Teddy Purcell was not one of the 20 players named to Canada’s roster for the Spengler Cup, but don’t read too much into that: most of the players who have skated for Canada in the Karjala Cup and Channel One Cup aren’t on the Spengler roster.
Canada has won Switzerland’s Spengler Cup the past two years, and looks to make it a three-peat in the oldest club tournament in the world, which opens Boxing Day. The final is slated for New Years Eve.
Hockey Canada is using three tournaments to select the roster which will compete in the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Purcell, the former NHLer from St. John’s, played for Canada in the Karjala Cup in Finland, and last weekend’s Channel One Cup (former Izvestia Tournament) in Moscow.
The Spengler Cup is the final opportunity for national men’s team management, led by general manager Sean Burke and head coach Willie Desjardins, to select the roster for the Olympics.
Purcell, a 32-year-old forward, with eight years of full-time NHL experience, plays for Avangard Omsk of the Russian-based Kontinental Hockey League. He dressed for one of Canada’s three games in the Channel One Cup.
