SOCHI, Russia — The goaltending parlor game was in full bloom Monday following the U.S. men’s hockey team’s first Olympic practice.

Coach Dan Bylsma said he has decided which goalie to start Thursday against Slovakia but had yet to tell Ryan Miller, Jonathan Quick or Jimmy Howard, so he certainly was not going to reveal his choice publicly.

Miller started all six games for Team USA at the 2010 Olympics, winning a silver medal and the tournament’s most valuable player award. His .923 save percentage this season on a terrible Buffalo Sabres team is the best among the group.

What is more, Miller has been healthy all season, whereas Quick missed 24 games with the Los Angeles Kings because of a groin injury and Howard has battled two different leg injuries with the Detroit Red Wings.

“We’ve had a goalie play real well all year long, and we’ve had two goalies that have had injuries that have come back in the last month or so,” Bylsma said. “You might have some ideas in the summertime. This year, we let it play out.

“We’ve seen all our goalies play really well, and we’ve seen Ryan play the whole year and do very, very well on a team that’s struggling.”

A cursory read between the lines indicates Miller will get the nod, but he would not bite.

“I’m not sure,” he said. “I tried to play my way on this year. I’ve felt like I definitely had a good start to the season and just tried to show that I can play at a high level.”

Bylsma also was coy when asked by a reporter whether his philosophy is to stick with one starter throughout the tournament or rotate one or both of his backups in during the preliminary round.

“I’m not going to tell you if I want to see both of them play or not,” he said.

Follow Brian Murphy at twitter.com/murphPPress.

WHO DA MAN?

U.S. coach Dan Bylsma has not announced his No. 1 goaltender for the Olympics. Comparing his three options:

Goalie NHL team Record GAA SAV% Case for …

Ryan Miller Buffalo Sabres 14-22-3 2.74 .923 2010 Olympics MVP; healthy all season

Jonathan Quick Los Angeles Kings 16-13-2 2.18 .911 2012 Stanley Cup champ, MVP

Jimmy Howard Detroit Red Wings 12-13-9 2.65 .914 Won 35-plus games first three seasons

— Brian Murphy