Analysis: Drury, Callahan will be major assets for U.S. hockey team

There were going to be nerves, with 20 first-time Olympians. There were going to be mistakes, with one practice as a full squad.

But there were not going to be any major letdowns for the U.S. men's hockey team. The Americans' 3-1 win over Switzerland Tuesday was nothing to write home about from Vancouver, but it was enough for a first effort.

And it was a vindication of sorts for some of Brian Burke's choices for the team, particularly his local choices. Chris Drury (9:55) and Ryan Callahan (10:02) had the least ice time of any American but were two of the guys with the biggest impact, along with the Ducks' Bobby Ryan and the Blues' David Backes, who each had goals.

Those four rotated early on as the fourth line - Olympic teams can dress all 20 skaters - and though the smaller, more skilled American forwards were finding very little room to work with against the trapping, physical Swiss team, the pluggers Burke rounded out the American roster with were going in hard on the forecheck and creating chances.

Ryan whipped home a bouncing puck 18:59 into the first, with good work by Drury and Backes to keep the puck in the Swiss zone, and it was a crucial goal.

"Bobby's goal did a good job of getting us relaxed," American captain Jamie Langenbrunner told NBC's Pierre McGuire after the game. "There was definitely some nervous energy early on."

Drury's selection was perhaps the most questioned one. This is his third Olympics, and the Rangers captain's game has suffered at times in the NHL season - he scored his 10th goal into an empty net at the Garden on Sunday, the fewest of any U.S. team forward - but Burke picked him early in the process because, in Burke's words, "He's Chris Drury."

Drury was a force Tuesday, throwing his body around and being responsible defensively. Same for Callahan, who provided energy and had a couple of good scoring chances. The creative young forwards had some good moments too - the Zach Parise-Paul Stastny-Patrick Kane line is clearly the one for offense - but will that small, fast line be able to find room against Canada's big defensemen?

The Americans' clear flaw coming in was a fairly undistinguished group of defensemen, and they seemed very out of sync Tuesday. Jack Johnson of the Kings tried to join the play a few times, even when the United States had a two-goal lead, and that led to some odd-man rushes for the Swiss.

"We've got to realize situations in the game," Langenbrunner said. "If you've got a lead, you've got to play smart."

Thursday when the Americans face Norway, the clear bottom team in the group. But Switzerland, with Islanders defenseman Mark Streit leading the way, was a perfect first game: The Swiss played a tight, smart game, much like a defense-oriented NHL team that uses a good system to overcome a lack of offense.

The Americans muddled through, thanks in large part to the grinders on the roster, guys whose selections were never assured. Kyle Okposo might well have taken a spot that Backes or Callahan or Drury got, but these are the essential players, the ones who hit hard and kill penalties and generally are a pain to play against.

With this win out of the way, the big game is Sunday against Canada, likely between a pair of 2-0 teams to determine who gets a bye into the quarterfinals. There's time for the Americans to get their defense in order. At least they know they have some grinders to rely on.

"It's nice when your big guys chip in like that. Obviously, that's a bonus, but their role later in this tournament is going to be different," Burke told reporters after the game. "But, yeah, when you get unexpected sources to chip in, that's a very important part of being successful in a tournament. You need unexpected help."