Hockey Canada announces its selection camp roster for the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic today, and Jordan Staal of the Pittsburgh Penguins does not appear on that list. The Penguins told Hockey Canada officials a couple of days ago that the 19-year-old forward wouldn’t be made available. Presumably, Staal himself would […]

NHLers, as a rule, are very accommodating interview subjects, even with buses and planes to catch, PR guys hovering nervously in the background, and sometimes a ridiculously repetitive stream of post-game questions from reporters. (After a Chicago game last season, I witnessed Martin Havlat giving almost the same answer verbatim about five times in a […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2005 By Lucas Aykroyd When you survey hockey history, few players can rival Wayne Gretzky as the best of all time. But Bobby Orr is one of them, and while Gretzky has been preoccupied recently with coaching the Phoenix Coyotes and picking the Olympic team, as well as family matters, […]

Originally published on IIHF.com in 2002 By Lucas Aykroyd In the National Hockey League, Brian Rolston of the Boston Bruins is generally viewed as a solid defensive forward with good wheels. But as a member of the American Olympic team in Salt Lake City, he may prove that he has more than just speed to […]

Originally published on IHWC.NET in 2004 By Lucas Aykroyd Here at the 2004 IIHF World Championships, it’s hard to believe that Jiri Slegr is the senior member of the Czech defense corps at age 32. It doesn’t seem like so long ago that he was being drafted in the second round, 23rd overall by the […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd “Sammy? Is that Hagar or Davis Jr.?” If you’re a Boston Bruins fan, you might think of a different popular figure. He’s only 21 and stands a mere 5-8 and 184 pounds, but he looms large in Boston’s youth movement. Known as “Sammy” to his teammates, […]