Olympics: Squads without NHLers

[Slitty]

Circumstances being what they are, we might not see NHLers make the trip to Sochi in four years time. So, to apply the problems of the future to today, what would the current Olympic squads look like if NHLers (Ovechkin and company included) were not allowed to participate? Russia is actually one of the easier ones to do:

Zaripov-Tereshenko-Morozov
Mozyakin-Kuryanov-Zherdev
Kozlov-Zinoviev-Radulov
Yashin-Fedorov-Sushinsky
x: Perezhogin

Nikulin-Proshkin
Zubov-Korneev
Atyushov-Kalinin
x: Tverdovsky

Koshechkin
Eremenko
Gelashvili

Click to read more...

 

[MJAYK]

It would be like the EHT rosters pretty much, heh. Only that they would play for the Olympic medals

Interesting thought.

 

[NotABadPeriod]

This is probably too hard to do for Canada/USA because they have so little talent playing outside the NHL.

The US team would most likely contain a bunch of collegiate players, and those guys aren't even in college yet, so there really isn't any way to project it. Even guessing about prospects wouldn't work, because many of the top ones won't stay all 4 years.

 

[joe89]

Swedish team would be absolute ****. Russia would win such championship easy, imo.

 

[MJAYK]

Swedish team would be absolute ****. Russia would win such championship easy, imo.

With Finland finishing 2nd. Maybe 1st

 

[Hedberg]

USA:
G: Robert Esche, Jean-Marc Pelletier, David Leggio
D: Deron Quint, Kyle Klubertanz, Charlie Cook, Nick Naumenko, JD Forrest, Ben Clymer, Pete Ratchuk
F: Niko Dimitrakos, Tyler Arnason, Dan Hinote, Justin Morrison, Jeff Hamilton, Mark Mowers, Brady Murray, Erik Westrum, John Laliberte, Derek Damon, Brian Swanson, Eric Healey, Pat Leahy

 

[FiLe]

Hmm. Interesting thread.

Finland:

Petri Vehanen
Karri Rämö
Sinuhe Wallinheimo

Petteri Nummelin - Ossi Väänänen
Janne Niskala - Lasse Kukkonen
Pasi Puistola - Olli Malmivaara
Mikko Mäenpää

Toni Koivisto - Niko Kapanen - Hannes Hyvönen
Tony Salmelainen - Jarkko Immonen - Jukka Voutilainen
Ville Peltonen - Petri Kontiola - Antti Pihlström
Leo Komarov - Tommi Santala - Marko Anttila
Sami Kapanen



The Finnish squad would be something like this with no NHLers available, if the games were played right now. If we ignore people on the injury list, Finland's last D pair would contain Mikko Lehtonen (the defenseman, not the AHL kid) and Topi Jaakola. In forwards, Riku Hahl would take Tommi Santala's place if he was healthy.

 

[Slitty]

This is probably too hard to do for Canada/USA because they have so little talent playing outside the NHL.

Agreed, but the most interesting squads in this scenario would be precisely from those two nations! Could Canada still assemble a competitive team from those playing in Europe and AHLers with no contractual obligations to an NHL team? What would the balance between NA and European based players be?

 

[Kamina]

Wouldn't it essentially be the junior teams, or would they be ineligible

 

[ThinMcWhistle]

Just my thought, but wouldn't it make more sense just to play the WJC as the hockey component of the Olympics?

I say revert back to the old way when no professional athletes were allowed to compete.

I'd rather see that than a bunch of b or c class players in an Olympic tournament.

 

[ronnyweed]

Agreed, but the most interesting squads in this scenario would be precisely from those two nations! Could Canada still assemble a competitive team from those playing in Europe and AHLers with no contractual obligations to an NHL team? What would the balance between NA and European based players be?

Prob take a few fliers on standout CHL players, especially the overagers.

regardless, clearly russia has the advantage in this scenario, and if this did happen, even more russians would bolt to the KHL, Ovechkin has already said hes playing in that olympics regardless what the NHL wants to do....

 

[Sergei Makarov]

My Russia team:

Zaripov-Zinoviev-Morozov
Sushinski-Yashin- Radulov
Zherdev- Parshin- Mozyakin
Glazachev-Tereshenko-Filatov

Nikulin- Kulyash
Tverdovsky- Zubov
Korneev- Kalinin

Eremenko
Barulin

 

[Systemfel]

Markus Näslund - Peter Forsberg - Marcus Nilson
Mikael HÃ¥kanson - Tony MÃ¥rtensson - Mattias Weinhandl
Linus Omark - Johan Davidsson - Fredrik Pettersson
P.J. Axelsson - Joel Lundqvist - Niklas Persson
Christian Berglund

Marcus Ragnarsson - Magnus Johansson
Dick Tärnström - David Petrasek
Christian Bäckman - Mattias Timander
Daniel Fernholm

Stefan Liv
Jacob Markström

Just my thought, but wouldn't it make more sense just to play the WJC as the hockey component of the Olympics?

I say revert back to the old way when no professional athletes were allowed to compete.

I'd rather see that than a bunch of b or c class players in an Olympic tournament.

"No pros" would eliminate the entire Swedish WJC roster, though, for example.

