Ice hockey was developed in Canada in the late 1800s and within several decades evolved into an international sport most popular in the cold-weather regions of North America and Europe. It became an Olympic sport at the 1920 Games in Antwerp, Belgium.
Hockey involves two teams of six players each — three forwards, two defensemen and a goaltender. The players wear skates and use sticks to move a rubber puck up and down a 200-foot-long, 100-foot wide sheet of ice (bigger than NHL ice rink). The object is simply to put the puck into the opposing team's goal more often than the opponent does. Though played on an icy surface and with much different equipment, game flow and rules are somewhat similar to soccer.
OLYMPIC OVERVIEW
The Canadians, originators of the sport, dominated the first Olympic competition and won six of the first seven gold medals awarded, 1920-52. But Canada has not won hockey gold since the 1952 Games in Oslo, Norway.
The Soviet Union began a dynasty of its own in 1956, winning seven gold medals, a silver and a bronze through the 1988 Games in Calgary. The United States captured the only two gold medals that eluded the Soviets during that time. Incidentally, the Americans have won both times the Winter Olympics have taken place on home ice/soil — in Squaw Valley, Ca., in 1960, and again in Lake Placid, N.Y., in 1980.
The face of the Olympic version of the sport changed in the 1990s as the National Hockey League allowed its players, undeniably the best in the world, to participate in the Games — first in 1994 on a limited basis and then with a full contingent of NHL stars in 1998. NHL players will again compete in the 2002 Winter Games, during which time the pro league will take a midwinter break.
In March 2001, USA Hockey announced the selection of 10 players to the 2002 U.S. Olympic men's team. The players were hand-picked by a committee, which includes USA Hockey general manager Craig Patrick, assistant general manager Larry Pleau, director of player personnel Art Berglund and head coach Herb Brooks, among others.
Nine of the 10 U.S. players — the team will eventually have 23 on it — have previously represented the United States in Olympic competition.
Defenseman Brian Leetch (New York Rangers) and forward Keith Tkachuk (St. Louis Blues) will be making their third Olympic appearances. Other early invitees include forwards Tony Amonte (Chicago Blackhawks), Chris Drury (Colorado Avalanche), Bill Guerin (Boston Bruins), Brett Hull (Dallas Stars), John LeClair (Philadelphia Flyers), Mike Modano (Dallas Stars), Jeremy Roenick (Phoenix Coyotes) and Doug Weight (Edmonton Oilers). Drury will be the only Olympic newcomer.
USA Hockey has added five players since that original announcement in the spring. They are defensemen Brian Rafalski (New Jersey Devils), Chris Chelios (Detroit Red Wings) and Gary Suter (San Jose Sharks); forward Scott Young (St. Louis Blues) and goalie Mike Dunham (Nashville Predators).
The United States, which still needs to add eight players to its squad, and all other Super Six countries must finalize their 23-man Olympic rosters by Dec. 22. The other five countries are going through similar selection processes.
Women's ice hockey, which held its first World Championship in 1990, was added to the Games in 1998. Canada has won every women's World Championship tournament, but the United States upset the Canadians for gold in Nagano. Canada will be seeded first and the Americans second for the 2002 Winter Games.
DESCRIPTION OF 2002 EVENTS
Men's tournament: A 14-team competition that included NHL players. Six powerhouse countries — Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Sweden and the United States — receive first-round byes, minimizing the length of time to 12 days that the NHL has to suspend play. Eight other nations compete in the preliminary round, with the top two advancing to join the six "Dream Teams" in round-robin play. Those eight teams are be seeded in the medal round according to their round-robin results.
Women's tournament: Eight nations will compete, an increase from the six that participated in Nagano in 1998. Four teams will compete in each of two pools, with the top two teams from each pool advancing to the medal round. The top six seeds were decided by the finish at the IIHF 2000 Women's World Championship: 1. Canada; 2. United States; 3. Finland; 4. Sweden; 5. Russia; 6. China. The final two berths will be decided in February 2001.
