Just a couple of quick points.  Jeremy Roenick never played for the US Olympic
Team, as he went directly to Chicago out of Thayer Academy (bypassing Boston
College), so he would not be an Olympic product.  However, he is still a Team
USA product as he has represented the USA in various international tournaments
while younger, not to mention the 1991 Canada Cup.  Also, it can be argued
that the showcase for the younger/college players is the World Junior
Tournament, which is held every year and is sort of the younger players' World
Championships.
 
A number of collegians leave their schools and teams each season to play
for Team USA in this tournament.  It probably deserves more publicity than
it gets, especially in the US, where most of the country unfortunately only
cares about hockey every four years.  And so perhaps allowing the NHL players
into the Olympics would attract more American fans as the game is bound to
be played at a higher level and Americans can get excited about some of
their very best players.  I would love to see the Olympics recognized as
the World Championship of hockey and the Juniors recognized as the best of
the younger players.  But that will take some rethinking of goals on the part
of both the US and Canadian Olympic programs.
 
 
- mike