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Dany Heatley, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, and Dan Boyle have a lot in common.
They all play for the San Jose Sharks, all want to play for Team Canada in the 2010 Olympics, and they all registered at least a point on Friday night in a 6-3 victory against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Thornton had four assists, including the 600th of his NHL career, Heatley had a hat trick, and Marleau had one goal, which was assisted beautifully by Boyle.
And this all happened with Team Canada's general manager Steve Yzerman watching from the press box inside the "Shark Tank."
As if any player on the Sharks needed any extra incentive to play well this season, the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver add just that for San Jose's Team Canada hopefuls.
All four of these players were invited to Team Canada's orientation camp in Calgary over the summer.
Throughout the ever—increasing speculation as to who will make the cut, all four of these players were once considered by some experts to be on the bubble.
After reading several article/predictions written by these experts prior to and early in the season, some of them left off Heatley, some left off Boyle, and most left off Marleau and Thornton.
Until recently, the first three have found themselves on almost all of the experts' predicted rosters.
Thornton has still been noticeably absent from many of these forecasts.
Here is how all four of these players have been upgraded from "on the bubble" to "good shot at making the team."
Patrick Marleau
After getting the captain's "C" taken off of his jersey, many wondered how Marleau would respond. I'm pretty sure most people wouldn't have thought with 14 goals, 12 assists, and 26 points.
Those numbers put No. 12 on pace for his second consecutive career year. He is ranked fourth in goals and points in the NHL this season.
The argument against Marleau making the Olympic roster was the fact he has disappeared in the playoffs recently. But Marleau has been playing like a man on a mission, and his play speaks for itself.
The 30—year—old has been arguably the biggest surprise of the Team Canada orientation invitees, and has opened a lot of eyes in his first 24 games this season.
Marleau wasn't on most analysts' radar to make the team early on, but now he looks like the perfect fit to play on the team's third line. The second overall pick in the 1997 draft is a great two—way forward that can kill penalties, score goals, and play both the wing and center positions.
Patrick Marleau's versatility and speed make him invaluable to the team, and gives him a great chance to crack the roster.
Dan Boyle
With all the great defensive talent that Canada has to pick from, "Boyler" flew under the radar a little bit early on in the process.
This is understandable with the likes of Dion Phaneuf, Mike Green, Chris Pronger, Scott Niedermayer, and Jay Bouwmeester surrounding him.
But Boyle has quietly registered four goals, 17 assists, and 21 points. His assist total puts the veteran defenseman in seventh place overall.
It's not just Boyle's smooth skating, soft hands, and puck-moving ability that make him a favorite to make Steve Yzerman's roster.
Prior to coming to San Jose from Tampa Bay, Sharks' fans heard about the 33—year—old's offensive prowess, but also the fact that he is a defensive liability.
During his time in the Bay Area, Sharks' fans have seen no such thing.
Other than the beginning of this season when Boyle was playing through a broken thumb, he has been solid defensively, and threatening offensively.
On a team that is trying to be better-rounded rather than have a "dream team" like in Olympics past, Boyle's offensive, defensive, and leadership abilities fit Team Canada like a glove.
Should Dan Boyle make the team, he will be solid on both ends and provide leadership on a team that will not suffer for it.
Dany Heatley
Dany Heatley might be hated north of the border, but he could be a huge part of bringing the gold medal to the home of hockey.
Believe it or not, the "Heater" was not on everyone's list of players to make Canada's Olympic team earlier this season.
That sounds far-fetched now.
The former Ottawa Senator and Atlanta Thrasher has two hat tricks this season for San Jose. He has 17 goals, which leads the league, and 26 points, which is the fourth best total in the game right now.
As I said in one of my recent articles about Heatley, he isn't a one-trick pony. He can score the highlight reel goal, and the ugly, "high abuse" goals in front of the net.
No. 15 is no stranger to international competition for Canada.
He has scored 40 goals and 67 points in various international tournaments since 2000.
Heatley is a perennial all—star, has had two 50-goal seasons, and has gelled with the San Jose Sharks like chocolate and peanut butter.
If the NHL's leading goal scorer wasn't on some experts' lists to play in Vancouver at the Olympics, he is now with a bullet.
Joe Thornton
Where do I begin with Thornton?
Well, let's start off with his typical great numbers.
The Pride of London, Ontario leads the league in assists with 24, and is ranked second in points with 30. He also has six goals this season.
But after going through many roster predictions on sites like ESPN.com, NHL.com, and the like, Thornton is absent from most of them.
This is somewhat understandable. Like his teammate Marleau, who was drafted one slot after Thornton in 1997, No. 19 has performed many vanishing acts in the playoffs and has been part of the disappointing Canadian Olympic teams in the past.
Although this is a concern, it should not take away from the skill and hard work that "Jumbo Joe" displays when he puts on the teal every night.
With all due respect to Sidney Crosby, Tomas Kaberle, Ryan Getzlaf, and Nicklas Backstrom, Thornton is the best passer in the game today.
The 6-foot-4, 235 pound center has cashed in over a point per game and is making a legitimate case to make the cut.
Thornton's size, vision, and skating ability have gotten him to the Olympics before. But his leadership hard work defensively has been underrated since switching coasts.
The Bottom Line
With all the phenomenal players to choose from, guys like Thornton and Marleau would not be the players in the burning spotlight like they are for the Sharks in the playoffs. There will obviously be heat on everyone who makes the team, but Thornton and Marleau will not be looked to as the guys who have to carry the team.
That would work to their advantage
This season, Thornton has enjoyed spectacular success playing with Heatley on his wing, and recently Patrick Marleau as well.
For Team Canada, there will not be a lot of time to build chemistry, and the pre-existing chemistry between these three stars would potentially give Canada an advantage heading into the 2010 winter games.
"Stevie Y" has got quite a difficult assignment in dwindling down the star-studded list of players to 23 by the end of December.
There is a ton of talent to evaluate and choose from, and there are plenty of roster spots to be earned. Not all of the super stars in the league are locks to make the team like they once were.
Guys like Marc Savard could tell you that.
But the play of Marleau, Thornton, Heatley, and Boyle makes their cases to crack the roster stronger and give Yzerman and the rest of Team Canada's management even more to think and be happy about.
As the 2009-10 season has progressed, these four Sharks have fallen into favor more and more with the so-called experts.
Now we just have to wait and see if they'll fall into favor with Steve Yzerman.
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