Brett Hull, Chris Chelios give World Cup insight

Hockey Hall of Famers Chris Chelios and Brett Hull are privy to what it takes to be successful in the World Cup of Hockey.
They were teammates on Team USA at the World Cup of Hockey 1996. That team, which helped raise the bar for a new generation of U.S.-born hockey players after it won the country's first world hockey title since the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics, will be inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame for the 2016 class in Philadelphia on Nov. 30.

"I'm not too sure that every player from that team shouldn't already be in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame; it was an unbelievable hockey team and unbelievable victory," Hull said.
Chelios and Hull are optimistic Team USA could pull off a similar feat at the World Cup of Hockey 2016. The United States hasn't won a best-against-best tournament since the 1996 World Cup.
ESPN hockey analyst Barry Melrose, along with Chelios and Hull, are part of the television team of commentators working the World Cup of Hockey 2016 for ESPN. The tournament runs Sept. 17-Oct. 1 at Air Canada Centre in Toronto.
Melrose will provide color commentary during games, and Chelios and Hull will offer analysis from the studio. All three took part in an ESPN conference call on Friday.
Here are some of the notable highlights from the conference call:

Could each of you select a player who might be under the radar from Team Canada, Team North America and Team USA?
Melrose (Canada): "I'll go with Brad Marchand. We know what Sidney Crosby and those other top Canada players can do but Marchand has never been part of this group as often as some of the others. When he participated in the IIHF World Championship this year and was one of Canada's best players. You know you're going to get passion and an ability to make others around him better. He tends to make the opposition mad and sometimes that hurts Canada. But he's playing with Patrice Bergeron and Crosby right now and that's a great two-way line that can score and defend."
Hull (North America): "I'll choose two players: Johnny Gaudreau and Auston Matthews. Gaudreau is looking for a new contract from the Calgary Flames. He's an extremely talented young player and this is a tournament where if he can really show his stuff, that could help him not become a better player but also show the Flames what he's really worth and that could lead to an extra million dollars. Matthews was drafted No. 1 by the Toronto Maple Leafs [at the 2016 NHL Draft] and hasn't even had a chance to play an NHL exhibition game. Yet here he is, as a star in the World Cup. I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on him but he has an opportunity to prove he belongs to the fans of a very tough market in Toronto."
Chelios (USA): "[Team USA captain] Joe Pavelski does everything right. I thought he was one of the best players for the United States in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. I do think Patrick Kane is the best player, and he's been their best player in the past two Olympic Games, so that's not a question. The other (under-the-radar) guy would be Ryan Kesler. He got hurt in Sochi and that really affected the team. So I watch for Pavelski and Kesler to have great tournaments."

Who should start in goal for Team USA?
Melrose: "I think it's Jonathan Quick's job to lose. He's won the Stanley Cup twice and I thought he was the best player for the Los Angeles Kings when they won those two championships (2012, 2014). In my opinion, Ben Bishop has not been great on the big stage, looking at the past two Stanley Cup Finals. I feel Cory Schneider's great but he might be on the outside looking in. It'll take an injury to one of the other goalies or bad play for [Schneider] to get in. I think this is Quick's job to lose."
What did you think of Team North America?
Hull: "We were talking prior to the first pretournament game about their talent and speed and skill and wondering if there would be nerves. But from the opening shift we knew they were ready to go and not afraid of anything. They are very confident, almost to a point where [Chelios] and I said, after the first period, that they are almost too skilled. They're overpassing and over-stickhandling. If they took more shots and stopped making the extra move or pass, that game [against Team Europe] could have been a lot worse."
Will the World Cup of Hockey on ESPN help attract even more fans to hockey?
Chelios: "I like the Olympics, and even if you're not a hockey fan, you'll want to back your country and this World Cup is another opportunity to do it. That's what might draw some people, who weren't fans, to at least cheer for their country. I'm a big fan of World Cup soccer. There's certainly a sense of national pride in this as well. This will be a great spectrum for people in North America to get a look at the greatest hockey players and those young players for North America. They always said Canada could make up two teams in these tournaments, but at least the U.S. has shown some depth in recent years to the point where I feel they can put up one-and-a-half teams."
What are your predictions?
Melrose: "I'm hoping for the U.S. but I think Canada is the best team. This means more to the Canadians to win in Canada and I think that will be one of the biggest differences. The other teams want to win but I think Canada has that mentality of 'We have to win.' So I think Canada is the best team and the runner-up will be Team Sweden."
Hull: "Canada is the best team. Goaltender will determine what happens after that; will it be Finland or Sweden. I really feel the United States has put together a real hard team to play against and if the goalies play well at all, I think they'll be hard to beat as well. So I'll go Canada and then the U.S."
Chelios: "I feel Canada is the favorite, but I'm cheering for the United States and hoping for another repeat of 1996. I think the U.S. will be better than they were in the 2014 Sochi Olympics, so even though Canada is the favorite, I'm going U.S. and then Canada."