Our campaign for Mike Knuble fell short.
But at the age of 37, he would have felt like a very old man on this team.
The United States will send a young group of hockey players to the 2010 Winter Olympics.
The average age is 26, and only five players named today by GM Brian Burke have reached their 30th birthday.
There are just three holdovers from 2006, and with good reason. The Americans finished eighth in Turin, the worst showing ever by a U.S. Olympic hockey team.
The three returnees from that mess: Chris Drury of the New York Rangers, Jamie Langenbrunner of the New Jersey Devils, and defenseman Brian Rafalski of the Detroit Red Wings (the elder statesman at age 36).
So from the failing hands of Mike Modano, Doug Weight, Chris Chelios, Bill Guerin, et al., the torch is passed to the likes of Dustin Brown, Zach Parise, Erik Johnson, and Bobby Ryan.
The best news for American hockey fans: on several nights this season, Ryan Miller has looked as good as any goalie in hockey.
This team will be an underdog, but could realistically emerge as a medal contender. Preliminary round games against Switzerland, Norway, and Canada will tell us a lot.
Photo: Having turned 21 in November, Patrick Kane is the youngest member of a young American team. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images).
Comments
I really think Kyle Okposo should have made the team of Callahan.