TEAM CANADA
Preliminary Roster
The defending Olympic and World Champions took their first step to adding another title to the trophy case, as Team Canada announced the first 16 names to its 2016 World Cup of Hockey roster.
“This has been a very extensive process which involved multiple face-to-face meetings and conference calls,” said general manager Doug Armstrong. “Some very difficult decisions had to be made to narrow down our selection to only 16 players, which is a testament to the depth of player talent in Canada."
"Our management group wanted to balance respecting the contributors to past Team Canada successes, as well as respecting the players that have emerged as top players in the NHL. We will use the NHL playoffs and the upcoming World Championship to make the final roster decisions in early June.”
There’s no lack of success among the first 16 players selected; in addition to 12 players who won gold at the Olympic Winter Games, and 11 who won gold at the IIHF World Junior Championship, the team boasts seven NHL team captains and eight Stanley Cup champions, five of whom are multi-time champions.
Four names that were not part of the past two Olympic teams include goaltenders Corey Crawford and Braden Holtby, and forwards Tyler Seguin and Steven Stamkos, who both have competed in past world championships.
Goaltenders:
Corey Crawford, Chicago Blackhawks, USA, NHL
Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals, USA, NHL
Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens, CAN, NHL
Defencemen:
Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings, USA, NHL
Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks, USA, NHL
Marc-Edouard Vlasic, San Jose Sharks, USA, NHL
Shea Weber, Nashville Predators, USA, NHL
Forwards:
Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars, USA, NHL
Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins, USA, NHL
Jeff Carter, Los Angeles Kings, USA, NHL
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins, CAN, NHL
Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim Ducks, USA, NHL
Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars, USA, NHL
Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning, USA, NHL
John Tavares, NY Islanders, USA, NHL
Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks, USA, NHL
Head Coach: Mike Babcock