Team USA center Jack Eichel is rooming with his old Buffalo Sabres teammate Tage Thompson. Team Canada wingers Mark Stone and Mitch Marner are not only playing on the same line, with Sidney Crosby in the middle, but are roomies too.
Such is the life for an NHL hockey player competing in the Winter Olympics in Milan.
“Being here, landing today, and kind of going through the whole experience of getting checked into the village, definitely feels real now,” said Eichel, who is skating on a line with brothers Matthew and Brady Tkachuk on his wings. “We're here, and obviously we've fought hard for this. It means a lot to the players, and I think we are all really excited to be here.
“It's an honor. Listen, you're representing your country, you’re getting to wear your country’s colors. You think about all the other great athletes in the Olympic village that are wearing the same uniform as you from the United States that have competed their whole life, done so much and dedicated their time to be here, I think it's great. We're really grateful. We got hooked up by so many brands, but I think it's more so the fact that it says USA, right, and what that means, I think that’s the best part about it.”
NHL players stay in five-star hotels around Canada and the United States during league play. For the next couple weeks, they’ll be bunking up like the rest of the athletes at the Olympics.
“Yeah, it's definitely different. I mean, I'm not going to say I hate the posh hotels. Yeah, they're pretty nice. Those ones that we go to around North America and stay in. But listen, it's a really cool experience. It brings me back to what it's like in college. You’ve got a roommate who's two feet away from you in the same room, and you're in a small little dorm,” said Eichel. “But I think it just brings the guys together. There's not a whole lot to do other than spend time together, so we'll get to know each other pretty quickly. But for the most part, the group knows each other pretty well already, and we’ll spend time together. I think that’s going to be a huge advantage, and we’re lucky that we have a lot of relationships coming into it. We've got Matthew and Brady rooming together. So, I'm sure maybe they've roomed together before. If we hear someone go through a wall in the middle of the night, we’ll probably know where it came from.”
Stone has been handed the Stanley Cup as captain of the Golden Knights and last year as a member of Team Canada’s championship squad at the 4 Nations Face-Off. But nothing is like the Olympics.
“It’s a really tremendous experience, right? I mean, we were going over our welcome to the Village, meeting with the Canadian Olympic Committee, then you get into the room, and you see the speed skaters watching other speed skaters, you know, just listening to what impresses them about the speed skating,” said Stone. “I asked probably more questions in a 10-minute span talking with them than I have asked about hockey in the last 20 years. So, it's just fascinating to be a part of it, to be a part of more than just a hockey team. You're part of a country that's all competing for gold medals and bronze medals and silver medals and really just competing for a country. It's a special feeling.”
NHL players live a regimented life in the NHL. Fly here, bus there, eat at this time, get to the rink for practice or games. It’s all scheduled and mapped out for them. Not here.
“It's a little bit overwhelming, to be honest. I'm kind of trying to figure my way around the village and the café and where to go to get food. It was cool to walk around there, something you’ve dreamt of as a kid to try to be a part of. I’m rooming with Stoney, which is kind of nice, familiar face,” said Marner. “And so far, I’m on a line with Stoney and Sidney Crosby. Playing with Sid, it’s pretty cool. I’m excited to talk to my dad and bring that up to him. That guy is an idol to a lot of kids growing up in Canada still to this day. To be on his wing, learned from him the last couple times we got to hang out so it’s pretty special.”
Quotes credit to NHL.com.
