Look back at some TEAM CANADA controversial picks etc, Who would YOU have picked?

[Vanzig]

It’s Summer & that’s when the WORLD/Canada CUP was in full force & I’m sure it’s been talked about but Who would YOU have picked, Obviously Team Canada SUMMIT SERIES 1972 had waaaay too many Players on their Team, Team Canada 1976 had the Most HOF’amers and smoked the competition, But lets go back to 4 Tournaments (1981, 1984, 1987, 1991) & I will put in CAPS* who wasn’t on the Team who I think SHOULD have been on team & what the lines look like, I’m always interested in seeing what lines/combos others would have had had they picked the team and were coach.
Now some guys got hurt during the Tournaments but do Not include that going in.
(Even though G. PERREAULT got Injured I still put him in, BRETT HULL don’t count for Team Canada as he played for Team USA, & M. Lemieux/R. Bourque decided to take the Summer off in 1991 to spend with their families & get ready for the upcoming NHL season while the other Canadians took pride in playing for Team Canada & went).

————————————————————————
(1981)
Perreault- Gretzky - Lafleur
Gillies - Trottier - Bossy
Dionne - SITTLER* - Middleton
Gainey - FEDERKO* - Gare

Potvin - Bourque
Robinson - Hartsburg
Beck - Engblom

Billy Smith/TONY ESPOSITO*/Mike Liut
—————————————————————————-
(1984)
Goulet - Gretzky- Middleton
HAWERCHUK* - Messier - Bossy
PROPP* - SAVARD* - KERR*
Gartner - FEDERKO* - Sutter

POTVIN* - Wilson
Bourque- Coffey
Robinson - MacINNIS*

Peeters - Fuhr - MOOG*
—————————————————————————
(1987)
Propp - Gretzky - Lemieux
Hawerchuk - SAVARD* - BOSSY*
CICCARELLI* - Messier - Yzerman
KERR* - Gilmour - Tocchet

Coffey - Bourque
STEVENS* - MacINNIS*
Murphy - WILSON*

Fuhr - Hextall - VERNON*
—————————————————————————
(1991)
Lindros - Gretzky - Larmer
Hawerchuk - Messier - Fleury
FRANCIS* - SAKIC* - OATES*
BELLOWS* - YZERMAN* - Tocchet

Coffey - Stevens
MacInnis - MURPHY*
Desjardins - WILSON*

ROY* - Belfour - VERNON*
—————————————————————————-

Click to read more...

 

[Captain Bowie]

Crosby in 2006. Not that he would have made all the difference, but it still would have been the correct choice.

 

[Howie Hodge]

————————————————————————
(1981)
Perreault- Gretzky - Lafleur
Gillies - Trottier - Bossy
Dionne - SITTLER* - Middleton
Gainey - FEDERKO* - Gare

Potvin - Bourque
Robinson - Hartsburg
Beck - Engblom

Billy Smith/TONY ESPOSITO*/Mike Liut
—————————————————————————-

Absolutely incredible the way these three played together, all so intuitive, pure magic.

 

[NyQuil]

Poor Rob Zamuner.

 

[ForsbergForever]

Poor Rob Zamuner.

Zamuner and Shayne Corson in Nagano were both pretty bizarre choices. Mark Messier being passed over was super controversial.

 

[reckoning]

(1984)
Goulet - Gretzky- Middleton
HAWERCHUK* - Messier - Bossy
PROPP* - SAVARD* - KERR*
Gartner - FEDERKO* - Sutter

POTVIN* - Wilson
Bourque- Coffey
Robinson - MacINNIS*

Peeters - Fuhr - MOOG*

You're leaving John Tonelli off the team, which would be a huge mistake as he was the tournament MVP and played outstanding. I also think Tim Kerr, as good a goal scorer as he was, would be a little too slow to go against the '84 Soviets. Glenn Anderson was a better option for international play. I don't know if the Sutter you've listed is Brent or Brian, but they made the right choice going with Brent, as he was one of Canada's better players. Instead of Hawerchuk, Savard and Federko, they went with Stastny, Bellows and Yzerman; which may have been a mistake as Bellows and Yzerman didn't play much, while Stastny was a huge disappointment.

On defence, I believe Potvin was not available. Al MacInnis wasn't yet an elite defenceman. Still, it was incredible that Sather gave 4 of the 7 defence spots to Oilers, not a team noted for defence at the time. When it came time for the big playoff game against the Soviets, Randy Gregg was the healthy scratch, and Charlie Huddy spent most of the game on the bench.

