No Connor McDavid, no Steven Stamkos, no Mitch Marner.
There’s disappointment for players and fans in the wake of Tuesday’s news that the NHL and the NHLPA agreed to not send league players to the Beijing Olympics in February. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be some familiar faces donning the Canadian jersey, or that the Canadian team won’t be a favourite for a medal.
It’s still uncertain if NHL teams will allow AHL players to represent Canada. The Marlies have at least two potential candidates in Josh Ho-Sang and Brett Seney. But there is still a deep pool of Canadians playing around the world. Here is what the roster in Beijing could look like:
Forwards
Eric Fehr: A former Maple Leaf and a veteran of five NHL teams. The 36-year-old is a Team Canada staple and a free agent who last played full time in the Swiss A League in 2020.
David Desharnais: A veteran of eight NHL seasons, Desharnais is the third leading scorer (11 goals, 15 assists) for Fribourg-Gotteron in the Swiss A League.
/https://www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/sports/hockey/2021/12/22/the-roster-could-include-some-good-hockey-names-like-conacher-ferraro-and-staal/staal.jpg)
Chris DiDomenico: The Toronto-born forward, a Leafs sixth-round draft pick in 2007, leads Fribourg-Gotteron in scoring (11 goals, 26 assists).
Cory Conacher: The swift skater had a strong rookie season in 2012-13 for Tampa and Ottawa, when he finished sixth in the Calder Trophy race that. He is now playing with Bern SC of the Swiss A League.
Jordan Weal: A Montreal Canadiens alumnus playing in the KHL, Weal has nine goals and 23 points in 29 games with Kazan Ak-Bars.
Eric Staal: The 36-year-old was part of the Canadiens’ Stanley Cup run last spring. An unsigned free agent, he has 441 goals and 593 assists in 1,293 NHL games, and won the Stanley Cup with Carolina in 2006.
Daniel Audette: The 25-year-old could be a top-line player. He is second in scoring with the KHL’s Podolsh Vityaz (14 goals, 17 assists, in 36 games). Audette was drafted by Montreal (fifth round, 2014) but never played a regular-season game in the NHL.
Ryan Spooner: The Ottawa native played 325 games in the NHL after Boston drafted him in the second round in 2010. Spooner, 29, currently leagues Yekaterinburg Automobilist of the KHL in scoring with 11 goals and 19 assists in 40 games.
Landon Ferraro: The son of former NHL veteran and NHL broadcaster Ray Ferraro is the leading scorer for the Kolner Haie (Cologne Sharks) in the German league (9 goals, 17 assists, in 28 games). He should feature prominently in Beijing if he goes.
Corban Knight: The former Florida fifth-rounder earned top-10 votes for the 2012-13 Hobey Baker Award. He leads Omsk Avangard of the KHL in scoring, with 16 goals and 29 assists in 40 games.
Philippe Maillet: An undrafted player, the speedy Maillet leads the KHL’s Magnitogorsk Metallurg in scoring, with 12 goals and 20 assists through 39 games. The University of New Brunswick graduate appeared in two games for Washington.
Josh Currie: Also undrafted, and a teammate of Maillet’s in the KHL, Currie is ninth in scoring for Magnitorgorsk Metallurg. He played in 22 NHL games with Edmonton and Pittsburgh.
Defence
Cody Goloubef: One of the best skating defenceman Canada has internationally, Goloubef played inn 160 NHL games for Columbus, Colorado, Ottawa and Detroit. He is related to former Leafs great Dick Duff.
Jason Demers: A veteran of 12 NHL seasons, he moved to the KHL at age 33 to play for Ak Bars Kazan. A solid two-way defenceman to anchor the Canadian blue line.
Eric Gelinas: New Jersey’s second-round pick in 2009 played in 189 NHL games before moving on, at age 30, to Rogle BK of the Swedish Hockey League.
Brandon Gormley: He played in 58 NHL games for Arizona and Colorado, and is now with Riga Dynamo of the KHL.
John Gilmour: A Calgary seventh-rounder 2013. Gilmour is playing the KHL’s CSKA Moscow.
Matt Robinson: The 35-year-old has played in the KHL since 2011-12. He spent four years with CSKA Moscow before moving to Saint Petersburg SKA this season.
Goalies
Devon Dubnyk: The three-time NHL all-star is on a professional tryout with Charlotte of the AHL. He had a brilliant season in 2014-15 with the Wild, finishing third in Vezina voting and fourth in the Hart. He could be the starter for Canada.
Justin Pogge: The former Leaf is 18-0 with the Cologne Sharks over the last two seasons.
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Anyone can read Conversations, but to contribute, you should be registered Torstar account holder. If you do not yet have a Torstar account, you can create one now (it is free)