Neal 41 Report post Posted January 8, 2014 Reading through the topic on the numbers of players from each team representing their countries at the Olympics a question came to mind. How do you think having a large number of players at the Olympics will impact a team's chances in the playoffs?I would think two of the harder hit teams would be Detroit and Chicago. Chicago is coming off their Cup win, so their off season was short already and some of Detroit's key players are older. And now they both have several players going through a high intensity series of games in a short period and some additional lengthy travel. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
goblue9280 33 Report post Posted January 8, 2014 Red Wings had 11 on olympic teams in 2002, including 7 medal winners (Shanny, Yzerman on Canada... Hull, Chelios on US... Fedorov, Datsyuk, Larinov on Russia) and then went on to win the cup. With the exception of Datsyuk, all of those guys were in the twilight of their careers... yet it didn't seem to make much of a difference. They'll tell you how tough it was to play those extra games, but outside of increased injury risk, I'm not sure it has a huge impact. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chadd 916 Report post Posted January 8, 2014 All of the guys going over are the elite of the elite, they are the ones capable of playing even though they are exhausted down the stretch. I will be curious to see what happens to a team like San Jose. They don't have many guys going and the majority of the guys on the team won't play any meaningful hockey for two weeks. It will be interesting to see how teams like that hold their edge. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RadioGaGa 162 Report post Posted January 9, 2014 Chadd makes an interesting point...teams with lots of Olympians may be better off coming back, because there is less rust. I wonder if you will see NHL teams send their eligible young guys to the AHL to keep them playing during the break. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MatthewRoach7 130 Report post Posted January 9, 2014 Here's one for ya. Who the hell is gonna play in net for the Sabres? Lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RadioGaGa 162 Report post Posted January 9, 2014 You know the NHL is not playing during the Olympics, right? That's why it's been such a compacted schedule....3 in 5 nights for lots of teams. They need to get 82 games in with a 15 (or so) day break in Feb. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wrangler 157 Report post Posted January 10, 2014 It didn't hurt the Blackhawks last time around. I'd be more concerned with injuries. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stewie 721 Report post Posted January 10, 2014 Here's one for ya. Who the hell is gonna play in net for the Sabres? Loli think they could erect a brick wall infront of the net and still lose. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
