Difference Makers

With one heroic game, Eric Staal and Cam Ward made themselves favourites to play for Canada at next year's Winter Olymics.

Ditto for Jonathan Toews, who showed the country what he's made up while leading the youthful Chicago Blackhawks past the Calgary Flames.

MIKE SEGAR/REUTERS

Eric Staal dancing squarely in the spotlight last night.

By contrast, it's hard to imagine that either Joe Thornton or Patrick Marleau of the Sharks will be in Vancouver, not after yet another in a series of playoff failures. You even have to wonder about Calgary's Jarome Iginla, who would have been considered an Olympic shoo-in but didn't have a big series for the Flames and is captain of a team that has lost in the first round for four straight years.

Jeff Carter, meanwhile, was mostly silent for the Flyers in the first round, while a serious shoulder injury to Mike Richards might compromise his Olympic candidacy.

See, that's the added meaning these playoffs come with this spring, which is very much unlike the process leading up to Torino in '06.

That year, the NHL was coming off a lockout, so there were no playoffs in the spring of '05 in which players could make a case for their inclusion on the team, or exclusion, for that matter.

But this spring, when a player like Staal wins a playoff series with such a dramatic goal, that's a moment that has to put that player front and centre in the mind of Steve Yzerman, Canada's Olympic chief. That it came last night against Olympic incumbent goalie Martin Brodeur after Ward had done such a brilliant job keeping the Canes alive, well, that impacts the Olympic futures of Staal and Ward.

Happily for Yzerman, the results of the first round mean he'll get to see more of players like Staal, Ward, Toews, Alex Burrows, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry in action, all players who weren't part of the Torino squad, although Staal was an alternate.

That's the subtext to these playoffs. Makes 'em even more interesting, don't you think?

Comments

[Gary]

I don't think Brodeur will make the Olympic team, or at least I don't think he should.
No doubt he has had a hall of fame career but he was outplayed by Ward this year and was ordinary last year in the playoffs.

Luongo and Ward are the two best Canadian goalies right now. Time marches on, and Brodeur is no longer the guy IMO.

[A Habfan in Ottawa]

I think that the biggest question mark is Brodeur. Staal's goal was the second on the low blocker side in that game and a exact copy of Messier's in 1994 (his gaurantee game). Brodeur is too worried about others and not himself. He was not clutch when he needed to be. He is now Old and slow. Bring on Luongo.

[Clint]

Not a word in either column or this blog of Brodeur's total collapse in the final 2 minutes of that game? I understand the relationship between athlete and writer, I read the book. But at minimum I expected an acknowledgement of his performance in the final minutes. And how does that impact his olympic hopes?

[Marijan Kalman]

Corey Perry, cheap head shot scumbag to play for Canada. He is worse then Bertuzzi and Pronger!!You don't get scumbags on the national team!!

[Sandeep Kembhavi]

It's interesting to compare the situation the Sharks were in going into the playoffs to what Team Canada faces heading to Vancouver 2010. The Sharks were, like Team Canada will be, a stacked team with a great deal of strength at every position with enormous pressure and expectations to win it all, coming off a very disappointing performance in the last go-around.

Given the way Thornton and Marleau responded - or didn't respond - to the situation, I can't imagine Yzerman will even be inviting them to training camp. I'm not even accusing them of not caring enough or lacking a desire to win; I just think they've showed yet again that they lack that intangible quality of being able to step up and seize the biggest moments on the biggest stage.

Thornton's dust-up with Getzlaf in Game 6 was almost ironic: it almost seemed that he had resigned himself to the impending loss from the opening buzzer, and pre-empted another oncoming wave of crushing off-season criticism through a staged and somewhat gimmicky display of "passion".

[DamienCox]

Damien here. . .so people want me to address Brodeur and the Olympic team. . .here we go. . .as I've said for some time, both Brodeur and Luongo are likely to play in Vancouver. The goalie that performs the best in the preliminaries will then get the chance to go for gold. Don't forget, both goalies played in the 2004 World Cup - Luongo won the semi-final game because Brodeur was injured - and both played in Turin.
Luongo, really, has proved nothing yet. His chance to step forward comes in this next series against Chicago, a talented offensive team with multiple shooters. If he is outstanding against the Hawks, his case to be the starter in Vancouver is strengthened. But we're talking today about a guy who has never won a Vezina or gone deep into the playoffs, let alone won a Cup. Let the guy achieve something first.
Brodeur can't be happy with how last night's game ended. To be honest, I didn't see either goal well, but he's a guy who prides himself on big saves at big times, so you know he has to be disappointed. Before he's written off, however, let's at least acknowledge that he was also brilliant at times in the series. Let's see how he plays in the fall.
And Ward? By all accounts, he played very well against the Devils, and probably deserves to be No. 3 in Vancouver. Those who want to say he should start in the Olympics, or be bumped ahead of Brodeur, would do well to remember last year's world championships in Quebec City. Canada led 4-2 with just over 11 minutes left in the third and lost in OT, 5-4.
Everyone forget that?

