1997–98 Canada men's national ice hockey team

The 1997–98 Canada men's national ice hockey team represented Canada at the 1998 Winter Olympics held in Nagano, Japan.

Canada's team, coached by Marc Crawford, placed fourth in the Olympic tournament.[1]

History

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1998 was the first year that the modern NHL took a break to allow its players to participate in the Olympics, allowing the top countries to field teams with professionals of top calibre. Team Canada's Olympic roster was selected by Bobby Clarke, who was then general manager of the Philadelphia Flyers. Eric Lindros was named captain over longtime leaders such as Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, and Ray Bourque.[2] Rob Zamuner was a surprise pick, while Mark Messier and Scott Niedermayer were omitted.[3]

Clarke was joined in management by assistant general managers Bob Gainey and Pierre Gauthier.[4]

The coaching staff was led by head coach Marc Crawford of the Colorado Avalanche. He was joined by associate coach Andy Murray, assistant coaches Wayne Cashman and Mike Johnston, and video coach Rob Cookson. Murray, Johnston, and Cookson all had prior experience with Canada's full-time national team and the larger International Ice Hockey Federation rink surface.[5]

The Canadian team, despite a strong start in the round robin, failed to win a medal, losing 3 - 2 to Finland in the bronze medal game.

1998 Winter Olympics roster

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ The Canadian Encyclopedia Archived 2010-12-04 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ MacGregor, Roy (1998-02-04). "All eyes on Eric: Is 24-year-old Eric Lindros ready to carry Canada's hockey hopes?". Archived from the original on January 11, 2013.
  3. ^ Willes, Ed (1997-11-30). "HOCKEY; Gretzky In, Messier Out As Canada Picks Team". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
  4. ^ "Bob Clarke Names 23-Player Men's Roster for 1998 Winter Olympics". www.hockeycanada.ca. Hockey Canada.
  5. ^ "Clarke Names Marc Crawford Head Coach of Men's Olympic Team". www.hockeycanada.ca. Hockey Canada. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
Preceded by Canada men's Olympic ice hockey team
1998
Succeeded by