team USA - minus the management mishaps

dunham29 writes "Let's face it, the American management messed up. Like all the other countries, they should have simply named eight players to his preliminary roster. What did he do? Named 15. This may cost team USA a medal, as Young, Dunham and maybe even Suter did not deserve to make it, although Dunham will eventually begin to play better. Remember Suter's crosscheck on Kariya? Truly disgusting.

Anyway, what do you think team USA would look like had they only chosen eight players

1st Eight - Goalies - none

Basically, goalies in a short tournament steal games. Whoever is the hottest going into the Olympics should be chosen

Final Roster - Goalies - three - Mike Richter, Tom Barrasso, Brian Boucher

Richter is simply great right now, as he has finally regained his '96 Canada Cup form that won the USA the gold and himself a Rolls Royce. Barrasso is no stranger to international competition, and would be a more than formidable back up. Boucher will be around for a while, and will gain valuable experience for the next Olympics.

1st Eight - Defencemen - three - Brian Leetch, Brian Rafalski, Chris Chelios

Rafalski is an excellent skater who could really create a lot of plays on the larger ice surface, and will not get caught out of position. Leetch is simply a great offensive defenceman, and Chelios would provide invaluable leadership.

Final Roster - Defencemen - seven - Leetch, Rafalski, Chelios, Aaron Miller, Tom Poti, Derian Hatcher, Eric Weinrich

Miller will give the Americans some size on the blueline, a valuable asset against Canada's large forwards (Lindros, mainly). Hatcher has the experience, and can also hit and score occasionaly. Poti is excellent offensively and will be able to play in the next three or four olympics. Weinrich is nothing flashy, simply a steady player who won't mess up.

1st Eight - Forwards - five - Mike Modano, John Leclair, Jeremy Roenick, Doug Weight, Keith Tkachuk

Size, skill and speed. These five guys always produce, year after year. What more do you want? Modano and Roenick are Team USA.

Final Roster - 13 - Modano, Leclair, Roenick, Weight, Tkachuk, Chris Drury, Bill Guerin, Tony Amonte, Craig Conroy, Adam Deadmarsh, Mike York, Mark Parrish, Brett Hull

This is a very strong group with lots of variety. Conroy and York make it for their strong two-way play. Surprisingly, they can score. Parrish is a goal scoring machine, and his start is what gets him on this team. Drury is simply talented, as is Amonte. Guerin is a perfect sniper to play with Amonte and Weight (remember the allstar game), and Deadmarsh is a classic defensive forward. Hull is a true sniper, and although he may be a defensive liability, Conroy, York or Deadmarsh can recover for him.

There could have been some better offensive players added, ie Scott Young, but all the two way defensive forwards and solid defensemen would really help shut down the Canadians, Czechs and Swedes. They can score goals, too. This way, they won't completely abandon Richter, and the games will all be close. At Nagano, they had too much fire power and not enough defence. This team has the perfect balance, had management not messed up. Now, Deadmarsh, Weinrich and Boucher will get cut, which is not only a shame but may cost the Americans a medal. "