2018 Olympics: Projecting Team USA’s roster with NHL players

This team would’ve been so much fun to watch.

USA Hockey unveiled its men’s roster for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang during the Winter Classic on Monday. It’s a group full of NCAA prospects, former NHLers, and European castoffs who will try to make history nearly 40 years after the Miracle on Ice.

That’ll be exciting to watch, but it’s a far cry from the team that the Americans could’ve sent with the help of the NHL. It’s no exaggeration to say that Team USA could’ve been a gold medal contender in that kind of tournament. As good as teams like Canada, Sweden, and Russia could have been, the U.S. would have been in the mix, too.

We won’t get to see that tournament, however, so we’re left with a series of rosters pieced together from less exciting. The hockey should still be intense and competitive, but there simply won’t be the same kind of talent patrolling the ice in Korea without the NHL. No offense to Mark Arcobello, but he’s not as exciting as Auston Matthews.

That’s disappointing, but it won’t stop us from considering just what a 2018 U.S. Olympic men’s roster would look like with the best players in the world. We did it back in August, and now a few months later, let’s do it again with the latest information. For some comparison, here are projected teams from The Athletic and USA Today.

Forwards

F1: Johnny Gaudreau — Auston Matthews — Patrick Kane

F2: Max Pacioretty — Jack Eichel — Blake Wheeler

F3: James van Riemsdyk — Joe Pavelski — Phil Kessel

F4: Clayton Keller — Vincent Trocheck — Brock Boeser

Extras: T.J. Oshie, Dylan Larkin

Defensemen

D1: Zach Werenski — Seth Jones

D2: Ryan Suter — John Carlson

D3: Jaccob Slavin — Charlie McAvoy

Extras: Dustin Byfuglien, Cam Fowler

Goaltenders

Starter: Jonathan Quick

Backups: John Gibson, Cory Schneider

Other NHL players who could’ve been possibilities for Pyeongchang include Shayne Gostisbehere, Brandon Saad, Matthew Tkachuk, Kyle Connor, Nick Leddy, J.T. Miller, Anders Lee, Sean Couturier, Derek Stepan, Nick Schmaltz, Noah Hanifin, Ryan McDonagh, Kyle Okposo, Erik Johnson, Keith Yandle, Connor Hellebuyck, Jason Zucker, and Tyler Johnson.

Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good. Oh well.