MILAN \u2013 Team Canada decided to close Monday\u2019s practice to the media.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was only done because the rink is too small,\u201d coach Jon Cooper explained. \u201cIt\u2019s just distractions \u2026 There\u2019s just issues to have so many people here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Monday\u2019s workout was held at the small practice rink that is in a facility across the street from the Milano Santagiulia Arena where Canada will play its games and held its first on-ice session on Sunday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t [close it] yesterday,\u201d Cooper noted. \u201cWe were in the big arena, everyone came in. The practice arena is tight.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, Canada isn\u2019t trying to keep the opposition guessing in Milan? <\/p>\n
\u201cIt had nothing to do with that,\u201d Cooper insisted. \u201cIt was to make sure there was no distractions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada skated in the same alignment as Sunday, Cooper revealed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re asking me, \u2018Did any lines change? Did anything happen?\u2019 No, it did not,\u201d the Tampa Bay Lightning coach stressed. \u201cNothing changed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cooper shares reason behind closed-door practice: ‘Nothing super secret’ Canada head coach Jon Cooper joins Ryan Rishaug to discuss the decision to have a closed-door practice on Monday, how he’s expressed his expectations to the players, how valuable a player like Brad Marchand is for the team, and if he changed any of his lines at practice. <\/p>\n
But Monday\u2019s practice was different than Sunday\u2019s session, which came at the end of a long travel day and was designed to get the players moving again after a couple days off the ice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was more flow drills,\u201d said Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett. \u201cA lot more systems work [today] and just dialling those down and a little bit of special teams as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Players shrugged off questions about the practice being closed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t make that decision,\u201d said Colorado Avalanche centre Nathan MacKinnon.<\/p>\n
Brad Marchand was unaware that the practice was closed when he spoke with TSN\u2019s Ryan Rishaug. Upon finding out, the Panthers winger couldn\u2019t help but joke about what the media missed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m playing with Sid and McDavid,\u201d said Marchand, who actually skated on a line with MacKinnon and Nick Suzuki.<\/p>\n
‘This is a once in a lifetime opportunity’: Marchand describes Canada’s mindset Canada forward Brad Marchand joins Ryan Rishaug to share his impressions of the Olympic village, how his first night with roommate Drew Doughty went, the good bond the team already has, how important that is to success in Italy, and much more. <\/p>\n
Marchand was all smiles during that chat with Rishaug. But there weren\u2019t many smiles as media members were led from the main rink to the tunnel leading to the practice rink and told to wait until getting approval for entry from Team Canada.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s silly,\u201d said TSN Hockey insider Pierre LeBrun. \u201cI don\u2019t understand why this would matter so much. And this is Jon Cooper\u2019s decision. This isn\u2019t management. This isn\u2019t the players. The head coach of Canada, in his first Olympics, decided that he wanted this practice closed so we couldn\u2019t see his line combinations again or whatever else. Honestly, I think it\u2019s an overreach.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sweden also closed their practice on Monday even though it was at the big rink. Head coach Sam Hallam told reporters that the team was working on its special teams and thought keeping other teams in the dark would provide a competitive advantage. <\/p>\n
Czechia, who will open the tournament against Canada on Thursday, held an open practice at the practice rink on Monday, although they have fewer media members following their team.<\/p>\n
Team USA ultimately held an open practice at the main rink on Monday after some internal debate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe talked about it with our practice today,\u201d coach Mike Sullivan said. \u201cI think any time, as a coaching staff, when you have an opportunity to spend alone time with your team, we would all prefer that. We also understand that this is, to a certain extent, a business and access to the group is an important element of it all. But, as a coaching staff, we love having alone time with our team and being able to work on things without reading about it in a tweet 30 seconds later or whatever it may be. But we understand that\u2019s the world we live in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada and the United States are both expected to take the day off on Tuesday with the next practices for both countries \u2013 open or closed \u2013 set for Wednesday.<\/p>\n
LeBrun on Canada holding closed practice: ‘I think it’s silly’ TSN’s Mark Masters, Pierre LeBrun and Ryan Rishaug discuss Canada holding a closed practice on Monday, the decision for the United States to leave its practice open to the media, and the plan for Canada to sleep in a hotel Monday night after spending the first night in the Olympic Village. <\/p>\n
—<\/p>\n
