Peters: Projecting Team USA’s Beijing 2022 Olympic Roster – Version 2
In the last month since our last projected roster dropped, there has been some developments. The biggest one is that Jack Eichel has had his surgery and his projected recovery timeline may allow him to compete in the Olympics, but that is very far from a sure thing. It’s at least in the realm of possibility now.
On top of that, a number of players have raised their hand to be counted among players that could or should be in the mix for U.S. roster spots. While that is the case, there wasn’t a ton of movement on the projected roster. There was just one player changed from the previous roster, but I wanted to take a look at some of the players that could be knocking on the door, too.
Forwards:
In: Max Pacioretty
Out: Brock Boeser
Max Pacioretty
Currently injured, Pacioretty didn’t necessarily do anything to get himself on the radar, but I had a good chat about him with both Frank Seravalli and Steve Greeley about the roster and through our conversation — not that they were trying to hard-sell me or anything – I started to become convinced the forward group needed more experience up front. Pacioretty has played internationally and has been a top playoff performer as well. He also brings some needed size to the forward group. Pacioretty should have enough runway after returning from injury to build his case.
Brock Boeser
In a numbers game, Boeser ended up the odd-man out despite the fact that he’s one of the few natural right wingers. The U.S. has a lot more quality left wingers. So why does Boeser get nudged out? I think the other wings in the mix that can score are scoring more consistently than Boeser has this season. The Canucks winger has four goals and eight points and I’m not sure he brings anything different compared to some of the other guys on the roster. I think Boeser remains firmly in the mix for a spot, however.
1. Auston Matthews*
2. Patrick Kane*
3. Kyle Connor
4. Johnny Gaudreau
5. Matthew Tkachuk
6. J.T. Miller
7. Alex DeBrincat
8. Dylan Larkin
9. Chris Kreider
10. Jake Guentzel
11. Brady Tkachuk
12. Joe Pavelski
13. Max Pacioretty
14. Brock Nelson
In the mix: Alex Iafallo, Brock Boeser, Jason Robertson, Troy Terry, T.J. Oshie
Alex Iafallo: I know it might seem strange to see Iafallo’s name near the Olympic list, but he might be the kind of versatile player the bottom of the forward lineup needs. He’s grown into a top-six player for the Kings and a legit one. For Team USA, however, he could be a depth scoring piece and a potential penalty killer. The one thing I worry about at this point is that there’s not enough defensive, PK type players. I think Iafallo could potentially solve that problem.
Troy Terry: If we did this list two weeks ago, I don’t think you’d see Terry near the list. I still don’t think he has done enough to unseat anyone from the roster, but you can’t ignore what Terry has done. He is the top scoring American in the NHL currently and just can’t seem to stop finding the score sheet. I am a huge fan of the player and his development trajectory, but I don’t know if you can put him in the mix based on a month of great hockey at this point.
Defense
1. Adam Fox
2. Charlie McAvoy
3. Jaccob Slavin
4. Ryan McDonagh
5. Zach Werenski
6. Seth Jones*
7. Quinn Hughes
8. John Carlson
In the mix: Brett Pesce, Jeff Petry
Brett Pesce: The U.S. needs to have a blue line that can move pucks and keep the opposition on the back foot. I keep trying to make my own case for Pesce to be there. He’s one of the better shutdown defensemen and penalty killers in the talent pool, but I just don’t know who I could possibly take out. I think building the most dynamic blue line possible is the best way forward and I decided to hold firm. That said, I think Pesce is right on the cusp of being on this roster.
Goalies
1. Connor Hellebuyck
2. John Gibson
3. Thatcher Demko
In the mix: Jack Campbell
Jack Campbell vs. Thatcher Demko
Despite Thatcher Demko’s numbers dipping lately, I wasn’t quite ready to pull the trigger on replacing him on the roster. However, Jack Campbell as an option is especially tempting for a numbers of reasons.
First, let’s focus on Demko. He’s playing behind a very leaky defense and can only do so much at this point. On top of that, whoever USA’s third goalie is probably won’t matter a ton as I don’t see anyone supplanting Hellebuyck or Gibson in the top two.
Demko and Campbell have actually made a similar number of starts in the NHL over the last three seasons. Though both have limited playoff experience, both performed well in losing efforts in their only postseason series to date. That performance Demko had against Vegas two years ago, however, really sticks in the mind as a sample of what he can do at his highest level. That’s just a little bit higher than what we’ve seen from Campbell at this point.
One thing that I think may make Campbell especially attractive aside from how incredible he has been playing this season, is that he is famously a great teammate. Everyone loves the guy. He brings the right kind of attitude and energy to the table on a day-to-day basis whether he’s starting or not. That’s actually really, really valuable in a No. 3 goalie. You don’t want someone who is sulking that he’s not playing and being negative. It can have an impact on the dressing room. I know it seems silly to point to that, and I wouldn’t if Campbell wasn’t also having an exceptional season, but when you’re building a roster for a very short tournament, you have to take every little thing into consideration and I think this is one that actually should be part of the conversation.
The No. 3 goalie battle is going to be very, very interesting.
Potential Lineup
Kyle Connor – Auston Matthews – Patrick Kane
Matthew Tkachuk – J.T. Miller – Alex DeBrincat
Johnny Gaudreau – Dylan Larkin – Brady Tkachuk
Chris Kreider-Brock Nelson – Joe Pavelski
Max Pacioretty / Jake Guentzel
Ryan McDonagh – Adam Fox
Jaccob Slavin – Charlie McAvoy
Zach Werenseki – Seth Jones
Quinn Hughes / John Carlson
Connor Hellebuyck
John Gibson
Thatcher Demko OR Jack Campbell