[Bryan M]

Hi Damien, I agree that we can't count Broadeur out yet as he played a good series. He came into camp last year fitter than ever, and when he wasn't injured I thought at times he was better than he's been in the past couple of years. Indeed, we'll see in the fall. I disagree about Luongo. Yes he doesn't have a lot of hardware, but he's played for dismal teams (until now). I think he's the best goalie in the world now at this moment.

What about Marc-Andre Fleury? He took the Pens to the finals last year, and has looked good this year so far with a slightly weaker team in front of him. If he can win the clutch games shouldn't that put him in contention? We should take one of the young goalies just for the experience, even if they're the third stringer.

Last, Staal should absolutely be on the team. I generally try to steer clear of 'what-ifs' but seeing Eric Staal in 2006, third in NHL scoring at the time, sit in the stands in Turin while Todd @$#%@# Bertuzzi lumbered around the ice looking lost and taking penalties still makes my blood boil. At the Olympics it should be 'what have you done for me lately', UNLESS you're a true character player.

[nugentmania]

Wow. You and I are usually on the same page, but others simply pointed out that you were ready to question Olympic slots for certain guys who had bad 1st rounds, but no mention of Brodeur, who you have a history with. Your perogative, I guess. Not my column.

However....that's not my issue with the piece.

You'd have to question Jarome Iginla as a shoo-in? I assure you, Iginla is a no-brainer. I know you know this. Brodeur, who I'm a huge fan of, is not.

[furcifer]

"Before he's written off, however, let's at least acknowledge that he was also brilliant at times in the series. "

So was Iginla. He was also brilliant during the regular season.

[Lockstock93]

Okay, I'll wade in...

The suggestion that jarome iginla could be "dropped" from the Olympic team is purely meant to drum up controversy, right? Because Damien Cox isn't part of the group who pick players and his assertion that poor play in these playoffs could eliminate players from possible inclusion on the team is a prediction, not anything else. So, with that recognized...

Iginla is not going to be dropped, even if there are some spectacular performances from great, great players, you would have to completely overlook the characteristics of team selection in order to think that was possible. In hockey, guys like Iginla aren't dropped. It doesn't happen. They're "character" guys who, hit, score and lead. That the flames couldn't beat the Blackhawks doesn't mean a thing about Jarome Iginla.
I am telling you this and i have more likelihood of honesty because i'm not selling the ad space or getting paid. Plus, Damien cox should remember that players who make it all the way to the final usually start slow, and with a summer camp, fall nhl and then the olympics, picking players who had a month or two off to build up the fire isn't the worst idea...you'll notice when they name iginla captain and Dan boyle is a starting defenseman.

[Gary]

Damien, it's not just the fact Brodeur arguably choked against the Canes.
He lost in the first round last year and had an .891 save percentage.
He was ordinary down the stretch this year after the first few games when he came back from injury.
Ward has won a Conn Smythe, Brodeur has not.

I am not saying he is not a first ballot hall of famer, but the facts are his best days are behind him and Luongo and Ward deserve the top 2 spots.

Without Broduer the Devils did just fine with career minor league goalie Clemmenson. The virtual asterisk on Brodeur's accomplishments will always be the Devils system.

[Marijan Kalman]

And we have to remember that Brodeur was goalie in Torino when we won WOODEN MEDAL!! Why everyone in hockey media is sayinG that Thornton is not winner and Iginla is!!What the heck Iginla won,PAIR OF TENNIS SHOES IN JUNIOR HOCKEY.He is same like Thornton, a BUM!

[Steve C.]

Well Damien, all I can say is thankfully you are not choosing the players for the Olympic team. I guess you're gonna say Kyle Wellwood should be on the team now because he had two points last night. Anyway, Iginla and Staal were always, and still will be on the team. Brodeur will be the starting goalie, and Luongo will get a couple of games in. Ward, if he makes it won't see any ice time so it hardly matters. Yzerman knows better than to be a fairweather fan. If you want to audition players day to day why don't you wait until the fall when it starts to matter. You should enjoy the playoffs for the Cup pursuit.

[Steve@The Spectator]

Damien, it's not often that I disagree with you, but with the greatest respect, I must do so in this case. "With one heroic game..." two players have vaulted themselves into Olympic consideration? One game?? Are the winds in Canada really so fickle that one game in the first round of the playoffs will - or won't - make someone an Olympic contender? Wow, that's the kind of short-range thinking that dooms a lot of corporations outside of the sports world. Based on that strategy, had this been one year ago, Carey Price would be starting every minute for Canada at the Olympics. Now, he'll be lucky to make next season's AHL All-Star game. I would hope that players are selected for something more than one game of playoff success.