Not everybody is down with National Hockey League players skating in the Winter Games.
By now, we all know that many NHL owners have a major gripe with their league shutting down for two weeks (though they didn’t seem to mind shutting down for four months last year), especially when there’s little to be gained for their NHL franchise aside from an injury to a superstar you’d prefer to have in your lineup. On the other hand, there’s an obvious sense of pride for any player picked to represent their country on international ice.
There’s no shortage of opinions on the matter.
But what’s an ideal Olympics from the Boston Bruins’ point of view?
Skating on a stacked Team Sweden roster, B’s winger Loui Eriksson is a player whose season has been riddled with injuries (he’s missed a combined 20 games this year with concussion issues). Recording six goals and 20 points in 37 games this season, it seems as if Eriksson’s dealt another blow as soon as he gets going. And he’s not shy about considering these games another chance at a fresh start to become more of the player that the B’s traded Tyler Seguin for this past July.
“I’ve been through a lot the last couple months here so I am looking forward to going to the Olympics and then come back here and start playing well and be healthy,… Eriksson admitted last weekend before leaving for his second Olympic games. He scored three goals and four points in four games in Vancouver four years ago, and on a line with Daniel Sedin and the Caps’ Nicklas Backstrom, envisioning a scenario where Loui gets his groove back isn’t that farfetched.
Prior to leaving for Sochi, the 28-year-old winger had recorded a goal and five points in his last seven games and had some budding chemistry with Carl Soderberg and Chris Kelly.
For the other Scandinavian country with B’s representation (and no, I’m not talking about Boston draft pick and Team Norway goaltender Lars Volden), it’d be nice to see Tuukka Rask lose the battle for No. 1 in the Finland crease. I know that sounds kinda harsh, especially in Rask’s first trip to the Olympics, but you’d like to see the face of the franchise get some rest for what the B’s are hoping is another yet another long playoff run. The 26-year-old Rask has played in 43 of the Bruins’ 57 games this year, and with a five wins and a .915 save percentage in his last 11 games before the break, a situation where Rask’s watching more than playing seems ideal for Boston.
And it’s not out of the realm of possibility, with Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi expected to also see time in the Suomi crease. Obviously, Rask-Niemi-Lehtonen could be an effective trio in a platoon role (though a three-headed monster in Olympic play seems borderline impossible), and wouldn’t do as much “damage… as Rask outright winning the job. That, or an early exit.
The same can be said for the 6-foot-9 Zdeno Chara. The Bruins have made a concerted effort to limit Chara’s hard minutes in 2013-14 considering his fatigue by the end of the Stanley Cup Finals last year. Beginning with putting him in front of the net on the power play, limiting the number of times the 36-year-old captain has to retrieve a full 200 to start the rush once again, Chara’s importance to the Black-and-Gold’s postseason hopes, especially given the season ending injury to Dennis Seidenberg in December, cannot be stated enough. That’s why a deep Olympic run for a Slovakian club thin on the blue-line (veterans Andrej Meszaros and Andrej Sekera are the most tenured NHLers behind Chara) seems like a nightmare for the Bruins.
Another trip to the Olympics also gives David Krejci the chance to show the world why he’s such a valuable and straight up lethal weapon for the Bruins. Donning the Czech Republic colors for the second time in his big league career, Krejci will skate on the Czech top six, and looks to continue to build his resume as a ‘big game player’. Since 2010, Krejci has recorded 26 goals and 60 points in 63 postseason contests, and has made it a point to try and outshine the game’s best on the biggest stages. He took now teammate Jarome Iginla going to Pittsburgh instead of Boston last year quite personally, ‘admitting’ that he couldn’t compete with a guy like Crosby or Malkin. When he feels slighted, which is quite often, Krejci is a player that can take his game to another level.
He’ll try to do that for a Czech Republic squad in search of their first Gold since 1998.
For Team Canada, I’m more than content with Patrice Bergeron skating on the fourth line, or even serving as Canada’s 13th forward, relegated to defensive-zone faceoff duty. Bergeron is the driving force of the Boston forward core, and when he skated in Game 6 of last year’s Cup Final with his entire body falling apart, it showed throughout the lineup. I don’t know about you, but I wanna see Bergeron’s game limited. The last thing the B’s need when they return is a Bergeron-less attack.
Oh, that, and USA winning Gold. America!