Eric Lindros

Few players were more dedicated to Team Canada than Eric Lindros.

The Big E burst onto the amateur scene as a 16 year old when he was already making headlines as the next great hockey sensation. He was too good to play in the junior leagues, and was already showing an interest in the Canadian national team. In fact he played 5 games, and scoring 2 goals, with the “Nats” while still playing junior B hockey.

At age 17 and 18 Lindros would eventually join the Oshawa Generals of the OHL, but it was at the world junior championships where the whole nation could see their rising star on a grand stage for the first time. He would lead the Canadian national junior team to back-to-back gold medal championships in 1990 and 1991, and an unsuccessful tournament in 1992. In 21 career contests at the famous junior championships, Lindros would leave few doubters with 12 goals, 37 points and a Top Forward (1991) designation.

Canada Cup '91

Before turning pro, Lindros became the only Canadian player to play in a top level international tournament without having any National Hockey League experience. The 18 year old phenom was invited to the 1991 Canada Cup training camp and not only made the team, but impressed with his physical dominance. The gigantic teenager was more than holding his own with grizzled NHL warriors, and chipped in with 3 goals and 5 points to help Team Canada capture the final Canada Cup championship.

In a perfect world Lindros would have joined the National Hockey League right after that Canada Cup tournament, but he would not see eye to eye with the Quebec Nordiques who owned his playing rights. He opted to sit out the year and wait for a trade. In the meantime he would return to the Canadian national team with his eyes set on participating in the 1992 Olympic games.

'92 Olympics

Lindros would be joined by the likes of Sean Burke, Joe Juneau, and Jason Woolley, and the team came excruciatingly close to capturing the first Canadian Olympic gold since 1952. However Canada would have to settle for silver, thanks to a 3-1 defeat to the Russians, then known as the Unified Team, in the final game.

Lindros’ NHL situation came to a settlement in the summer of 1992, and the long awaited phenom turned professional in 1993 with the Philadelphia Flyers. Despite an impressive rookie season that was cut short by injuries, the Flyers never made the playoffs that season. Team Canada came calling for Lindros’ services and again he eagerly returned to help Canada in the World Championships. Lindros was named as the tournament’s best forward thanks to his 11 goals and 17 points in just 8 games, although it was not enough to earn Canada a medal.

Injuries would plague Lindros throughout his National Hockey League career, but that would not prevent him from helping Team Canada when he had the opportunity. He represented Canada in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, which was essentially the Canada Cup with a new name and trophy.

Two More Olympics

Later when the Olympics were opened up to NHLers, he readily accepted invites back to the famous tourney. He was captain of the hard luck 1998 Canadian Olympic team that was unfortunate not to get by the eventual gold medal champion Czech Republic.

Lindros managed to recuperate from serious concussion injuries in time to return to the Olympics in 2002. This time Lindros played a quiet and under-appreciated role, as Canada would capture their first gold medal in exactly fifty years.

Because of his controversial stands against the NHL establishment and serious injuries that have prevented him from becoming as dominant a player as he likely would have become, Lindros has had his fare share of critics over the years. One area where no one can criticize him for is his undying devotion and contributions to Team Canada.

Mario Lemieux

One of the greatest things about the 1987 Canada Cup was that we got to see Mario Lemieux achieve his potential. For it was in that tournament that he arrived in the same stratosphere of hockey stardom as Wayne Gretzky.

Since he was a teenager, Lemieux had everyone drooling over his ability. He had the size and natural skills that Gretzky could only dream of. If there ever was a player who could catch some of Gretzky's scoring records, it was Mario.

Early in his career Lemieux languished with the lowly Pittsburgh Penguins. The team seemed to just accept defeat many nights. Without great leadership, it looked like Mario might never learn what it would take to harness his potential, and until that happened the Penguins would never develop into a great team. And Mario, despite his wondrous natural abilities only matched by perhaps Bobby Orr, might never have developed into the great player he became.

'87 Canada Cup

That all changed at the 1987 Canada Cup. And as a result his career and the fortunes of the Pittsburgh Penguins changed, too.

No one - not Mark Messier or Dale Hawerchuk and especially not Gretzky as many people think - physically took Mario aside in that tournament and taught him how to win. Just by being in the same atmosphere as such leaders and by watching and noting what these superstars did to prepare themselves and their team for victory, Lemieux learned what it would take to achieve his potential and be a winner.

Mario began to emulate the work ethic and commitment, and as the tournament went on, he was rewarded with greatness. He ended up scoring 11 goals in just 9 games. The 11 goals is a single tournament record. Despite playing in just the one tournament, his 11 goals ranks fifth on the all time Canada Cup goal scoring leader board. His 18 points was only bettered by Gretzky's 21 in the same tournament for a one tournament best. That one tournament outburst ranks Lemieux ranks eighth on the all time scoring list, despite playing in far fewer games than most of the others.

