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Sunday, December 23, 2001

By Dejan Kovacevic, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

By the time Craig Patrick, Herb Brooks and the rest of the U.S. Olympic team management announced the final roster yesterday, most of the hoopla already had died down. Because most of the roster already had been decided.

Only six new names were offered to complete the 23-man list, those of forwards Michael York, Adam Deadmarsh and Brian Rolston, and defensemen Phil Housley, Tom Poti and Aaron Miller.

Those are all fine NHL players, of course, but they might not have been the best choices, particularly at forward. They might not even represent everyone U.S. officials would like to add at this stage.

That's because, for some curious reason, they decided to name an inordinately high number of players to their roster well before they were required. They needed to name eight by late March, yet they named 10. And they didn't need to go any further until yesterday, yet they added five more in August. Then two more earlier this week.

Ten of those were forwards, leaving only three spots available for any forwards who might have blossomed during the current NHL season. As a result, a few players having lackluster seasons, notably forwards Chris Drury, John LeClair and Scott Young, are in while far more deserving and productive talents, such as Mark Parrish and Craig Conroy, are out.

In fact, among American-born players in the NHL, Conroy ranks third with 11 goals and 23 assists for the Flames. Granted, he has benefited from the emergence of linemate Jarome Iginla, but he also has been excellent at both ends of the ice. Parrish is fourth among Americans in points with 33 and first with 18 goals, his reckless abandon in driving to the net a key component of the Islanders' surprising turnaround.

For a nation that often struggles to score at the international level, omitting those two is a potentially significant error.

Asked yesterday if his hands might have been tied by choosing so many players early, Patrick replied, "No, not at all. We're fortunate to have a lot of great forwards in the United States, as well as a lot of great defensemen and goaltenders. The ones we chose early are guys we knew we would be able to contribute, and we still feel that way. That didn't hinder us at all in our later selections."

He declined to comment on specific players left off the roster, saying one or more could still be added in the event of injuries.

"I'll just say we had a lot of people to consider. There are a lot of great players not on this list. With these final selections, we chose to go with people who complement the people we had already named."

Brooks, who did most of the scouting to select the team, also defended the early picks.

"We tried to weigh everything. Of course, we're cognizant of the fact some guys are on a real roll. But for some guys, we felt we had to be respectful of their pasts, of their big-game potential. If we were seeing a good effort, good overall play, we nodded toward that veteran status. We do have guys who don't have numbers some of these other guys have. We understand that. But we're happy with them."

The Americans still should challenge for a medal. Mike Richter provides stability in goal, Brian Leetch and Housley should help mobilize the blue line, and there are still Tony Amonte, Brett Hull, Bill Guerin, Jeremy Roenick, Mike Modano and Keith Tkachuk to do some scoring.

Patrick is optimistic, having placed an emphasis on experience that he feels will serve the team well in the glaring Olympic spotlight.

"We feel we've got a great roster, a real versatile one," he said. "We feel we're capable of winning a medal. Hopefully, gold."

The chance might have been greater, though, with a bit more of Patrick's patented patience.

Dejan Kovacevic can be reached at dkovacevic@ post-gazette.com.