The missing goalie on your list was Reggie Lemelin, who I thought played well in his appearances.

 

[tony d]

Yeah Rob Zamuner in 1998 was a big head scratcher. Zamuner was a fine grinder in his day but grinders don't make Olympians. Messier should have took Zamuner's place.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

2010:

St Louis over Morrow without a doubt...can pretty easily argue him over Toews and Richards as well

Also Luongo over Fleury

 

[Big Phil]

2010:

St Louis over Morrow without a doubt...can pretty easily argue him over Toews and Richards as well

Also Luongo over Fleury

2010 Team Canada goalies were Brodeur, Luongo and Fleury. They were both there.

 

[reckoning]

(1981)
Perreault- Gretzky - Lafleur
Gillies - Trottier - Bossy
Dionne - SITTLER* - Middleton
Gainey - FEDERKO* - Gare

Potvin - Bourque
Robinson - Hartsburg
Beck - Engblom

Billy Smith/TONY ESPOSITO*/Mike Liut

Tony Esposito played for the U.S. in the tournament. Don Edwards was a better choice at the time, and in hindsight he should've got the start in the final game.

Butch Goring is missing from list, and he was probably option than Sittler or Federko. They needed a defensive centre to kill penalties, and they couldn't leave that all to Trottier.

 

[Big Phil]

(1981)
Perreault- Gretzky - Lafleur
Gillies - Trottier - Bossy
Dionne - SITTLER* - Middleton
Gainey - FEDERKO* - Gare

Potvin - Bourque
Robinson - Hartsburg
Beck - Engblom

Billy Smith/TONY ESPOSITO*/Mike Liut

I agree with Sittler. Does he make a difference? Well, that last game is a blowout so maybe not. But lots of others missing too. Not that right wing wasn't stacked as it was, but is there no room for Lanny McDonald? I always thought there was. Bill Barber on LW as well. Those veterans weren't 23 years old anymore, but only Sittler was 30. Tony Esposito I believe made up his mind to play for Team USA.

(1984)
Goulet - Gretzky- Middleton
HAWERCHUK* - Messier - Bossy
PROPP* - SAVARD* - KERR*
Gartner - FEDERKO* - Sutter

POTVIN* - Wilson
Bourque- Coffey
Robinson - MacINNIS*

Peeters - Fuhr - MOOG*

1984 could have used a bit more firepower I'll agree. Forget Propp though, Tonelli definitely belongs. Savard and Hawerchuk I thought earned their stripes by then. For some reason Sather hated Savard though.

(1987)
Propp - Gretzky - Lemieux
Hawerchuk - SAVARD* - BOSSY*
CICCARELLI* - Messier - Yzerman
KERR* - Gilmour - Tocchet

Coffey - Bourque
STEVENS* - MacINNIS*
Murphy - WILSON*

Fuhr - Hextall - VERNON*

I agree again with Savard. That team needed all the firepower it could get with the Soviets. They still have the sandpaper and I'd have still kept Sutter there too. Bossy had his weakest and final season. His back was killing him. I doubt he'd be any good. I'd have added Roy as the 3rd goalie.
—————————————————————————

(1991)
Lindros - Gretzky - Larmer
Hawerchuk - Messier - Fleury
FRANCIS* - SAKIC* - OATES*
BELLOWS* - YZERMAN* - Tocchet

Coffey - Stevens
MacInnis - MURPHY*
Desjardins - WILSON*

ROY* - Belfour - VERNON*

Oates just got caught up in a numbers game. Plus he only plays centre, not right wing. Yzerman was the big omission and I probably have Sakic over Francis too. Robitaille was too good at this time to leave off as well.

 

[reckoning]

(1987)
Propp - Gretzky - Lemieux
Hawerchuk - SAVARD* - BOSSY*
CICCARELLI* - Messier - Yzerman
KERR* - Gilmour - Tocchet

Coffey - Bourque
STEVENS* - MacINNIS*
Murphy - WILSON*

Fuhr - Hextall - VERNON*

Forwards: Bossy couldn't play because of his back. Ciccarelli and Kerr wouldn't have worked well in international play. Mike Gartner was very good in that series, using his speed to great advantage, and I wouldn't replace him. The problem with Denis Savard on the team would be as far as talented offensive centres go, Gretzky and Lemieux were better. They needed a Brent Sutter type to play a checking, grinding role.