More importantly Lemieux scored both game winning goals for Canada in the best of three finale against the Soviets. Both rank among the most famous goals of all time. In game two he snapped up a cross crease pass from Gretzky to end a two-overtime marathon. And we all know what happened in game three. With a little over a minute left he took a soft drop pass from Gretzky and put the puck over Sergei Mylnikov's glove to clinch the championship. Only Paul Henderson’s heroic 1972 Summit Series goal ranks higher in the memories of Canadians.

"Scoring the winner in game two and then in game three of the finals in the 1987 Canada Cup tournament are memories I'll cherish for a long time," says Lemieux. "That whole tournament turned my career around. I saw what it took to win, to be a championship team. Seeing how talented players who had won the Cup before - guys like Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Paul Coffey - work so hard every day was a true learning experience. Playing with such great players for five or six weeks also gave me a lot of confidence, and my career took off. "

It certainly did. Lemieux became an unstoppable offensive force that would win two Stanley Cups. The only thing that could stop Mario the Magnificent was his health. Serious injuries such as a chronic bad back coupled with a bout with Hodgkin’s disease, a form of cancer, would cause Lemieux to miss much time during the 1990s, including all opportunities to represent Canada internationally. Mario turned down chances to play in the 1991 Canada Cup and 1996 World Cup of Hockey, and had officially retired several months before the opening up of the Olympic games to NHL professionals in 1998.

Three years into retirement Mario rediscovered his love for the game. Completely healthy, Mario would make a legendary comeback in 2000-2001, taking the NHL by storm.

Out Of Retirement For Olympic Gold

2001-2002 was not as smooth sailing for Mario. He had developed a chronic hip condition that limited him to only 6 goals in 24 games and would eventually cost him the remainder of the NHL season. Lemieux, now also an owner of the Penguins’ team, put his own teams’ fortunes behind his personal aspirations as he was motivated by the opportunity to once again play for Team Canada – this time at the 2002 Olympic winter games in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Even at less than 100 percent health Lemieux proved he was still the best player in the world. And as team captain, Lemieux was determined to lead Canada back to Olympic gold medal glory for the first time in 50 years.

The rest of the story will one day will be as legendary as Lemieux himself. Lemieux was instrumental in the round robin game against the Czech Republic. Czech goalie Dominik Hasek had had Canadian sharpshooters snake-bitten for several years, but he had never faced off against Lemieux in that time. Lemieux scored twice in a 3-3 round robin tie to lift the proverbial monkey off of the Canadians’ back.

That game really helped the Canadians turn their to-that-point lacklustre Olympic showing around. The Canadians got better and better and wound up in the gold medal game against the hosts Team USA.

There were many great performances in that gold medal game, including Lemieux’s. He made the play of the tournament when he let an intended pass to him go through his legs much to the surprise of the American defensemen and goalie. The puck, as Lemieux fully knew, would continue past to a streaking Paul Kariya who would bury it in behind American goalie Mike Richter.

Later on Lemieux inexplicably missed what should have been the gold medal clinching goal as he rang the shot off of the goal post. Though he was shocked more than anyone, it turned out to be a moot point, as Canada would go on to capture Olympic gold by a score of 5-2.

“This was the chance of a lifetime, to play in the Olympics. To do something great for your country is awesome,” said the proud Canadian captain.

Mark Messier

Whenever someone describes Mark Messier, the term leadership always comes to the forefront.

And well it should. He was the emotional and physical leader of the dynastic Edmonton Oilers, even when good buddy Wayne Gretzky was the official captain. One Gretzky went Hollywood, Messier led the Oilers back to the championship just two seasons later. And then his legendary status as one of pro sports greatest leaders of all time was cemented in 1994, when he guided the New York Rangers to the Stanley Cup - Manhattan's first in 54 years!

The Canada Cups

So it should come as no surprise that when you think of Mark Messier's play in the Canada Cups, his leadership stands out first and foremost. The three time Canada Cup champion was instrumental in both the 1984 and 1987 Canadian victories. He took a back seat to the likes of Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Paul Coffey, but his fearless play and win at all costs attitude intimidated the Russians and all other nations.

In 1984 the Soviets sent a more physical lineup, led by Vladimir Kovin. It was Messier who delivered the message right back at the Soviets, rearranging Kovin's face in a famous (or maybe it should be infamous) stick carving incident.

In 1987 Messier was most often matched up against the famed Soviet Green Unit - the KLM Line with Krutov, Larionov and Makarov. Messier shutdown Larionov in particular. By doing so, he showed his teammates that he was willing to sacrifice goals and assists for the good of the team. Everyone on Team Canada noticed, and even superstars like Dale Hawerchuk and Michel Goulet gladly accepted lesser roles.

"Mark was very instrumental in bringing that group together," said Canadian head coach Mike Keenan.

"How Mark impacted his team was incredible," he added. In Game Two in 1987, we were tied after regulation. He came in and just jacked the room right up. It was really an incredible experience. And the team stayed jacked up, even more so for Game Three. Honest to God, you could feel the energy in the room, like I've never experienced in any situation before or after. The energy was so high, it was like they were walking on air after he spoke."

