Prediction: Which Montreal Canadiens Will Compete in 2014 Sochi Olympics?

The 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics are just six months away, and the Montreal Canadiens have a chance to be well-represented in Russia. 

Seven current Montreal players have already been invited to their respective country's Olympic orientation camps to be held later this summer. The Czech Republic and Slovakia have yet to announce their preliminary rosters, but both Tomas Plekanec and Peter Budaj should be considered as safe bets to earn invites, as both represented their respective countries at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. 

Earning an invite to a summer orientation camp certainly does not guarantee you a coveted final roster spot at the 2014 Olympics. Each country will be scouting its players' every move over the first half of the NHL season to see if they can help their nation win gold.

The Canadiens had six players don their nation's colors at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver, but with nine in serious consideration this summer, the Habs could be even better represented in Russia. 

Here are the Canadiens you can expect to see battling for gold in Sochi 2014. 

Not Making the Cut

Unfortunately for both Alex Galchenyuk and Alexei Emelin, the odds are not in their favor to be in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

Galchenyuk, still just 19 years of age, will need an incredible first half of the NHL season to earn a spot on the American team. His 2012-13 year was impressive, leading Team USA to gold at the World Junior Championships before scoring nine goals and adding 18 assists in his rookie year for the Habs.

Team USA's orientation roster features an extremely deep pool of talented forwards to choose from, however, and a 19-year-old with limited professional experience likely won't be heading to Sochi. 

By inviting Galchenyuk to their orientation camp, Team USA is likely looking ahead to 2018. If Galchenyuk's career progresses as hoped, he will likely be playing a vital scoring role for the Americans in PyeongChang, South Korea. Inviting Galchenyuk to this year's orientation camp is smart. It allows him to experience the Olympics selection process before he's expected to contribute in four years' time. 

For Emelin, the circumstances aren't quite the same. 

Emelin was enjoying a breakout year in the lockout-shortened 2013 NHL season. The Russian defender had three goals, a plus-two rating and a team-high 110 hits in 38 games for the Habs last season before it was cut short by a knee injury that will likely keep him off the ice until November (according to NHL.com).

Emelin's chances of cracking Team Russia will all come down to how his knee heals. If he can get back on the ice quickly and prove to Russian management that he's healthy, he could earn consideration.

After all, being paired with Andrei Markov did wonders to his game in Montreal, and Team Russia could benefit from the pairing in Sochi as well.

Unfortunately for Emelin, serious knee injuries are not easy to recover from. Even if he can begin skating again in October or November, it will likely take him a few months to get back up to full speed.

Team Russia won't be able to take a risk on a player still looking to get back to full strength as they aim for a gold medal on home ice. 

Peter Budaj: Slovakia

Team Slovakia has yet to name a preliminary roster for the 2014 Sochi Olympics, but Canadiens backup goaltender Peter Budaj is a safe bet to be included once they do. In fact, he will likely be on their final roster that heads to Russia in February. 

Budaj is one of only two Slovakian goalies currently playing in the NHL—the other being former Habs and current St. Louis Blues goalie Jaroslav Halak. Both goalies were also a part of the 2010 Slovakian team that competed in the Vancouver Olympics, where Halak led them to a surprise fourth-place finish. 

Budaj and Halak are likely to be the two goalies dressed on game days for Team Slovakia, with Halak getting the starting nod and Budaj settling in to his familiar backup role. 

Raphael Diaz: Switzerland

Canadiens defenseman Raphael Diaz has been included on Team Switzerland's evaluation camp roster and should be considered a safe bet to head to Sochi in February.

Diaz is one of just five NHL defensemen on the Swiss Olympic radar. Although the Olympics is an international competition on a larger ice surface, experience playing against the world's best players is vital to a team's chances of success. 

A concussion limited Diaz to just 23 games in 2013, but he was still able to contribute a goal and 13 assists. He was able to return for the Canadiens' stretch run and is healthy heading into 2013-14. 

After the Habs were eliminated from the NHL playoffs last season, Diaz joined Team Switzerland at the 2013 World Championships, where he helped them to a silver-medal finish. He was also a member of the Swiss national team in Vancouver 2010. 

Diaz will be able to provide the Swiss team with both NHL and international experience. He will be counted on to play solid defense while also seeing some minutes with the man advantage. 

Tomas Plekanec: Czech Republic

Much like Team Slovakia, the Czech Republic has yet to name even a preliminary roster, but center Tomas Plekanec is another Canadien who will likely take part in the 2014 Sochi Winter Games. 

Plekanec has been a mainstay with the Czech national team for more than a decade. Since making his international debut with the World Junior Team in 2001, he has appeared at the World Championships four times and was also on the 2010 Olympic team. 

Plekanec thrives as a jack-of-all-trades forward for the Montreal Canadiens. He acts as the first- or second-line center, kills penalties, scores on the power play and wins faceoffs. 

Plekanec will play a similar role for Czech. He will likely operate as the team's second center behind the Boston Bruins' David Krejci, while killing penalties and seeing some ice with the man advantage. He will inject skill and veteran leadership to a Czech team hoping to compete for a medal in Sochi. 

Andrei Markov: Russia

Andrei Markov did something during the 2012-13 hockey season that he hadn't done in the previous five full seasons—he did not get hurt.

Knee injuries limited Markov to 20 total games from 2010-12. Some wondered if he would ever be able to regain the form he showed while tallying 68 points in 2008-09 while becoming one of the top Russian defenders in the game. 

