one of either Roberto Luongo or Martin Brodeur.
Who knows, one of those two veterans could still secure the position. There's plenty of time between now and the Games, which begin in mid-February. In the meantime, however, players will be continuously evaluated and scrutinized by Team Canada general manager Steve Yzerman and his staff, fans and the media. Like it or lump it, that's the nature of the beast.
So when Luongo lays an egg in his first game of the season and then struggles through his next handful of starts, it raises a few eyebrows. And when Brodeur, the dean of NHL goaltenders and a sure-bet Hall of Famer, goes winless in his first three home games, often looking like a fish out of water, it is a huge cause for concern amongst Canadians.
Two weeks into the season, Pittsburgh's Marc-Andre Fleury suddenly emerges as the leading candidate to be Team Canada's starting goalie. Fleury won his first seven games of the year, picking right up where he left off last season when he led the Penguins to the Stanley Cup championship in what many considered an upset of the defending champion Detroit Red Wings.
When it comes to the Canadian men's Olympic hockey team, there are certain givens. Sidney Crosby will be the team's No. 1 centre while veterans Dany Heatley will be one of the trigger men and Chris Pronger will anchor the defence. After that, it will really depend on who is hot and who's not … who plays themselves on the team and who plays themselves off in the first few months of the NHL season.
Already there are some players who need to jack it up or risk falling by the wayside.
Veteran centre Vinny Lecalavlier, for instance, is off to a slow statistical start. He was goal-less and a minus-5 in his first seven games and despite reports that his numbers were not a true reflection of his overall performance, with the exception of a no-shots-on-goal outing against Buffalo Oct. 15, the 6-foot-4 and 225-pound pivot needs to start lighting it up if he is to convince Yzerman and Co., he belongs on the Olympic team. The funny thing is, Lecavalier could pop a hat trick in Tampa Bay's game Thursday against San Jose and suddenly his numbers won't look so bad. He'll instantly be removed from the endangered species list.
It will be like that for many players leading up to the Olympics. One bad outing and you are in trouble; one great game and you're a lock for the team.
Jason Spezza of the Ottawa Senators was a late invitee to the summer orientation camp, but certainly hasn't done himself any favours by getting off to a slow start. In seven games Spezza had no goals with four assists and was minus-2. Brent Burns, a gifted two-way defender with the Minnesota Wild, is considered something of a longshot to make Team Canada, but carrying a league-worst minus-9 after seven games stands out like a sore thumb. Eric Staal has just two goals and no assists in seven games with the Carolina Hurricanes. For that matter, Crosby had just four goals and seven points in eight games, but nobody was worrying about Sid the Kid.
Conversely, left winger Brendan Morrow of the Stars was off to a fast start with five goals and eight points in even games after missing much of last season with a bum knee. He's making a huge statement that he is back. Patrick Marleau had six goals in his first eight games with San Jose.
It is the bubble players who cannot afford to fall too far behind too early in the season or their names will sink to the bottom of the depth chart, if not off the chart altogether.
Yzerman said players are being monitored now and he and his gang, which includes the likes of Detroit GM Ken Holland and Red Wings coach Mike Babcock, who will coach Team Canada, as well as Devils coach Jacques Lemaire, Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff, Edmonton president Kevin Lowe, St. Louis vice-president Doug Armstrong, and Wayne Gretzky, will chat frequently leading up to the Games. He also said certain players will be granted a little latitude.
"Regardless of the position, some of the veterans will be given a little more time to find their games," Yzerman said. "Sometimes it takes the older guys a little while to get it into gear. We won't be picking the final roster until late December."
In the meantime, players will be evaluated on a game-by-game basis. About three hours after sportsnet.ca spoke with Yzerman, Brodeur made 26 saves to record his first shutout of the season, a 2-0 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. Not only did he move within one whitewash of Terry Sawchuck's all-time mark of 103, he took a little heat off himself. Luongo, meanwhile, made 18 saves as the Canucks beat the Wild 2-1 to relieve some of the pressure he'd been facing. It was a welcome performance for both stoppers.
"The closer to the Games we get, the shorter our list will be," Yzerman said.
Picking the team is nearly as much fun as watching it play.
