LAS VEGAS — For months they’ve been teammates. They’ve practiced together. They’ve traveled together. They’ve won and lost together.

Now, they are about to become adversaries for the next couple of weeks.

The Vegas Golden Knights are going to be well represented at the Winter Olympics in Italy. Eight players plus coach Bruce Cassidy will participate as the NHL returns to the Olympics for the first time since 2014.

Three Knights will represent Canada (Mark Stone, Mitch Marner and Shea Theodore along with Cassidy, who is an assistant coach). Two will wear the red, white and blue of the United States (Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin). Akira Schmid will be on the ice for Switzerland. Tomas Hertl will play for Czechia. Rasmus Andersson will represent Sweden. Jonas Rondbjerg was selected for Denmark’s roster but will not play due to injury.

The Americans are in Group C. The Canadians are in Group A with Czechia and Switzerland. Sweden is in Group B. The gold medal game is scheduled for the Games’ closing day on Feb. 22 in Milan. Canada and the USA are going to be heavily favored to be in the championship.

From friends to foes

“Yeah, it’ll be a little weird,” Marner said of the prospect of going against his Vegas teammates in Italy. “But I went through it last year (at 4 Nations Face-Off) and once they drop the puck, you’re just focused on the game and playing.”

For Andersson, who recently joined the Knights following a trade from Calgary, he’s not sure how he’ll react if he sees a teammate bearing down on him with the puck.

“Honestly, it hasn’t happened to me,” Andersson said. “We don’t meet any of them in group play. Hopefully later in the tournament, so we’ll see how it goes.”

For Eichel and Hanifin, neither of who was alive when the Miracle On Ice took place in Lake Placid, NY in 1980, this is their opportunity to make history of their own. Both are well versed in the story of the American college kids upsetting the mighty Soviet Union, then beating Finland for the gold medal. They’ve seen the Disney movie “Miracle” with Kurt Russell starring as Herb Brooks enough times. Both are from Massachusetts like “Miracle” captain Mike Eruzione was.

“When I watch ‘Miracle’ it always leaves me inspired,” Eichel said. “What those guys accomplished was amazing and I’ve gotten to meet some of them and hear the stories. It’s pretty cool.

Hanifin said: “They helped put USA Hockey on the map. As a kid, you learn about the Miracle On Ice and later, when you get to meet some of the players from that team, hear the stories, it pumps you up.”

Meanwhile, the Canadians have the memory of winning at the Vancouver Olympics in 2010 when Sidney Crosby scored the “Golden Goal.” Crosby is back for one more try for gold and Marner and Stone may get to skate with him.

“He’s amazing that he’s still playing at a high level at this point of his career,” Stone, who’s 33, said of Crosby, who’s 38. “He’s such a smart player and to have him for a teammate, it’s really special.”

Theodore, who grew up 60 kilometers from Vancouver in Aldergrove, remembers the moment in 2010. He was 14 when Crosby put his name alongside Paul Henderson’s in Canadian international hockey lore as Henderson had clinched the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviet Union.

“That was a great game,” Theodore said. “(Crosby) is such a great leader. I got to know him last year at 4 Nations and he has such respect from everyone. I’m very excited to be on the team with him and the rest of the guys.”

A chance to participate

There’s probably a little more incentive for Theodore as he was injured in the opening game for Canada in last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off and missed the rest of the tournament, which Canada ultimately won.

“Yeah, hoping to stay on the ice this time around,” he said with a smile. “But that was still an amazing experience and I’m sure (the Olympics) will be even better.”

Canada will be seeking its third straight gold medal in Olympic play when NHL players are competing and fourth overall. In addition to winning in Vancouver, Canada won gold in Salt Lake City in 2002 and also in Sochi, Russia in 2014, which was the last time the NHL participated.

Hertl may have thought he’d never get another chance to play for his country after undergoing knee surgery a few years ago while a member of the San Jose Sharks. But he will be in the lineup for Czechia, formerly known as the Czech republic and before that, Czechoslovakia. It’s a country with a rich and storied traction in the sport.

“It’s always an honor to play for your country,” Hertl said. “We may not have as many NHL players on the roster as we’ve had before. But it’s a good team and hopefully we can have good results in Italy.”

Schmid’s play for the Knights, plus his prior experience with the Swiss national team will give him a chance to play in the Olympics. The 25-year-old is one of several players on the roster who are in the NHL. Roman Josi, Nico Hischier, Kevin Fiala, Philipp Kurashev and Timo Meier are all NHL regulars and Switzerland shouldn’t be overlooked.

“I’m very excited to get over there and play,” said Schmid, who is the youngest of the three Swiss goalies on the roster. “We’ve played together for years and we shouldn’t be shy, especially with the NHL guys we have.”

Rivalries heat up

While he may be facing some of his Golden Knights teammates, Andersson said he and the Swedes will face a familiar foe in the preliminary round when Sweden meets its hated rival Finland on Feb. 13.

“We don’t like them and they don’t like us,” Andersson said of the Finns, who have no shortage of NHL experience on their roster. “It’s our biggest rivalry. It’s one of those things, you grow up not liking the Finns and when you’re with the national team from when you are young, you play against them all the time and you learn to hate them.”

Then there’s USA-Canada.