Almost A No-Show For '91

1991 was a tough tournament for Mess personally. Due to injuries, he missed the entire training camp and was expected not to play at all. Then, on the last day of camp, he limped in and was named to the team. He played a quiet and largely ineffective role, but when the team needed him would be ready to come through.

And the team did need him. Wayne Gretzky, clearly the tournament's best player, was crunched from behind by USA's Gary Suter, rendering him unable to play in what proved to be the decisive game. The loss of The Great One could have proved deadly for Team Canada, but Mark Messier, along with Paul Coffey, really took the bull by the horns and kept the team confident and focused. Messier himself scored the all important goal in the third period of Game One to calm the team down, then opened the scoring in Game Two. Despite his injuries, Messier was dominant when the time came.

Mark Messier is one of the league's all time greatest players, and one of the tournament's all time greatest performers. If they were ever to name 20 Canadians of any era to an all Canadian dream team, Mark Messier would be there, and would likely be their leader.

Wayne Gretzky

Like every other hockey tournament, playoff, season he participated in, the Canada Cup was Wayne Gretzky's tournament.

His story is well documented throughout my book, World Cup of Hockey: A History of Hockey's Greatest Tournament. Here's the Reader's Digest version:

1981 and 1984 Canada Cups

He didn't particularly enjoy the 1981 tournament. He felt the team was poorly run and his own play "stunk." Plus Canada's humiliating failure only added extra ammunition to the anti-Gretzky regime who said sure he can score, but he can't win. For the next couple of years many of his mind boggling accomplishments were dismissed by some because of this.

1984 was much nicer. The Oilers had just come off of their first Stanley Cup and now half of that team would represent Team Canada. Gretzky would help lead Canada to victory, though he described the victory as "anti-climatic" as the Russians weren't in the final.

1987 and 1991 Canada Cup

1987 featured Wayne Gretzky in his prime. Despite some pre-tournament noise about him sitting out and resting his weary body from the long NHL season, Wayne showed up and put on the show of a lifetime. Why can't hockey always be played that way?

1991 was a different Canada Cup for Gretzky. He had been traded to Los Angeles and many believed he had been unseeded as the world's best hockey player by Mario Lemieux. Others were saying Mark Messier and Steve Yzerman were also nearly equal to an aging Great One. Though Mario missed the tournament with an injury, Gretzky, flanked by a great supporting cast, put on a convincing display of hockey that reaffirmed his status atop the hockey world.

Sheer Dominance

Have you ever stopped to look at his Canada Cup statistics?

It should come as no surprise that he is the all time leading scorer here too. In 31 games (not including World Cup of 1996) he has 17 goals and 40 assists for 47 points! He leads his closest rival, Sergei Makarov, by 26 points! Makarov is a near second in goals with 16, and in just 22 games.

And that doesn't even include the 3 goals and 7 points he got as 36 year old in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. By this time he was a shadow of his former self, yet still better than most in the world. Gretzky once again proved all his critics wrong.

Special Memories

There is no doubting that the Canada Cup memories hold a special place in Wayne's vast collection of hockey memories.

Here's what he wrote in his autobiography:

"Winning the Stanley Cup is a sweet, sweet feeling, and when you win it, you don't believe anything can match it. But winning that Canada Cup is every bit as sweet in a different way. We get paid millions of dollars to do our best for the NHL, but we play the Canada Cup for our country and for our players association and for the love of the game. And when you do it for those reasons, and you play those reasons, and you play the hardest and best hockey of your life, the payoff seems pure and lasting and unforgettable."

As gifted a word smith as he is a hockey player, Wayne Gretzky perfectly summed up what the Canada Cup was all about.

Off To Nagano

In 1998, The Great One got his first chance to have similar experiences at the Olympic games. The Nagano games featured the first hockey tournament truly open to all NHL professionals. Because of the NHL season, the Olympics were the only major hockey tournament that Wayne had never participated in. However Gretzky would leave Japan with bitter memories. The Czech Republic, backed by Dominik Hasek, Canada’s greatest single nemesis since Russia’s Vladislav Tretiak, battled Team Canada to a 1-1 draw after regulation and extra time. The game would be decided in a shootout with Gretzky sitting on the bench. The Czechs would go on to win that game and the gold medal. Canada would play for bronze but put in a disappointing effort against Finland. Gretzky would go home without any Olympic medal at all.

Big Role Off The Ice In 2002

By the time 2002 Salt Lake City, Utah Olympics came around, Gretzky had already retired. But he returned to Team Canada in a major capacity. He headed the men’s hockey team, selecting the coaches and managerial staff, and of course the players. Just like he always was on the ice, Gretzky was still a key figure in this Team Canada off of it.

You know the rest of the story. Canada would stumble through the round robin and be fired up by a public Gretzky rant. And with a little luck from a Loonie, Canada would go on to capture Olympic gold for the first time in fifty years.

Gretzky did not officially get a gold medal, as only players receive that honour. But he was very much a part of that championship as well. His involvement as a manager cemented his undeniable status as the ultimate legend of Team Canada.