"Whether it is the Olympics, 4 Nations Face-Off or the IIHF World Junior Championship, rest assured they are more concerned with filling roles than they are about bringing the best players. The luxury (and curse) of having so many good players is that you can get too cute with it. Other countries, with less depth, simply take their best players from top to bottom. There is no "well, what about this role or that role?""
"And it is why, every year at the World Juniors, when Hockey Canada inevitably struggles to produce in key situations, the hockey world wonders why Canada left tremendous offensive talent off its roster in favor of role players. It is especially nonsensical at the World Juniors when 95% of available players do not have the maturity, nor the leadership to be considered a "glue guy" or a "role player" because they are all playing top-line minutes for their respective teams."
Hockey Canada prioritizes filling specific roster roles over selecting the best available players, frequently opting for role players instead of top offensive talent. That approach produces selection debates about including grit-oriented players versus elite scorers. Nations with less depth typically take their best players from top to bottom rather than overemphasizing roles. At the World Juniors, most prospects play top-line minutes and lack the maturity or leadership to justify role-only selections. Previous roster choices that excluded high-end creators corresponded with Canada failing to reach the podium at major tournaments.
Read at ESPN.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]