Which Lightning players you should expect to play in Beijing

When Team USA takes the ice in Beijing, the Lightning may not have a single player on the roster if no changes are made from the World Championship team. However, if a change is in the air, just one player from the Lightning could play on the world’s stage.

Ryan McDonagh, D

Ryan McDonagh is a fan favorite in Tampa Bay, and for a good reason. During the Lightning’s last playoff run, not only did McDonagh provide eight assists, but he also had a +/- of 18. That is a Lightning playoff record and was good enough for the 20th best in the game’s history. With 46 blocks, 53 hits, and 17 takeaways in the 23 playoff games the Lightning played last season, it would not be surprising to see coach Mike Sullivan and USA Hockey call upon McDonagh to make the trek to China in February.

11 players on the Bolts roster hail from our friends up North in Canada. Will all 11 secure spots on Cooper’s bench? Doubtful, but here are the players you should expect to see representing Canada in Beijing.

Brayden Point, C

It should go without saying that Calgary’s own, Brayden Point, has earned himself a spot on Canada’s roster. Point has supplied the Lightning with 28 goals in the playoffs over the last two seasons, split evenly at 14 each. Recently extending his contract with the Lightning for eight seasons, it’s a safe assumption that you’ll be seeing Point walking around the Olympic Village in crocs come February.

Steven Stamkos, C

Steven Stamkos being on the roster would be more of a Cooper wanting to – and possibly feeling he needs to – add his Captain to the team. Early projections from various sources had Stamkos unanimously on the roster, and more recently, the polar opposite; his name nowhere to be found. Of course, this was before Cooper was announced as the coach of the delegation being sent to Beijing. There can be cases made for whichever side you’re on. However, given the recent events, seeing Stamkos with the Canadian maple leaf on his sweater should really be expected at this point.

Russia is currently banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for funding a state-sponsored doping program that saw over 1,000 Russian athletes who either benefited or were involved. As a result, Russia was banned from the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. The work-around to allow athletes from Russia who had no involvement was to create the Russian Olympic Committee, better known as the ROC. The rules are that athletes cannot display the Russian flag, and if an athlete represented under the ROC wins a gold medal, they will not hear the Russian National Anthem.

With the ROC controversy explained, the delegation has qualified as the second-best Nation heading into the Olympic Games. The Lightning roster contains three players who are native to Russia, and without a shadow of a doubt, will be representing the ROC in Beijing.

Nikita Kucherov, RW

The heart and soul of the Lightning, Nikita Kucherov, is a shoo-in to be on the ROC team and will be part of the most imposing line in the entire Olympics with Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. These are all assumptions, albeit fairly safe ones. A four-time all-star, two-time Stanley Cup winner who has accumulated 66 points (15 goals, 51 assists) in the Bolts back-to-back stretch in the playoffs, if Kucherov isn’t selected to be on the ROC team, we could only assume it’s because of his infamous catchphrase; and you know what that is.

Mikhail Sergachev, D

When you look for a prototype defenseman, you don’t have to look much farther than Mikhail Sergachev. The 6’3″ 215lbs Russian has developed into a sound two-way player over the last few seasons. Just as Sergachev can rip the puck from the blue line, he’s the enforcer you want in front of your own goal. Sergachev has only been in the NHL for five seasons and is still improving on both sides of the ice. He’s been reliable for the Lightning coming in right behind Victor Hedman’s 25:03 average time on ice, with 21:58, and has no problem with contact as he’s accumulated 121 hits the last two seasons- just in the playoffs.

Andrei Vasilevski, G

The list can go on and on about the Lightning’s goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy and why he will be a member of the ROC in the Olympics. Vasilevskiy was snubbed last year in favor of Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. However, he became a two-time cup winner, and he also was awarded the Conn Smythe for being the most valuable player in the NHL. Also, he’s running away with the NHL’s futures odds of being the best goalie in the league…again. We put out a visual on Twitter that broke the hockey internet comparing the trajectory of Vasilevskiy’s career against one of the all-time greats, Patrick Roy.

Simply put, you don’t bring a team to the grandest stage of world competition and not bring the best goalie in the world.

The Czech Republic auto-qualifies for the Olympics ranked fifth overall. The Czech team is stacked on offense, and lacking depth on defense, as they are one of the younger teams competing in the Olympics. The Lightning have two players on their roster that represent the Czech Republic, however, one is a certainty and the other is an outside shot.

Ondrej Palat, LW

Ondrej Palat is just reliable. An extremely well-rounded player, there is no one area where he is far better than the other. He has given the Lightning solid minutes, year-after-year, and most importantly- comes up big when called upon, scoring five game-winning goals in the playoffs over the last two seasons. Forbes listed Palat as must draft for the Seattle Kraken in the Expansion Draft, thankfully for he wasn’t selected; although we all know how that played out and still broke our hearts.

For reference, defenseman Jan Rutta is the player referenced on the outside looking in.

The fourth-ranked team in the world heading into the Olympics is Sweden. Being that the majority of the players on the Lightning’s roster are from either the United States, Canada, or Russia, paired with the countries currently qualified to compete in the Olympics- the list is getting tough. There is, however, one superstar defenseman from the Lightning, who is from Sweden and will be guaranteed a roster spot on the team.

Victor Hedman, D

The leader of the Lightning’s defensive unit, and the 2019-2020 Conn Smythe recipient is not only one of the best defensemen in the NHL, but he is also the best in Sweden. The Swedish team will not be complete and possibly not even be in medal contention once the elimination rounds begin, without having Hedman on its roster.

Again, if the NHL and NHLPA decide to opt of out playing in the Olympics, this was all for nothing. It’s fun to know outside of having their coach in the Olympics, the Lightning should be sending seven players to Beijing.