The American Olympic Mens' Hockey Roster Drama



Thanks, NHL.com for the roster chart!

With the announcement of Team USA’s roster at the end of the Winter Classic, social media absolutely blew up with the omissions from the roster. Granted, some of the omissions were mind-boggling. The six most notable players missing from the 25 man roster are (in no particular order):

• Bobby Ryan
• Kyle Okposo
• Keith Yandle
• Jack Johnson
• Ben Bishop
• Cory Schneider

Those are some big names missing on that list, and apparently lots of people felt that way.

Bobby Ryan not being one of the 14 forwards named is quite possibly the decision that caused the most outrage amongst hockey fans – regardless of the country that they will be cheering on come February. Ryan is an undeniably great hockey player, and despite this most projections that were released throughout the season had him somewhere on the third or fourth line due to the sheer amount of talent that the States has to choose from this year. The pool that the States had to draw on can explain why Ryan could be potentially fourth line material or why Kessel was projected on the third, but it simply cannot explain why Ryan is left off the roster. Not to take away from any of the other wonderful players named to Team USA, but Ryan should have been on that list, no question. The fallout since the announcement between Burke and Ryan has been rather entertaining. Basically Burke said Ryan was left off the list for lack of intensity, and that “he can’t even spell intense” followed by Ryan going to media and saying that Burke’s comments were gutless. Burke is not exactly known for his elegant way of phrasing things and his smart choices with words, but this one is just leading to more media hype. Almost makes you wonder if Brian Burke is just one giant PR stunt by the league. (That’s a joke, don’t take me seriously. Sarcasm is tough to convey in writing.)  Burke’s comment is odd though, because Ryan is a crazy skilled player and any player with the talent that he possesses naturally has some intensity to them, but regardless, Ryan is off the Olympic roster. At least for the time being. Can you imagine how uncomfortable things will get if one of the current forwards gets injured and the team management decides that Ryan is the guy that will best fill the spot? It would be great to hear that conversation.

Kyle Okposo basically falls into the same category as Ryan. He’s an undeniably skilled and valuable player that was overlooked. That being said, his name being omitted did not lead to nearly the media – and social media – frenzy that Ryan’s did.

Three of the defensemen named just do not nearly as much sense as the other five, not to single any of them out though. The two notable defensemen left off the list would are huge losses for Team USA. Keith Yandle is a very good defensemen, as is Jack Johnson. After watching Keith Yandle single-handedly embarrass the Oilers in overtime on New Year’s Eve, why he’s not on the list is a true mystery. Yandle is a great player that they missed out on. Neither of these players caused the media frenzy that Ryan did though, still.

The goalie situation that the Americans put themselves into is quite something. The choice to name Ryan Miller is totally logical and a great decision. Then there’s the other two. Jonathan Quick is currently on injury reserve, but is a great goalie. Jimmy Howard just returned from injury and has iffy stats that have him 32^nd in the league in terms of save percent and goals against average; not the best stats you want for an Olympic goalie. Those two made the Olympic roster but Ben Bishop and Cory Schneider didn’t. It’s an odd decision on their part. This might be another awkward phone call if one of the goalies can’t make it due to injury or something else.

There were some odd decisions with the making of the American Olympic roster, but who knows, maybe it will work out in their favor. Maybe not, maybe these will be the decisions that cost them a certain medal. Only time will tell.