Eyes On The Prize, a Montreal Canadiens community

Mark Scheifele, Center, Winnipeg Jets: Scheifele was fine, but not overly impressive. He's an average skater, who showed solid hands and above-average passing ability, but never displayed a dynamic element to his game. He's a fine all-around player, but there's not a ton of upside.

Canada now will face Latvia and Belarus in the relegation round. A win in at least one of those games will guarantee it a spot in the 2011 tournament.

even for U-18's, gotta be a let down...

Canadians still trumpet hockey as "our game" but that's just not the case anymore. Sure, it probably means more to Canadians but it’s not their sole property anymore. It’s Russia’s game. It’s Sweden’s game. It’s the Czechs’ game. It’s the Americans game.

It’s also Switzerland’s, and Slovkia’s and Finland’s and Latvia’s and Belarus’. Within the next ten-twenty years, it’ll be China’s game too.

From tonight's Google Trends:

11. afi 50 greatest film heroes
12. evgeni plushenko
13. curling rules
14. nobody said it was easy lyrics
15. bobby ryan
16. men s figure skating 2010

Not to be one-upped by the guy drafted behind him, Sidney Crosby is ranked #5 behind Lindsey Vonn at Yahoo's top sports searches.

The former Oiler, Islander and Av knows there's a possibility that the Canadian roster may change over the next six weeks due to injury. But the veteran of 1,025 NHL regular-season and playoff games wasn't about to wish that on anyone -- and seemed to be at peace with his fate.

"I believe they picked the 23 guys for a reason, and I know there's a lot of hockey between now and then, but you've just got to go out and play and carry forth," Smyth said. "If an accident happens, it happens, but you can't think about that.

"These guys are going to represent our country with pride, and I'll be their No. 1 fan."

It will be up to Babcock to ensure that those playing smaller roles are with the program, or things will unravel in a hurry.

"Obviously, to be able to walk into that locker room, a big part of being successful as a coach is a presence, and Mike's got a presence, and when Mike walks into a locker room, he's not in awe. He's going to take charge," Holland said. "It's easy to say, oh, you've got all these players. Well, there's probably a pretty good chance we're going to face some adversity, whether it's in-game adversity, whether a game is over, and your ability to adjust on the fly to the adversity is going to determine if you're going to have success or not.

"He's dealt with the media, he's dealt with in-game adjustments, he's had all that experience," Holland added. "You get into a game and you're down 2-1 in the second period and nothing's going, you've got to make some adjustments on the fly. You've got to try some different things. You've got to have the confidence to know when, how long to sit tight and when it is time to move."

I can't imagine what it's going to be like for Sidney Crosby & Co. in February, tying on their skates before the first game of the Olympics and feeling GM Place shake from the dressing room.

Win, and 23 players will be legends forever, just like the boys in 1972. Lose? Well, get used to answering questions from friends, family, the postman, the customs guard and every single Canadian for the rest of your lives.

Nah, no pressure.

Through it all, Heatley dodged all media requests for interviews to tell his side of the story. He also chose not to attend linemate Jason Spezza’s wedding in Ottawa and backed out of a speaking engagement in Toronto.

His silence is set to break. Finally.

On the urging of Hockey Canada, the 28-year-old is expected to hold a news conference and teleconference Friday in Kelowna.

"I believe Dany will address the media on the issue prior to the camp," Yzerman said. "In fairness to the Senators’ fans and the media, it needs to be addressed. It has to be addressed."