With Team USA\u2019s practice open, reporters could see that Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck had his own net while Dallas Stars netminder Jake Oettinger and Boston Bruins backstop Jeremy Swayman split time at the other end. What does that say about the plan for Thursday\u2019s opening game against Latvia?<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s for you to decide,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cWe\u2019re just going to go about our business how we do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sullivan was similarly vague when asked how the team will decide on its starting goalie.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s lots of things that weigh into it,\u201d the coach noted. \u201cI\u2019m not going to sit here and share the internal conversations we have and how we make lineup decisions but what I will tell you is that regardless of which guy we put in net we have three elite goaltenders, all of which will give us an opportunity to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada is also not revealing its goaltending plan just yet. St. Louis Blue Jordan Binnington, who backstopped Canada to the title at the 4 Nations Face-Off last year, has struggled mightily this season leading to speculation he may lose the starting job to either L.A. King Darcy Kuemper or Washington Capital Logan Thompson.<\/p>\n
The last time Canada played at the Olympics, Carey Price was the clear No. 1. It feels a lot different in Milan, although Cooper doesn\u2019t see it that way. <\/p>\n
\u201cCarey Price goes down as one of the greatest goalies of his generation and of all-time,\u201d Cooper said. \u201cHe\u2019s a winner. We have those guys. Some of those guys may not go down as generational goaltenders, but they\u2019re Stanley Cup winners. They have championship pedigree. They\u2019ve made big saves at the times they\u2019ve needed to. I\u2019ve watched that in Darcy Kuemper in my own building in Tampa. I\u2019ve watched it in Jordan Binnington. I\u2019ve watched Logan Thompson the last two years \u2026 We have all the faith in the world in them. To me, I understand people have to write about stuff, but our guys go through a wall for them and they\u2019ll do the same for us. To me, it\u2019s not a story. I don\u2019t know where it comes from.\u201d<\/p>\n
—<\/p>\n
After spending the night in the Olympic Village on Sunday, Canada is expected to move into NHLPA-provided hotel on Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s the plan, yeah,\u201d Bennett said.<\/p>\n
Kuemper said the decision was made by the team\u2019s leadership group.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever we do, we\u2019ll do as a team,\u201d Kuemper added. \u201cWe\u2019re going to make the decision that we feel is giving us the best chance to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most of the rooms at the Village are designed for two people, which means most players had roommates in the dorm-style setup. It\u2019s much different than the accommodations they are used to in the NHL. The beds, for example, are smaller.<\/p>\n
\u201cA guy like me, it\u2019s a little smaller, but it wasn\u2019t too bad,\u201d said the 6-foot-4 Thompson. \u201cI got a good enough sleep. I was okay with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada will still spend some time at the Village, which will be their meeting point before going to games and drop-off point afterwards. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe tell the players: \u2018This is the Olympics,\u2019\u201d Cooper said. \u201c\u2018This is an experience we may never get to be a part of again. So, enjoy yourself. Enjoy yourself in the Village. Introduce yourself to other athletes. Become part of this, but when it\u2019s rink time, it\u2019s our time and then it\u2019s focus time, but I\u2019m encouraging these guys to have a lot fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
But if some of the higher-profile players want to find some quiet time, the hotel is probably the best place to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cMcDavid and Crosby, you see everyone is just staring at them because they\u2019re the superstars,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cIt\u2019s cool to see how other countries really notice them and how they all want to come over and say hi to Crosby and McDavid and those guys.\u201d<\/p>\n
Team USA, meanwhile, made the decision to stay in the Village for the entire Olympics before even landing in Milan.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, I wouldn\u2019t want to do it any other way,\u201d said winger Matthew Tkachuk. \u201cWe\u2019re all with each other 24\/7 making Olympic memories. This what the Olympics are pretty much all about, you know, hanging out with your teammates, seeing the other athletes. I\u2019ve met so many great people in other sports, other countries and it\u2019s been one day. Hockey comes first, but the whole experience, you want to be able to enjoy it too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tkachuk is rooming with younger brother Brady.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust laughing so hard for the whole night,\u201d Matthew said. \u201cHe was at one end of the room, I was at the other end and, I don\u2019t know, we were just watching videos and pictures and stuff from the day and throwing the phone across, showing each other. It\u2019s cool. It\u2019s really amazing to go through the whole experience with him. I mean, 24\/7 with each other and pretty much everybody. It\u2019s been an honour to represent our country but an even greater honour to do it with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tkachuk brothers share more laughs than sleep on night one in Olympic village Matthew Tkachuk discusses rooming with his brother Brady and explains why they were just laughing the whole night after some rearranging of their room. <\/p>\n
—<\/p>\n
Team Canada lines at Monday\u2019s closed practice, per Cooper:<\/p>\n
Celebrini – McDavid – Wilson<\/p>\n
Marchand – MacKinnon – Suzuki<\/p>\n
Marner – Crosby – Stone<\/p>\n
Hagel – Horvat – Reinhart<\/p>\n
Jarvis, Bennett<\/p>\n
Toews – Makar<\/p>\n
Morrissey – Parayko<\/p>\n
Theodore – Sanheim<\/p>\n
Harley – Doughty<\/p>\n
Binnington<\/p>\n
Kuemper<\/p>\n
Thompson<\/p>\n
Team USA lines at Monday\u2019s practice:<\/p>\n
B. Tkachuk – Eichel – M. Tkachuk<\/p>\n
Guentzel – Matthews – Boldy<\/p>\n
Connor – Larkin – Thompson<\/p>\n
Miller – Nelson\/Trocheck – J. Hughes<\/p>\n
Keller<\/p>\n
Q. Hughes – McAvoy<\/p>\n
Slavin – Faber<\/p>\n
Hanifin – Werenski<\/p>\n
Sanderson – Lacombe<\/p>\n
Hellebuyck<\/p>\n
Oettinger<\/p>\n
Swayman<\/p>\n
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