Hockey Canada extended invitations to 47 players for its upcoming Team Canada Olympic orientation camp.
Given the wealth of talent the nation has, it’s impossible to compile such a list without excluding noteworthy players, but one of the bigger snubs was Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn.
Benn is quickly emerging as a star in the NHL and at the age of 24, he has the potential to be a valuable player for his country for years to come. Despite that he didn’t even get an invite to the camp.
The British Columbia-native’s new head coach, Lindy Ruff, will be part of Team Canada and he said that Benn’s name has come up in the roster talks. He also thinks this snub can serve as motivation for Benn.
“You can say I am going to use these three months and put myself on the map, and make them make a hard decision,” Ruff told Stars Inside Edge. “The ball is in Jamie’s court. He’s going to have to outplay some players that are maybe ahead of him and use that as a tool to motivate himself. I’d like to put him in the best position possible to do that.”
In other words, Benn still has a shot to make the team.
Meanwhile, Benn’s Stars have made significant moves over the summer in the hope of ending their five-season playoff drought. Among other things, Dallas acquired 21-year-old forward Tyler Seguin, who will probably play on the same line as Benn. Seguin is another up-and-coming player that won’t be attending Team Canada’s camp.