When I was covering the men's 500m speedskating event yesterday at the Olympics, twin brothers Michel and Ronald Mulder of the Netherlands won gold and bronze in the event. It hadn't really occurred to me that there were other twins making history at the Games—just that our twins wouldn't be playing together this time.
Ed Willes of
The Province is in Sochi, keeping an eye on the Canucks' Olympians.
Click here for his story on Daniel Sedin. Currently slotted into one of the top lines with Nicklas Backstrom and Loui Eriksson, Daniel's teammates are saying all the right things about the contribution they're hoping to receive from the slumping, brotherless twin:
“I think the change of scenery comes at a great time,” said Daniel Alfredsson. “New players, a new atmosphere. We know how valuable he can be scoring goals and making plays. He’s been fantastic for us.”
Sweden's tournament kicks off on Wednesday against the Czechs. The team won't have Alex Edler in the lineup, as he has two additional games to serve on his suspension from the knee-on-knee collision with Eric Staal from last spring's World Championships.
NHL.com also
has a story about Daniel, who has never played in an international tournament without his brother. Henrik skated alone at the 1998 World Juniors, which is the only other time they've been apart.
Meanwhile, Ryan Kesler started out skating on a line with Dustin Brown and Patrick Kane for Team USA,
according to NBC's ProHockeyTalk.
On Day 2, Brown was replaced by Max Pacioretty.
I wonder if this little incident had anything to do with that decision:
After Chicago beat L.A. in the Western Conference Final last year, the Kings and Blackhawks aren't exactly the best of friends, either.
Kesler was one of Team USA's better forwards in 2010 and caused Team Canada plenty of grief. I'm very curious to see what he brings to Team USA this time around.
As for Dan Hamhuis, it's no surprise that he's currently sitting in the fourth defensive pairing for Team Canada. But that could change as the tournament progresses:
Hamhuis says he's healthy after suffering a groin injury last week. A little extra rest probably won't hurt him, and it sounds like he really is happy just to be there.
Talking to Ed Willes, Roberto Luongo
says:
“Guys enjoy the experience. I’ve been talking to (Canucks defenceman Dan Hamhis) and this is his first time. You can see he’s got a permanent smile on his face. Guys don’t care about that stuff. We know what it’s all about. Guys are excited.”
Sounds like Eddie Lack is already going through withdrawal from his teammates:
Quick Hit:
- I can't imagine when he found the time to date a beauty queen, but apparently David Booth just got engaged to Miss Tennessee USA 2011 Ashley Durham. This Instagram kind of explains it all:
The caption sounds like it's from a country song. Does anyone know it?
"Knew that was my kind of woman first time I saw her She's good with a cane pole good with a gun she's my kind of woman good as they come."
Click here for more, including photos of Ashley.
Can't find the link, but I read somewhere that Booth will be spending his Olympic break hunting gators in Florida. That sounds about right.
- We won't have any Utica Comets news for the next few days, as the AHL is on its all-star break.
Click here if you'd like to check out the roster: you will notice that no Comets were invited.
32-year-old Jason Jaffray is the captain of the squad. He played 33 games for the Canucks between 2007 and 2009. Do you spot any other former Vancouver prospects on the list?
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