Defence: Doug Wilson was unavailable. Scott Stevens was the last defenceman cut in training camp. He had just come off a season with almost 300 PM, and they needed guys to stay out of the penalty box. Al MacInnis would've been nice, but where do you fit him in? He wouldn't have got much powerplay time with Bourque and Coffey there.

Goalie: I still think Hrudey was better at the time than Vernon, but the #3 goalie usually doesn't matter in a short tournament

 

[The Panther]

The glaring omission is Steve Yzerman in 1991. You can sort-of justify his (and Patrick Roy's) being cut in 1987, but Yzerman not being there in 1991 was just insanity by the most insane coach of his time. However, since Canada breezed to the win anyway in '91, nobody really cares now. But imagine if Gretzky had been Suter-ed earlier in the tournament? Strangely, they almost did have a lack of high-end offensive talent with both Mario and Yzerman missing. Worst cut ever.


Rob Zamuner should not be mentioned again... it's too infuriating...

 

[quoipourquoi]

Goalie: I still think Hrudey was better at the time than Vernon, but the #3 goalie usually doesn't matter in a short tournament

I’m sure Vernon was on the radar, but it was probably the worst time in a 4-season stretch for him to get the spot. Worth noting that Hrudey and Roy had the best training camps (Hrudey with a 17-save shutout over USA on August 17th; Roy stopping 38/40 against USA on August 14th) while Fuhr and Hextall had 6 GA and 9 GA games respectively over the next five days.

I’d say Fuhr, Hrudey, Roy - especially since Hextall injured Sylvain Turgeon - but the goaltending selections in 1987 were definitely less controversial than the 1996 World Cup selections which led to the Sather/Roy feud.

 

[FerrisRox]

(1987)
Propp - Gretzky - Lemieux
Hawerchuk - SAVARD* - BOSSY*
CICCARELLI* - Messier - Yzerman
KERR* - Gilmour - Tocchet

Coffey - Bourque
STEVENS* - MacINNIS*
Murphy - WILSON*

Fuhr - Hextall - VERNON*

Mike Bossy was retired when this camp began.

 

[FerrisRox]

Zamuner and Shayne Corson in Nagano were both pretty bizarre choices. Mark Messier being passed over was super controversial.

I don't recall much controversy at all regarding Messier not being on that team.

A 37-year old Mark Messier, who was playing pretty uninspired hockey for the Canucks would have been a much more bizarre choice than Shayne Corson, who was playing very well for Montreal that year.

 

[FerrisRox]

On defence, I believe Potvin was not available. Al MacInnis wasn't yet an elite defenceman.

He wasn't even a regular NHL defenseman, let alone elite. He spent 19 games with the Colorado Flames of the CHL during the 1983-84 season. The notion that he would then be invited to a best-on-best global tournament is laughable.

 

[Vanzig]

You're leaving John Tonelli off the team, which would be a huge mistake as he was the tournament MVP and played outstanding. I also think Tim Kerr, as good a goal scorer as he was, would be a little too slow to go against the '84 Soviets. Glenn Anderson was a better option for international play. I don't know if the Sutter you've listed is Brent or Brian, but they made the right choice going with Brent, as he was one of Canada's better players. Instead of Hawerchuk, Savard and Federko, they went with Stastny, Bellows and Yzerman; which may have been a mistake as Bellows and Yzerman didn't play much, while Stastny was a huge disappointment.

On defence, I believe Potvin was not available. Al MacInnis wasn't yet an elite defenceman. Still, it was incredible that Sather gave 4 of the 7 defence spots to Oilers, not a team noted for defence at the time. When it came time for the big playoff game against the Soviets, Randy Gregg was the healthy scratch, and Charlie Huddy spent most of the game on the bench.

The missing goalie on your list was Reggie Lemelin, who I thought played well in his appearances.

As always it’s hard to pick a TEAM CANADA (Especially from 1976-1996) as their were so many talented/skilled players to choose from in that era.

Reggie Lemelin played great, and yes John Tonelli was great & played unbelievable but I’m still gonna stick with my pick’s, KERR was slow but I woulda put him on the POWER-PLAY (Picture this, KERR in the Slot with #99 on 1 side & #66 on the other side).

I didn’t like how Sather was picking too many players from his Club team, I mean as great as they are/were I wouldn’t of had picked RANDY GREGG, KEVIN LOWE.

In 1998 RON ZAMUNER was a total bust, I remember 1 game where Gretzky was the 13th Forward, He wasn’t even on the 4th line yet He LED Team Canada in Assists even though he was sparsely used. But I still like to see what other people would have picked for their Team Canada.