 

[Hedberg]

Wouldn't it essentially be the junior teams, or would they be ineligible

European pros would be significantly better than the juniors. The Canadian European Pros could probably keep Russia to a single digit lead whereas the Juniors would be as big as a mismatch as Canada vs. Latvia in the WJC.

 

[Blue Liner]

I guess it depends. Pre-NHL inclusion, professionals were not allowed, correct? So if the NHL backs out after these next Games do they go back to amateur-only or would they still allow professionals? If they go back to amateur-only then you scratch any guys playing professionally anywhere, be it Europe or the minors in the US, and you can scratch anyone playing Major Junior in the CHL.

 

[slovakiasnextone]

I guess it depends. Pre-NHL inclusion, professionals were not allowed, correct? So if the NHL backs out after these next Games do they go back to amateur-only or would they still allow professionals? If they go back to amateur-only then you scratch any guys playing professionally anywhere, be it Europe or the minors in the US, and you can scratch anyone playing Major Junior in the CHL.

No way in hell that the IIHF ever goes back to amateurs, you shouldn´t forget that back at those times even though the European players had a second job they were just as good and in many cases even better than the players in Euro leagues today due to the fact that there was so little Euros in the NHL and players stayed home more oftne than not.

And who would play then? Veterans? Or just scratch hockey form the Olympics?

 

[Draiskull]

Markus Näslund - Peter Forsberg - Marcus Nilson
Mikael HÃ¥kanson - Tony MÃ¥rtensson - Mattias Weinhandl
Linus Omark - Johan Davidsson - Fredrik Pettersson
P.J. Axelsson - Joel Lundqvist - Niklas Persson
Christian Berglund

Marcus Ragnarsson - Magnus Johansson
Dick Tärnström - David Petrasek
Christian Bäckman - Mattias Timander
Daniel Fernholm

Stefan Liv
Jacob Markström

"No pros" would eliminate the entire Swedish WJC roster, though, for example.

boo no M.S.Pajaarvi?

 

[slovakiasnextone]

boo no M.S.Pajaarvi?

By 2014 Pajaarvi should already be in the NHL.....

 

[Blue Liner]

No way in hell that the IIHF ever goes back to amateurs, you shouldn´t forget that back at those times even though the European players had a second job they were just as good and in many cases even better than the players in Euro leagues today due to the fact that there was so little Euros in the NHL and players stayed home more oftne than not.

And who would play then? Veterans? Or just scratch hockey form the Olympics?

Wasn't suggesting I think they should go to amateurs, I was just begging the question on what they would do if the NHL backs out is all.

 

[ThinMcWhistle]

Wasn't suggesting I think they should go to amateurs, I was just begging the question on what they would do if the NHL backs out is all.

I would first like to know what exactly consitututes professional/amateur. Wouldn't junior players who have not signed a contract with a professional men's league be considered amateurs?

 

[Systemfel]

boo no M.S.Pajaarvi?

Uh, no, he's not that good.

By 2014 Pajaarvi should already be in the NHL.....

This thread is about what the rosters sans NHLers would look like today, though.

 

[slovakiasnextone]

Wasn't suggesting I think they should go to amateurs, I was just begging the question on what they would do if the NHL backs out is all.

I didn´t say that you were suggesting it, sorry if it sounded like that. My point was that I don´t think that the IIHF considers this a possibility. And btw, just an interesting piece of trivia the number of players fro European leagues on the Olympics rosters is higher than the number of players from NHL+AHL+CHL already, so technically if there were no NHLers, a bit more than a half of the players that will play at the Olympics would be still playing there.

Uh, no, he's not that good.

This thread is about what the rosters sans NHLers would look like today, though.

Oh, okay, then I agree with your first sentence.

 

[glovesave_35]

Agreed, but the most interesting squads in this scenario would be precisely from those two nations! Could Canada still assemble a competitive team from those playing in Europe and AHLers with no contractual obligations to an NHL team? What would the balance between NA and European based players be?

Wouldn't it essentially be the junior teams, or would they be ineligible

Russia would have the best team hands down by virtue of having the second best league. My thoughts as to USA/Canada were pretty much what Kamina said. Canada would ice a team of junior players, or quality AHL'ers (if that league didn't mind). The US would be a few junior players and mostly college players with a few young AHL'ers.

 

[slovakiasnextone]

Russia would have the best team hands down by virtue of having the second best league. My thoughts as to USA/Canada were pretty much what Kamina said. Canada would ice a team of junior players, or quality AHL'ers (if that league didn't mind). The US would be a few junior players and mostly college players with a few young AHL'ers.

However no matter how talented those college/major junior kids would be they would get hammered by a Russian KHL selection or by a Swedish SEL selection, I don´t understand this but very few people in North America seem to understand the huge difference in junior and senior hockey there is, talent isn´t the only important thing there is in this case.

 

[germanative]

Canada

Robitaille-Domenichelli-Hall
Daigle-Peca-Bell
Calder-Perrin-Seguin
Ouellet-Devereaux-McLean

Dallman-Heins
Dandenault-Rivers
Delmore-Jackman

Bradwaithe
Leneveu