Forget all the geo-political stuff between the two countries. On the ice, the competition will be fierce. Or have you forgotten the two meetings between the countries last February at 4 Nations?

The first featured a series of fights that looked like a scene out of the movie “Slap Shot.” The second was tightly contested, went to overtime thanks to Canadian goaltender Jordan Binnington standing on his head and Connor McDavid winning it after Marner set him up for his own Golden Goal.

But with the two countries in different groups, it may take getting to the medal round for a meeting.

The Americans may find themselves involved in another rivalry, one nobody likely expected. The USA will face Denmark in  group play on Feb. 14 and again, politics will likely play a factor in the atmosphere inside the Santagiulia Arena in Milan.

With President Donald Trump making threats on acquiring or taking over Greenland, which is part of Denmark, the Danes have not taken kindly to that. And the fans who show up that aren’t from the States will likely get behind Denmark, which will be a huge underdog in the game.

Unfortunately, the Danes won’t have Rondbjerg, who took a heavy hit from Anaheim’s Radko Gudas in the second period last Sunday and was placed on injured reserve by the Golden Knights. He was announced out for the Olympics by the Danish Ice Hockey Federation.

Lineup options abound

As for who plays with who, nobody seemed sure what’s going to happen.

“I haven’t talked to anyone,” Eichel said of the Team USA coaching staff.

There’s a good chance he centers a line with the Tkachuk brothers, Matthew and Brady. They were together in the 4 Nations until Matthew got hurt. Coach Mike Sullivan has a lot of options for how he uses Eichel.

Marner, who has been playing center the last few weeks for the Golden Knights, will return to wing for Team Canada. He played with McDavid at the 4 Nations and there’s a good chance they’ll be reunited.

Stone could find himself skating with Bo Horvat or possibly Nathan MacKinnon. Theodore might be paired with Travis Sanheim or Thomas Harley.

Cassidy wasn’t able to offer any insight as to which of his Knights will play on which lines or D-pairs.

“I’ll have some input but ultimately it’s Coop’s call,” Cassidy said of head coach Jon Cooper. “We’ll talk about lines when we get to Italy. “There’s a lot of moving pieces. I don’t know how it’s all going to shake out.”

Andersson might find himself paired with any number of defensemen for Sweden. It could be Rasmus Dahlin. It might be Gustav Forsling. It could be Erik Karlsson.

If they do know who they’re skating with, they’re not letting anyone know. At least not yet. What would the Olympics be without a little intrigue?
 
Cassidy’s fond memories

Cassidy actually played professionally in Italy before trading in his stick and helmet for a whiteboard and whistle. He spent three years as a defenseman with HC Alleghe in Italy’s Alpinliga. In his first season in 1991, Cassidy had 23 goals and 75 points in 36 games. In 1993, Cassidy and Alleghe won the Alpinliga championship.

“It was a great experience,” Cassidy said of his time playing in Italy. “We played up north so there were a lot of different dialects spoken, a different culture than maybe in Milan or elsewhere in Italy.

“But I loved my time there and i’m looking forward to going back.”

This is a little bigger stage and though Cassidy will play a small role, he is excited to be on the bench with Cooper and former VGK coach Pete DeBoer and Flyers coach Rick Tocchet. That he gets to share the experience with three of his VGK players makes it even more special.

The ‘Olympic Experience’

For the players, this once-in-a-lifetime experience will give them a chance to do more than compete for medals. They’re staying in the Olympic Village, giving them a chance to mingle with other athletes as over 90 nations are participating in the Milano Cortina Games. No doubt they’ll support their women’s hockey teams when they play and perhaps they’ll try to take in some of the other events if time permits. Maybe Stone and Marner take in some curling. Perhaps Eichel and Hanifin catch some speed skating.

“I hope so,” Eichel said. “We’ll have to see once we get over there what we will have time for. It’s really a business trip for everyone but I’m sure we’ll get to experience the Olympics, meet other athletes, enjoy staying in the Village.”

Hanifin said: “It’ll be different than what we’re accustomed to but that’s part of being in the Olympics, right? You get to meet the other athletes, maybe taking in different events. Hopefully, we’ll get the chance to do some of that.”

Marner doesn’t have a roommate on the road when he’s with the Knights. Each player gets his own room in what are normally five-star hotels. In Italy, he’ll be assigned a roommate, who, he’s not sure of, and it won’t be as luxurious as a Ritz-Carlton.

“I guess we’ll have to see once we get over there what it’s like,” he said. “Whatever it is, we’ll adapt.”

Of course, the logistics and scheduling will ultimately determine how much these guys get to do beyond hockey. But all say they’re hoping to get a true Olympic experience, within reason of course.

“It’s one of those things, we’ll see when we get there,” Andersson said of the environment the players will experience. “I’ve never been there before but it’s exciting to try something different and see what it’s like. That’s a little bit a part of it, staying in the Village, seeing other athletes. It comes with the whole package.”
 
But in the end, it comes down to winning. Only one country will leave happy and the players all agreed that while experiencing everything that’s the Olympics is cool — all missed the Opening Ceremonies Friday — this is about business.

“It’s going to come down to which team can adapt and adjust the quickest,” Hertl said. “It’s a very different environment than NHL. So you have to be ready every game.”