I made the quip earlier in the week that it's late August and yet, our country is so hockey-starved, we're talking about a pretty meaningless Team Canada orientation camp....well, we're not talking about the camp itself, but we're using it to get a head start on debating who should be on Team Canada men's hockey team when the Olympics start six months from now....
I tried desperately to stay away from the topic because like many of you, I hate the idea of media hyping things out of proportion (even though I'm a member of it)....I really didn't want to add to it, but you can't get away from it.....whether you're having drinks with the boys or sitting in the dressing room before hockey, the conversations are already happening....
So, instead of trying to fight it, I've decided to jump in....But before I do, let's just preface everything by saying that things can change overnight....injuries may happen, slumps may happen or sleepers that have name-recognition and have struggled in the past could find that magic touch again in the first couple months of the year....
What I've said in a roundabout way is that the team that you or I choose will most likely be different than the one that suits up in Vancouver for that first game six months from now....but as the rise in popularity in fantasy sports would suggest, people love the idea of being armchair GM's, so let's step into Stevie Y's shoes and come up with a gold medal team....
We'll start with the goaltenders today mainly because I'm lazy and I only have to worry about filling three roster spots and talking about five goaltenders instead of filling 13 spots for the forwards or 7 spots for the defenseman in entries I'll have to do in the next couple of days....the defencemen will be tomorrow....
Alright, I think everyone is in agreement that the top two spots are going to go to Roberto Luongo and Martin Brodeur, but the debate for the next six months will be about who's the top dog when we get to February....as I just said and as you probably realize, it's going to come down to production in the first three months of the year and/or injury concerns....
Brodeur comes with so much success in NHL and international play that he has to be pencilled in....of course, everyone is concerned with how he's going to bounce back from the bicep injury that sidelined him for most of the year, but before last year, he showed great durability by playing no less than 67 games each year since 1994-95....I'll give him the benefit of the doubt in bouncing back....
Roberto Luongo has a couple of things working in his favour.....he's the hometown boy and more importantly, he's put himself in a position to at least make it a debate on who the best Canadian goaltender is....the problem he faces is a reputation for not being able to bring himself up in the biggest of situations....
But, who would I take at number 3? I've read articles that pick either Cam Ward, Steve Mason or Marc-Andre Fleury, but I will choose Fleury to be number 3....again, it all depends on how all three of these play in the first months of the year, but with Fleury now showing off some bling after the Pens cup win, it signifies that he's excelled in the biggest of must-save situations....
I understand that Cam Ward has shown himself in the postseason before and has a Stanley Cup ring of his own, but for whatever reason, everyone seems to expect the world of Fleury and it's never good enough for us....there aren't those expectations on Ward, so we look at him more favourably....
Out of the three of them, I think Steve Mason has the most upside of all of them, but one year does not make a career....we've seen the same potential from goaltenders such as Andrew Raycroft (former rookie of the year) and Jim Carey (former Vezina trophy winner)....let him give us multiple seasons like the one he had last year and he'll have a chance for Team Canada in no time....
So, three sports are set...the goaltenders are:
Martin Brodeur
Roberto Luongo
Marc-Andre Fleury
We'll look at the defencemen tomorrow....7 more spots to fill