Sunday, February 10, 2002
GM keeping fingers crossed
By BRUCE GARRIOCH -- Ottawa Sun
SALT LAKE CITY -- There's still a small crack in the door for Boston Bruins centre Joe Thornton to make Team Canada.
GM Wayne Gretzky hopes the club's 23-man roster will remain intact for the opener Friday against Sweden, but hasn't ruled out making changes for injury reasons.
Speaking to a room packed full of reporters yesterday, Gretzky revealed Anaheim winger Paul Kariya has a broken finger and St. Louis defenceman Al MacInnis has a bad foot.
Though Kariya isn't going to miss any games, Gretzky described the injury as "pretty serious" while MacInnis should be fine.
On the plus side, Detroit centre Steve Yzerman is expected to return to the Red Wings' lineup tomorrow in Montreal following knee surgery.
The only other concern is San Jose winger Owen Nolan, who has been troubled by chronic back problems. He has been playing on a more consistent basis and is expected to report here as scheduled this week.
Thornton could get the call if Canada loses any forwards before the tournament starts. He's at the top of a list that includes Edmonton's Anson Carter.
"We haven't decided who the replacement will be because we haven't really discussed it as a group and made our decision like we usually do,'' Gretzky said. '`We haven't had to do that. We expect that everybody will be ready.
"There are two or three guys who deserve a phone call and deserve the opportunity to play. There's no question with what Joe Thornton has done this year, he'd be right at the top of the list. There's a couple of other guys. It would be a tough decision.
'`It's our hope that this group will be able to play together."
Kariya, who missed the 1998 Olympics with an injury, took a slap shot on the finger during a 4-1 loss to Carolina on Friday night. He practised yesterday and is expected to play in the Might Ducks' next game.
"I think he'll be fine,'' Gretzky said. '`I was giving you an injury update and I just thought you should know his status."
Gretzky arrived here Friday with assistant GM Kevin Lowe and associate coach Ken Hitchcock. The three will spend the next five days scouting the preliminary round games before Canada's only practice Thursday.
Gretzky talked about the difficulties and challenges facing Canada, but he likes the team's speed and its ability to move the puck, and isn't concerned about the big ice.
"We're really excited about this Team Canada,'' he said. '`You can't measure chemistry and heart, but we feel we've got the right chemistry and mix. We believe we're ready and our focus is the gold medal."
2002 Games Men's Hockey Coverage