He was able to return to the ice in 2012-13, however, where he played 21 games for Chekhov of the KHL during the lockout before playing in all 48 games for the Habs during the shortened NHL season.

Markov looked as if he hadn't missed a beat, despite barely playing in two full seasons, racking up 10 goals and 20 assists while helping anchor the fifth-best power play in the NHL. 

Team Russia will certainly be hoping Markov can stay healthy during the first half of the upcoming season. Assuming he is physically able to play in Russia, he will almost certainly be a top-pair defender while anchoring a potentially potent power-play unit. 

Of all the Canadiens players vying for a spot on their national Olympic squads, Markov is likely the safest bet to make his country's team. That's if he can stay healthy, which is a big "if." 

Max Pacioretty: USA

Team USA will roster an extremely competitive squad looking to take home the gold medal in Sochi. While much is being made of their goaltender depth, their forwards are quite impressive as well.

Making Team USA will not be an easy task, but if Max Pacioretty continues the scoring pace he has shown in the past two seasons, he will be heading to Sochi as well. 

Over the last two seasons Pacioretty has proven to be one of the top goal-scoring American left wingers in the game. He followed up his 33 goal campaign in 2011-12 by netting 15 in 44 games of last year's shortened season. In fact, his 39 points last season made him the highest scoring American left winger in the NHL. 

Pacioretty has been known to go on extended goalless streaks, however. Last year he opened the season without scoring in the Canadiens' first 10 games. He also had a pair of six-game streaks where he failed to find the back of the net. If Pacioretty falls into another long slump to start next season, he could find himself with an extended vacation while the NHL breaks for the Winter Games. 

Team USA management will be hoping Pacioretty does not put them in a position not to consider bringing him to Sochi. Current roster predictions by CBS Sports' Chris Peters and Bleacher Report's MJ Kasprzak have Pacioretty slotted as the second- and third-line left winger, respectively. Both scenarios could be realistic roles for Pacioretty, assuming he continues to put the puck in the net next season. 

Pacioretty's play over the past two seasons has put him in a position where he will have to play himself out of a roster spot on Team USA, but all signs indicate that he should be playing for the Americans in Russia. 

Carey Price: Canada

For the first time in many years, Team Canada's goaltending situation is completely unpredictable.

Montreal Canadiens' netminder Carey Price has been invited to this summer's orientation camp, along with Roberto Luongo, Mike Smith, Corey Crawford and Braden Holtby. Incumbents Marc-Andre Fleury and 41-year-old Martin Brodeur, along with every other Canadian goalie in the NHL, will be hoping strong play in the 2013-14 season earns them consideration for a roster spot. 

Team Canada executive director Steve Yzerman will be monitoring this situation very closely, hoping that three of them elevate their games to a level that makes his decision an easy one. 

Price's chances of representing Canada in Sochi depend on one thing and one thing only: which Price shows up for the first half of the 2013-14 season. 

Will we see Price as the three-time All-Star? The one who posted a 2.35 GAA with 38 wins during the 2010-11 season. You know, the Price who plays with the confidence of a Team Canada, gold-medal-winning goalie. 

Or will we see the wildly inconsistent Price, like the one we saw last season? The Price who looked like a Vezina candidate for the first half of the season before struggling down the stretch to a mediocre .905 save percentage. 

Price certainly has the skill set to earn a coveted spot as a goalie on Team Canada. He has won on the international stage, taking home gold with Canada at the 2006-07 World Junior Championships. He has shown, in spurts, that he can be an elite goalie. Assuming this Price shows up next season, expect to see him named to Team Canada come February. 

P.K. Subban: Canada

When you are awarded a trophy for being the best player at your position, it is usually assumed that you will be named to your native country's national team. After all, league MVP Alex Ovechkin is a lock to make Team Russia, as is Vezina-winning goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. However, this is not necessarily the case for the reigning Norris Trophy winner P.K. Subban. 

Team Canada features an incredibly deep class of defesemen that includes five Olympic returnees from their gold-medal-winning squad in 2010: Drew Doughty, Dan Boyle, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Shea Weber. A simple solution would be to slide Subban in as the sixth man and head to Russia with a very impressive list of names on defense. 

Digging a little deeper, however, shows that Doughty, Boyle, Weber and Seabrook all shoot right—as does Subban. Both Yzerman and head coach Mike Babcock have stated that they would prefer to have a balance of left- and right-handed shots, although an equal number is not "cast in stone." 

Assuming Team Canada dresses, at most, four right-handed shots, Subban will need to unseat at least one incumbent to earn playing time in Sochi. While the Olympic veterans have a big-game experience advantage over the young Canadiens defender, Subban's speed is coveted on the bigger international ice surface and should ultimately earn him a spot on Team Canada. 

Via TSN.ca, Yzerman said on a conference call:

"

Ultimately, we'll pick the best players available to us, but playing on a bigger ice surface, I believe there is a priority on being able to skate. That will weigh into our final decisions on putting this team together.

"

Subban has the skills Team Canada wants in a defenseman at the Olympics, but they also have the depth to head to Russia without him. He proved last season that he deserves to be listed as one of the premiere talents in the game, but that alone does not make him a lock for Team Canada. 

Subban will need to be playing at an elite level from October to January if he wants the chance to help Canada defend their gold medal in Sochi.