THUNDER BAY – In 2002, Owen Nolan played a key role in helping Team Canada win Olympic hockey gold in Salt Lake City.
Nolan, then a member of the San Jose Sharks, loved the experience and thought nothing of the National Hockey League shutting down for a few weeks to ensure the best players in the world battled it out for one of the sports most sought-after prizes.
Needless to say, despite Canada’s success to date in PyeongChang, the recently-turned 46-year-old is a little disappointed the NHL turned its back on the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
“Yeah, it’s a shame,” said Nolan, who was in Thunder Bay earlier this week to take part in the NHL Alumni game against local law enforcement officers in support of Special Olympics Ontario.
“Obviously the world wants to see the best players and the best players aren’t there right now.”
Canada on Wednesday advanced to the semifinal round, where they’ll take on Germany for the right to play for gold.
The Canadian team is a rag-tag collection of former NHLers now playing in Europe and other minor pros. The best-known on the roster include the likes of goaltender Ben Scrivens, defenceman Chris Lee and forwards Derek Roy and Rene Bourque.
Nolan, taken first overall in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft – ahead of Jaromir Jagr – said he’ll be cheering on Team Canada regardless of who’s on the roster, recalling how special it felt to be part of the gold-medal-winning squad.
“For me, I was very honoured to be able to go and compete against the best players in the world. And I was very blessed to be able to get the gold,” said Nolan, who had three goals and two assists in six Olympic appearances.
Nolan, who was drafted by the Quebec Nordiques, spent 19 years in the NHL, scoring 422 goals and 885 points in exactly 1,200 games.
In addition to Quebec and San Jose, the two-time 40-goal scorer also suited up for Toronto, Phoenix, Calgary and Minnesota, retiring in 2011 after a season in Switzerland.
