Team Canada II: What If Canada Sent a Second Hockey Team?

Written By: Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter

*****Don't forget to tune into the Bleacer Report's own Louis Pisano "King of Roncesvalles" and me, Mark "The Hard Hitter" Ritter— tonight at 6:00pm Eastern through 7:00pm as we throw down our Podcast "GET THE PUCK OUT". Check it out at www.morencysports.com

Our featured guest will be none other than "The China Wall"— Toronto Maple Leafs legendary goaltender JOHNNY BOWER. Please feel free to call in (not sure if he is taking calls yet or not), but you can still call in and ask us about anything hockey related.

We will also be joined by former member of "The Score" team Gabriel Morency— he'll throw down his pick's on tonight's games...

Join us via the internet @ www.morencysports.com or call in toll free @ 1-866-964-5710, don't miss it, puckheads!

For years, many Canadian fans have debated whether Canada could send more than one team to the Olympics and be successful. With that in mind, I thought it might be interesting to draft Team Canada II.

Obviously, any and all players chosen by Steve Yzerman and Co. are off the table. That said, Canada is deep in talent at every conceivable position, so there will be no problem drafting a second team.

For the purposes of this exercise I will draft 12 forwards, six defensemen and two goalies. Much like Team Canada itself, I will put an emphasis on building a “team,” not simply throwing out the players with the best statistics.

Criteria for the players will include, offensive stats, plus/minus rating, face-off percentages, checking abilities, special teams ability, skating, past participation in the program/Olympics, speed, and leadership.

Goalies:

Cam Ward: Through 30 games, Ward has a record of 9-15-5, posting a 2.88 goals against average and a .907 save percentage, not bad considering your team (Carolina Hurricanes) is sitting with a 14-24-7 record.

The Hurricanes are ranked 29th overall in both goals for and goals against, leading me to believe that, despite his team's misfortunes, Ward’s numbers are solid.

Ward is a former Stanley Cup winner (2005-06) and a Conn Smythe Trophy winner (2005-06) to boot. He is more than capable of stealing a game and he has the ability to get hot in stretches—as seen in the 2008-09 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Ward most recently represented Canada at the 2006-07 and 2007-08 World Cup, winning gold in 2007 and silver in 2008. Ward posted combined totals of nine wins and one loss with a 2.39 goals against average and a .908 save percentage.

When everything is all said and done, Ward gets the nod as Team Canada II’s starting goalie.

Dwayne Roloson: With a record of 18-7-6 through 31 games with the New York Islanders, Roloson, who just might be the NHL’s most underrated goaltender, is a must-have for Team Canada II.

The Islanders have a 20-19-6 record on the season; the fact that Roloson has accounted for 18 of those wins is phenomenal. Simple math tells us that Roloson has started in goal for 90 percent of his team's wins.

With a save percentage of .913, Roloson ranks fourth overall, his 2.70 goals against average ranks him seventh overall, making Roloson a prime candidate to assume the No. 2—if not No. 1 goaltending assignment for Team Canada II.

Forwards:

Left Wing-                Centre-                       Right Wing-

Mike Cammalleri     Steven Stamkos       Shane Doan
Patrick Sharp           Vincent Lecavalier   Nathan Horton
Alex Burrows           Jeff Carter                 Brad Richards       
Ryan Smyth             Jordan Staal              Scottie Upshall
 
The first line of Mike Cammalleri, Steven Stamkos, and Shane Doan combines grit (Doan), scoring prowess (Stamkos) and the ability to create offense (Cammalleri).

Stamkos, while young, has already established himself as an elite NHL player, and with the additions of veterans Doan and Cammalleri, would be capable of leading Team Canada II offensively.

The second line of Patrick Sharp, Vincent Lecavalier and Nathan Horton combines hard work (Sharp), scoring ability (Lecavalier & Horton) and grit (Horton). Sharp, Lecavalier and Horton all have their fair share of supporters and critics; I am relying on their Canadian pride, heart, and integrity to get them through, emerging as a solid unit rather than individual players.

The third line of Alex Burrows, Jeff Carter, and Brad Richards is capable of providing offense and shutting the opposition down. All three players are comfortable on any line and in any situation. It is this versatility that makes this line so important.

The fourth line of Ryan Smyth, Jordan Staal, and Scottie Upshall would be an absolute nightmare to compete against.

Smyth, Staal and Upshall represent three of the hardest working players in the entire NHL and, much like the third liners, are not opposed to playing on any line and/or in any situation.

Other Notables: Dustin Penner, Mike Knuble, Wayne Simmonds, Mason Raymond, Kris Versteeg, Rene Bourque

Defensemen

Mike Green                    Dion Phaneuf
Jay Bouwmeester        Rob Blake
Willie Mitchell                Marc Staal
Kyle Quincey

Other Notables: Ed Jovanovski, Cam Barker, Jeff Shultz, Brian Campbell

Blessed with speed, power, scoring ability and leadership, Team Canada II looks good on the back end with the likes of Mike Green, Dion Phaneuf, Jay Bouwmeester, Rob Blake, Willie Mitchell, Marc Staal, and Kyle Quincey leading the way.

Green and Phaneuf bring a great combination of size, skill and offensive ability, while Bouwmeester and Blake bring great skating ability (Bouwmeester), size and leadership (Blake).

Willie Mitchell and Marc Staal would be tasked with shutting down the opposition while Kyle Quincey can fill just about any role in the event that there is an injury.

Power Play:

1st unit:

Cammalleri—Stamkos—Horton

Green—Phaneuf

2nd unit:

Sharp—Lecavalier—Carter

Blake—Bouwmeester

Penalty Kill:

1st unit:

Smyth—Staal—

Staal—Mitchell

2nd unit:

Doan—Upshall

Phaneuf—Bouwmeester

As with any tournament, special teams are going to be a huge factor in any teams success at the Olympics. As such, I chose the power play units with an emphasis put on scoring goals and offensive creativity.

Alternatively, the penalty kill units were put together with the sole purpose of shutting down the opposition in mind. Both Brad Richards and Jordan Staal have a reputation for scoring short-handed goals, which, while not a huge factor in my selections, will give the opposition something to think about nonetheless.

There you have it, Team Canada II. Disagree with my selections? Left somebody out? There are bound to be 50 different takes on this list, all of them legitimate in their own way. Let me hear your opinions in the comment box!

Until next time,

Peace!