According to my count the countries entering men's hockey teams in the 2010 Olympics have selected 142 NHL players. That does not include former NHL players such as Sergei Federov who will also be playing in Vancouver. The interesting thing is that you would think that the top teams in the NHL are providing most of the players. That is not always the case. Teams at the bottom of the standings (Toronto, Anaheim, Columbus) are providing more players than some of the top teams (Buffalo, Phoenix, Calgary). San Jose who is first overall in the NHL is providing the most players with 8 on Olympic squads but right behind with 7 are Anaheim, Vancouver and Detroit.
It's quite easy to explain. Only Canada has an abundance of talent in the NHL (about 400 players). So if a NHL team has a Swiss, German or Slovak player, odds are they are good enough to make that country's Olympic team. To show how powerful of a lineup The Sharks had, not only did they have the most players selected but also the most Canadian players (4). While the struggling Islanders are only providing one player to the Swiss team.
Here is the breakdown of Olympians by NHL team:
1. San Jose (8)
2. New Jersey (6)
3. Chicago (6)
4. Buffalo (3)
5. Washington (5)
6. Phoenix (3)
7. Colorado (3)
8. Calgary (4)
9. Pittsburgh (5)
10. Nashville (4)
11. Vancouver (7)
12. Los Angeles (5)
13. Boston (5)
14. Detroit (7)
15. Dallas (4)
16. Ottawa (5)
17. Montreal (6)
18. New York Rangers (4)
19. Minnesota (5)
20. Atlanta (5)
21. Tampa Bay (5)
22. New York Islanders (1)
23. Philadelphia (5)
24. St. Louis (3)
25. Anaheim (7)
26. Florida (2)
27. Columbus (6)
28. Toronto (8)
29. Edmonton (2)
30. Carolina (3)
12 years ago
