USA Hockey: Goes for Olympic Gold in Hockey with NHL Stars

United States aims for Olympic gold in ice hockey

PLYMOUTH, Michigan – The United States men’s ice hockey team, expected to field its best team when NHL players return to the Olympics in February, isn’t shying away from the high expectations placed on them.

“The expectation is to go to Milan and win the gold medal,” stated Vegas star Jack Eichel during the Olympic orientation camp. “Anything less than that would be disappointing.”

Jack EichelThe United States hasn’t won an Olympic gold medal in men’s ice hockey since the historic 1980 team, known as the “Miracle on Ice.” However, the American team is no longer a simple “underdog.” Hockey has grown enormously in the United States, with participation having tripled in the 45 years since 1980. With the return of NHL players to the Olympics for the first time in 12 years, a golden generation of superstars is ready for a golden opportunity.

“The stakes are extremely high; they’ve never been this high,” said coach Mike Sullivan. “These events give us an opportunity to say that we feel the United States is at the top of this sport. We feel we are as good, if not better, than any country competing in this game. And these events give us the opportunity to prove it.”

Mike Sullivan

While 44 players gathered this week for USA Hockey’s Olympic orientation camp in Plymouth, Michigan, the final roster of 25 players, which includes two more spots than the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, will be announced in early January. USA Hockey general manager Bill Guerin expressed his satisfaction with the way the American team came together for the 4 Nations tournament last February, although he lamented the overtime loss to Canada in the final.

“It was emotional. It was tough,” Guerin commented.

Bill Guerin

Guerin’s staff will face difficult decisions, including whether to include players who were not selected for the 4 Nations tournament, such as Jason Robertson, Tage Thompson, Cole Caufield, Seth Jones and two-time Olympian Patrick Kane, who this week stated that an Olympic gold medal is the only thing missing from his Hall of Fame career. “The players who participated in the 4 Nations did a great job, but we have to go back to the drawing board and start again,” Guerin said. “The players need to be playing well. They need to be healthy. So it’s difficult to say how much the roster will change. I don’t know. We’ll see over time, but having two additional spots is huge.” Guerin indicated that it will depend heavily on assistant coach John Tortorella, who is not on an NHL bench this fall, as a scout in the early stages of the NHL season, with an additional focus on players “in the bubble.” Versatility and adaptation to roles are, once again, top-quality assets, according to Guerin. The general manager also spoke about establishing a new culture and standard for USA Hockey, starting with an emphasis on the World Championships. The United States won gold at this event in May for the first time in 92 years. The American team invited several young members of that team, such as Jackson LaCombe, Frank Nazar, Alex Vlasic, and Shane Pinto, to their orientation camp as a reward for their commitment.

“We are doing things differently now, and the world championships are absolutely connected to this. If you say no and don’t have a legitimate excuse, it will hurt you,” Guerin stated. “I’m not afraid to say that we didn’t look at that with the Olympics coming up. That’s the biggest stage.”

Bill Guerin

“The world championships are huge. They may not be as popular in the United States, but in Europe, in Canada, they are, and they have to be important to us… We need to know what it’s about. We need to know that you want to help USA Hockey win.” Americans seek revenge against a star-studded Canadian team, which won the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament led by Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Sidney Crosby.

“We can’t just sit here and say, ‘Hey, good job, you know, it was close,'” Guerin said. “That’s just not good enough. We have to find a way to overcome the obstacle.”

Bill Guerin

The tournament was a resounding success, with 9.3 million American viewers, which marked ESPN’s largest audience for a hockey game. Interest soared after Brady and Matthew Tkachuk starred in a series of three fights in nine seconds at the beginning of the first match against Canada at the Bell Centre, which, according to Brady Tkachuk, was to demonstrate “how united we were as a group and how we will do whatever it takes to win”. However, it is unlikely to be repeated, as fights are prohibited in Olympic hockey. Canada has won nine Olympic gold medals, including the last two in which NHL players participated, in 2010 and 2014. Now, the United States feels it has matched Canada’s depth.

“We always used to say that Canada could put two teams on the ice to compete,” Sullivan said. “Well, now we can put two teams on as well. We can put three teams and compete in these events. So I think that says a lot about the growth of the sport in the United States.”

Mike Sullivan

Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes, who missed the 4 Nations tournament due to injury, believes a gold medal will be the culmination of concerted efforts to grow the sport.

“USA Hockey has put a lot of work into its youth development programs, its national team development program, and I feel like they’re starting to see the dividends where we have some really, really elite and the best players in the world,” Hughes said. “I feel like it’s gold or nothing, personally.”

Quinn Hughes