The U.S. men’s hockey team entered the 2010 Winter Olympics with some obvious weaknesses that had most critics listing the Americans a level below tournament favorites Canada, Russia and Sweden.
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One of those was a group of defensemen that didn’t seem all that imposing on paper — and even less so when original roster choices Mike Komisarek and Paul Martin had to be replaced because of injury.
But maybe the American blueline has been undervalued. Tuesday afternoon against Switzerland that group was surprisingly active. A big part of that effort came from young defensemen Jack Johnson (Los Angeles Kings), 23, and Erik Johnson (St. Louis Blues), 21. In their first Olympic game, both players had an impact. Jack Johnson, the No. 3 pick of the 2005 draft, was all over the ice, disrupting the Swiss attack with one big hit after another and finishing a +1. Erik Johnson, the top pick in 2006, used his mobility to pinch in at exactly the right times to keep the puck in the offensive zone. That plays well on a team that already generates a relentless forecheck. But it’s also an aggressive, risky approach. It remains to be seen if they can keep from getting burned when the United States plays Norway on Thursday afternoon — and certainly when it faces Canada in pool play on Sunday.
