Big Name Players vs. Big Game Players

This is a Guest Post by Chris O’Neil (who may be joining us an an Olympics contributor – I’ll ask nicely)

(photo courtesy: Phil Walsh - Flickr)

It’s been over two months since I last checked in on Team Canada’s process in selecting its roster for the upcoming Olympics.   I felt as though it was in my best interest to put my NHL Centre Ice package to good use and actually watch some of the Team Canada hopefuls in action as opposed to basing my articles on other articles and statistics.  In my last article I outlined my criteria for picking a team and also forecasted that the list I came up with would change.  I attended the Red and White game in Calgary in August and though I expected to write about it, the game really amounted to a pre-season scrimmage and gave no indication as to who could earn a spot on the team.  To put it bluntly; there was nothing worth writing about except for cheap tickets and reasonably priced beer at the Saddledome.

Since August, a rash of injuries has come over the entire NHL.   At one point in November Russia’s power play would have been in big trouble without the likes of Ovechkin, Malkin, Kovalchuk, Gonchar and Markov; all of whom were injured at the same time.  Canada has also run into some potential injury woes.  Ryan Getzlaf was injured to start the season and has not looked as dominant as usual although he has begun to come around in a big way lately.  Eric Staal was out for a while and has not looked to be in top form since he returned, Toews was out at one point and Milan Lucic has had two significant injuries and is currently sidelined for a month. Of course with any injury on any team comes the opportunity for others to step up that previously might not have been considered.  Enter the likes of Steve Stamkos, Patrick Marleu and to some degree Mike Fisher.

With all of the injuries and new names coming into the fold the debate rages on as to which players will ultimately make up Team Canada’s roster.  I outlined my three criteria in the last article: performance, character and experience.  While I think my criteria is still appropriate even for young players I wonder how to answer the question;

are these strong starts good enough to knock out those who were considered to be a sure bet for a roster shot?

A fast start to a player’s season is far too easy to use as the rationale for letting this player suit up for Canada against the World’s best.  So many factors come into play when a player gets off to a fast start and not all of the factors translate to international success.  Is the player on a good team or a good line?  Has the player’s team played the top teams in the NHL or feasted on bottom feeders?  Has the player been producing consistently or has he accumulated his stats in a few good multi-point games? Could a player like Steven Stamkos light the lamp on the biggest stage the same way he can under the radar of an indifferent public in the Sunshine State? Invariably the answer to giving these players a spot on the Olympic team comes down to whether or not the player can perform in a big game situation.

Joe Thornton

I’ve been having some great conversations about Joe Thornton recently. Is he a big game player or just a big name player? Thornton certainly has been on a tear sharing the lead for NHL scoring with the likes of Gaborik and Kopitar and has more points than sure-fire first line centre Sidney Crosby.  Personally I am torn between the two options.  I think that Joe Thornton is one of the best playmakers in the game today.  His on-ice vision is nothing short of elite, he’s tough, he’ll drop the gloves and he shows the kind of on and off-ice character becoming of a member of the Canadian Olympic Hockey team.  However, I do have to concede that Joe Thornton is a big name that hasn’t come out and dominated a big playoff game at the NHL level.  Yes, Joe Thornton has put up good numbers in the playoffs.  Yes, Joe Thornton has won a world Junior Championship in 1997 and yes Joe Thornton was on the World Cup of Hockey championship team in 2004.  The problem is that when the competition gets fierce and the game is on the line Thornton hasn’t shown the kind of individual contribution that changed the face of a game or series.  With so many big names to choose from, shouldn’t big game performance also play a big factor in who earns a spot?

Photo from fOTOGLIF

In 2009 Joe Thornton is a 30 year old 12 year NHL veteran.  Thornton’s ability to produce has never been in question but now as an NHL veteran he’ll be counted on to lead the charge by making things happen when they absolutely need to as opposed to contributing as a depth player.  The 2009 Olympic team will be without forwards who were previously counted on to make things happen like Joe Sakic, Steve Yzerman and Joe Niewendyk.  I will always remember Joe Sakic’s nearly superhuman effort against the US in the 2002 Gold Medal game and with him gone, somebody has to step up and be the guy to take Canada to the next level in a tight game against an elite team.  There is no question that Joe Thornton has the ability to do make something big happen and that Joe Thornton would be the first line centre on perhaps any other team in the tournament.

I would hate to be Steve Yzerman in this situation.  Do I not take Thornton because he’s been known to disappear in a big game or do I take Thornton and hope that he becomes the game breaker he can be?  The decision is very difficult when you have Cup winners like Ryan Getzlaf, Brad Richards (who also won the Conne Smythe), and Eric Staal along with superstars like Mike Richards fighting for your spot on the 2nd line behind Sidney Crosby.

Joe Thornton is in no way the only player who will be relied upon to change the outcome of a game.  Jarome Iginla, Eric Staal, Dany Heatley and Sidney Crosby will certainly be in the same boat as Joe Thornton but all of them have demonstrated on numerous occasions that when the game is on the line you, as a fan of their team, want them on the ice.  Is the same true for Stamkos and Toews?  Probably. But is probably good enough for the Vancouver games?

If the Olympic Games were in Switzerland or France perhaps ‘probably’ would be enough.  But, like it or not, the gold medal that Canadians want most is the Canadian Men’s Ice Hockey gold medal which amplifies the pressure to a level I can only imagine;  the most coveted medal for a country being competed for in front of the very fans that covet it.  The games are on home soil, the fans know the game, the fans will scrutinize every player’s every on ice and off ice move and will consider anything less than Gold an epic failure.  Big games suddenly become much bigger.

For Steve Yzerman there is no shortage of big names to choose from.  To win the gold medal by beating the best players on the planet at home, every single player on the team will have to be more than the big name players they already are; they will have to show they are big game players as well.  The Olympic Games are not about paycheques, contracts or statistics; they are about winning.  Hopefully whoever Yzerman chooses can rise above the pressure to be sure that Canada comes out on top in a big game situation.

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