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A look at Canada’s men’s Olympic hockey roster heading to South Korea

Jan 11, 2018 | 1:45 PM

With the NHL not taking part in next month’s Pyeongchang Olympics, Canada had to dig deep to fill out its roster for the 2018 Games. The Canadian Press takes a look the 25 players heading to South Korea for the men’s hockey tournament.

 

FORWARDS

Chris Kelly: The 37-year-old has the most NHL experience on the Canadian roster with 123 goals and 166 assists in 833 games. Kelly, who won the Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011, played all 82 games with Ottawa last season. The Toronto native had a professional tryout with Edmonton in the fall, but wasn’t offered a contract. Kelly played 10 games with Ottawa’s AHL affiliate this season.

Derek Roy: The Rockland, Ont., product scored 189 goals and added 335 assists in 738 NHL games, including an 81-point season in 2007-08 with Buffalo, before going to Europe after the 2014-15 campaign. Roy, 32, plays for Sweden’s Linkoping HC.

Rene Bourque: The 36-year-old from Lac La Biche, Alta., played 725 NHL games with six teams, registering 163 goals and 153 assists. Bourque spent 2016-17 with Colorado, but is now a member of Sweden’s Djurgardens.

Maxim Lapierre: The Brossard, Que., product scored 65 goals and added 74 assists in 614 NHL games with five teams. Lapierre, 32, has spent the last three seasons in Europe and currently plays for Switzerland’s HC Lugano.

Mason Raymond: The Cochrane, Alta., native had 115 goals and 136 assists in 546 NHL games. The 32-year-old Raymond signed with Switzerland’s SC Bern prior to this season.

Wojtek Wolski: The 31-year-old from Toronto scored 99 goals and added 168 assists in 451 NHL games. Wolski, the 21st pick in the 2004 draft, has spent the last five seasons in Russia’s KHL, and currently plays for Metallurg Magnitogorsk. He suffered two broken cervical vertebrae, spinal cord trauma and a concussion after crashing headfirst into the boards in October 2016, but returned to action this season.

Gilbert Brule: The sixth overall pick at the 2005 NHL draft — selected one spot behind Carey Price — had 43 goals and 52 assists 299 NHL games. The 31-year-old Edmonton product has spent the last four seasons in the KHL, and currently plays for Beijing-based Kulun Red Star.

Linden Vey: The Wakaw, Sask., native had 14 goals and 30 assists in 138 NHL games. Suiting up for the KHL’s Astana Barys in 2017-18, the 26-year-old played parts of two seasons for Canadian head coach Willie Desjardins with Vancouver. Vey also played for Desjardins in junior with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers.

Andrew Ebbett: The Vernon, B.C., native had 26 goals and 45 assists in 224 NHL games. Ebbett, 35, has spent the last three seasons with Bern.

Quinton Howden: The 25-year-old from Oakbank, Man., plays for the KHL’s HC Dinamo Minsk. Howden, the 25th pick at the 2010 draft, had 10 goals and seven assists in 97 NHL games.

Rob Klinkhammer: The 31-year-old from Lethbridge, Alta., had 22 goals and 21 assists in 193 NHL games. He’s spent the last two seasons in the KHL and currently plays for Ak Bars Kazan.

Brandon Kozun: The 27-year-old played 20 NHL games for Toronto in 2014-15. The Calgary product has spent three seasons in the KHL, including the last two with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

Eric O’Dell: The 27-year-old from Ottawa played 41 NHL games for Winnipeg. O’Dell has spent the last two seasons with the KHL’s HC Sochi.

Christian Thomas: The 25-year-old from Toronto suited up for 27 NHL games with three teams. He currently plays for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the AHL.

 

DEFENCEMEN

Stefan Elliott: The 26-year-old from Vancouver had eight goals and 16 assists in 84 NHL games with three teams. He’s a member of Sweden’s HV71 this season.

Chay Genoway: The Morden, Man., native collected an assist in his only NHL game with Minnesota. Genoway, 31, currently plays for Lada Togliatti — his fourth KHL team in four years.

Cody Goloubef: The 28-year-old from Oakville, Ont., played 129 NHL games, including 33 with Colorado last season. Goloubef is a member of the AHL’s Stockton Heat in 2017-18.

Marc-Andre Gragnani: The 30-year-old has spent the last two seasons with Minsk. Gragnani, of L’Ile-Bizard, Que., had three goals and 15 assists in 78 NHL games.

Chris Lee: The 37-year-old from MacTier, Ont., has played his entire career outside the NHL. A member of Metallurg Magnitogorsk for the last five seasons, Lee also played in Germany and Sweden after six seasons in the ECHL and AHL.

Mat Robinson: Like Lee, the 31-year-old has never played an NHL game, spending the last seven seasons overseas, including five in the KHL. The Calgary native plays for CSKA Moscow.

Maxim Noreau: The 30-year-old Montreal native has spent five of the last seven seasons in Switzerland, including the last two with Bern. Noreau played six NHL games with Minnesota.

Karl Stollery: The Camrose, Alta., native is in his first KHL season with Dinamo Riga. The 30-year-old has spent the majority of his career in the AHL, but did play 23 NHL games, including 11 in 2016-17, with New Jersey.

 

GOALIES

Ben Scrivens: The Spruce Grove, Alta., native saw action in 144 NHL games with Toronto, Los Angeles, Edmonton and Montreal before heading to the KHL prior to the 2016-17 season. Scrivens, 31, currently plays for Salavat Yulaev Ufa.

Justin Peters: The 31-year-old from Blyth, Ont., suited up for 83 NHL games. He plays for Germany’s Kolner Haie.

Kevin Poulin: The 27-year-old Montreal native, who played 50 NHL games, is a member of Medvescak Zagreb in the Austrian league. 

Follow @JClipperton_CP on Twitter

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press