Rob Zamuner, right, was prized for his defensive acumen, but his selection meant Mark Messier would sit out the Olympics. (Hans Deryk/Associated Press)

The move speaks to management’s strategy of constructing a team that would be successful in the NHL. That meant a place for role players like Zamuner who would be happy doing the grunt work.

The problem, of course, was that this team was not playing in the NHL, where rinks measure 200 feet by 85 feet. International-sized rinks are 200 x 100, putting a greater emphasis on skill.

Clarke admits he didn’t take this into proper account.

“We tried to build a team in the sense of including guys who were regular penalty-killers and guys who could shut down opposition players,” the GM says. “I think what we learned from that tournament is better players will adapt. You put them in a role they might not be used to and they’ll adapt because they want to play.”

It didn’t help that Mario Lemieux, the NHL's scoring champion in 1996-97, wasn't available to Team Canada because of his retirement after that season (he'd return in December 2000).

Father Time was also working against Clarke. The Nagano Games arrived at a transitional time for the NHL, when many of the superstars who dominated the league in the ‘80s and ‘90s were either retiring or getting long in the tooth. Messier was 37 and in the midst of a season in which he’d register only 60 points in 82 games. Gretzky was 36 and would retire after the 1998-99 season.

But with so many revered veterans on his roster, Clarke made a curious choice in naming their leader.