 

[Vanzig]

Mike Bossy was retired when this camp began.

I know BOSSY Retired at seasons end but why not go out by Winning the “GOLD” Championship with Team Canada eh, That be better to go out than being eliminated in 1987 Playoffs.

Bossy was a treat to watch, He scored more Goals “Five Hole” than any other player, He could score a number of ways but Five Hole he was just killer!!!

 

[86Habs]

I don't recall much controversy at all regarding Messier not being on that team.

A 37-year old Mark Messier, who was playing pretty uninspired hockey for the Canucks would have been a much more bizarre choice than Shayne Corson, who was playing very well for Montreal that year.

Zamuner was a choice straight out of left field. He had played well in the World Championships in 1997 (on international sized ice), and was selected to Team Canada for a penalty killing role. I don't remember him in Nagano, for better or for worse. I also remember Corson's really strong start to the 1997-1998 season, and accordingly there wasn't much controversy around his selection. In hindsight the issue with Canada's forwards in 1998 was that there were too many "similar" players - Corson, Zamuner, Primeau, Brind'Amour, Linden - and the forward group lacked offensive talent (particularly with Kariya's injury, and not having Sakic - our first line center - for the Czech game). Rather than Messier, who wouldn't have provided anything different than the handful of players I just mentioned, I would have preferred they had taken Oates and/or Francis and left Primeau and/or Zamuner at home.

 

[quoipourquoi]

I don't recall much controversy at all regarding Messier not being on that team.

A 37-year old Mark Messier, who was playing pretty uninspired hockey for the Canucks would have been a much more bizarre choice than Shayne Corson, who was playing very well for Montreal that year.

Not sure how the controversy escaped you; it was probably in the headline of every newspaper article about the roster in November 1997. More than that, Messier was on a hot streak, having scored 17 points in 14 games leading into the announcement (20 points in 26 games total), and he didn’t really let up offensively until a while after Nagano, scoring 49 points in a 51 game block between late-October and early-March.

Either Bobby Clarke had a crystal ball telling him that Messier was going to fade in March and April (making it look like less terrible 20 years later) or it was a controversial choice to cut the star who finished behind only Lemieux, Lindros, and Kariya in per-game scoring among Canadians the year before.

Good thing the Czech Republic didn’t cut Hasek the same day and for the same reasons Canada cut Messier; he was 6-10 and sitting at an .898 at the time.

 

[The Panther]

I don't recall much controversy at all regarding Messier not being on that team.

I do remember the controversy over this. These decisions were being made around November, when Messier was still brand-new with the Canucks, was 36, and was coming off yet another 100-point pace-ish season with NYR when he matched Gretzky in per-game scoring.

I feel sorry for whoever had to call Mark and tell him he wasn't selected.

 

[reckoning]

I know BOSSY Retired at seasons end but why not go out by Winning the “GOLD” Championship with Team Canada eh, That be better to go out than being eliminated in 1987 Playoffs.

Bossy was a treat to watch, He scored more Goals “Five Hole” than any other player, He could score a number of ways but Five Hole he was just killer!!!

He hadn't technically retired yet, but he wanted to take an extended period off to rest his back to see if it healed enough to make a comeback possible. Going in that grueling tournament wasn't possible.

Even if he was healthy, he still might not have played. He said in his book that he didn't want to play in '84, but only went because he knew that if he didn't, the media would paint him as a traitor. Despite Canada winning in '84, he said that tournament was mostly an unpleasant experience for him.

 

[The Panther]

He said in his book that he didn't want to play in '84, but only went because he knew that if he didn't, the media would paint him as a traitor. Despite Canada winning in '84, he said that tournament was mostly an unpleasant experience for him.

Bossy is always prickly about anything to do with Gretzky/The Oilers. With Sather in charge of that team, it likely wasn't easy for him.

By the way, Team Canada '84 was the only time Gretzky and Bossy played together, right? Were they never on the same line?

 

[IslesFan2017]

I'm a younger fan of hockey so I wasn't around in the 1980s/early 1990s, so I will just throw out a couple of selections from 2006 and 2o1o Team Canadas:

2006: Sidney Crosby, Eric Staal, Brendan Shanahan replacing Kris Draper, Shane Doan, and Todd Bertuzzi

2010: Martin St. Louis replacing Brenden Morrow or Patrice Bergeron and maybe Robyn Regehr or Jay Bouwmeester over Dan Boyle (although I think Canada's defense in 2010 was as close to the best it could be based on players selected).