Courtesy our outstanding NHL on NBC research team, here’s an Excel spreadsheet listing all 30 teams and the players who’ve been invited to participate in the upcoming Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
As you can see, the Red Wings, Blues and Blackhawks each have 10 players going over. No team has more than that.
Meanwhile, the Flames, Panthers, Oilers, Senators, and Predators each have two players going over. No team has fewer than that.
If there’s an angle to discuss here, it may be the benefit of rest for a playoff run. Not that the Blackhawks had any trouble with Olympic fatigue in 2010, but might a team like the San Jose Sharks receive an energy advantage with key players like Joe Thornton, Logan Couture and Dan Boyle getting passed over by Canada?