1997–98 Canada men's national ice hockey team
The 1997–98 Canada men's national ice hockey team represented Canada at the 1998 Winter Olympics held in Nagano, Japan. Canada's team, coached by Marc Crawford, placed fourth in the Olympic tournament. History. 1998 was the first year that the modern NHL took a break to allow its players to participate in the Olympics, allowing the top countries to field teams with professionals of top calibre. Team Canada's Olympic roster was selected by Bobby Clarke, who was then general manager of the Philadelphia Flyers. Eric Lindros was named captain over  longtime leaders such as Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, and Ray Bourque. Rob Zamuner was a surprise pick, while Mark Messier and Scott Niedermayer were omitted. The Canadian team, despite a strong start in the round robin, failed to win a medal, losing 3 - 2 to Finland in the bronze medal game.