As in 2010, the 2014 U.S. men’s Olympic hockey roster will be announced at the Winter Classic on New Year’s Day. In a change, the women’s team will also be named at the NHL’s annual outdoor game.
The men’s team will be announced at the conclusion of the Jan. 1 matchup between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings at The Big House at the University of Michigan. The women’s team will be named during the second intermission.
USA Hockey general manager David Poile also said half or more of the men’s Olympic hockey team will be veterans from the young 2010 squad that defied expectations to win a silver medal.
Forwards Patrick Kane and Zach Parise are expected to lead Team USA. The starting goalie is up for debate. Ryan Miller was spectacular in 2010, but his stats in the NHL have regressed since as he enters his age-33 season with the Sabres. There’s also Jonathan Quick, who led the Kings to the Stanley Cup in 2012, and Jimmy Howard, who is coming off two strong seasons with the Red Wings.
Both the U.S. men and women lost gold-medal games to Canada at the 2010 Olympics. The men will go into the Sochi Games as underdogs again. The U.S. and Canada are not historically strong at Winter Games staged in Europe or Asia.
Poile told reporters at the U.S. Olympic media summit in Park City, Utah, he believes the U.S. is one of four or five teams that legitimately has a shot to win gold in Sochi. The medal prediction service Infostrada has Russia winning gold, Finland silver and the Czech Republic bronze.
The U.S. women appear destined for a rematch with the rival Canadians in Sochi for gold. The Americans beat Canada (in Canada) for the World Championship in April.