The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

The announcement of the roster chosen to represent Canada at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver is something almost every hockey fan has circled on their calendar to tune into: December 30th will be a day that will be debated for a long time, especially if Canada falls short in their quest for a gold medal.

Steve Yzerman will consult with Team Canada's coaching staff which consists of Mike Babcock, Jacques Lemaire, Ken Hitchcock and Lindy Ruff to trim down the roster to 13 forwards, 7 defencemen and 3 goaltenders by that December 30th date. The decisions to be made, for me at least, will be about who to gamble on that will rise to the occasion in Vancouver, as too many players who probably should make the team haven't been playing up to par or have been injured to be of any consequence.

Some of the culprits: Vincent Lecavalier. Eric Staal. Shane Doan. Jason Spezza. Mike Richards. Simon Gagne. These are some guys who have shown they can deliver the goods in the past, but for whatever reason, they aren't bringing it this year which makes the decision for Yzerman that much more difficult. Do you instead choose a guy like Dustin Penner, hoping his career season he's having now isn't a fluke and can contribute in the same manner as he is now for the Oilers? Or do you take a chance that someone like Eric Staal can snap out of their current funk and play as well as he did when he won a Stanley Cup a few years back? Or pick someone like Simon Gagne who's been fighting the injury bug for so long, hoping he'll be healthy enough when the tournament is played?

In fairness to some, if you're injured there's not much you can do about it. But instead of having a good problem, too many players having terrific seasons, the hand forced to be played by Yzerman and co. is who can replace those who played their way OFF the team. Not a good position to be in.

I don't think this problem is translating to the defence or goaltending for Canada. I think it's pretty much a slam dunk, for instance, Brodeur, Luongo and Fleury will be on the squad. There are plenty of blue chip defencemen we can count on to play well for Canada: Pronger, Boyle, Keith and Niedermayer come to mind.

But the forwards are a different story. If my opinion matters, I do think you have to pick the ones that are playing well now as sports is funny that way: one day you're hoisting the Stanley Cup, the next night you're a healthy scratch. Pro sports can be harsh, but you've got to send the current cream of the crop to have a chance to win, with the proper mix of pedigree and past success included. Here's hoping whoever Yzerman chooses, the results are nothing but gold.