OPINION

By Eric McErlain

updated 8:43 p.m. ET Feb. 16, 2008

It's been two years since Team USA turned in a disappointing finish at the 2006 Winter Olympics. It's time to start thinking about the squad that will go to Vancouver for the 2010 Games.

That 2006 team went 1-3-1 with a quarterfinal loss to eventual silver medalist Finland. And given the age of most players on the team in Torino, significant roster turnover is a certainty. Those games were the last hurrah for a group of players who made Team USA special by winning the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, taking silver at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games and surprising observers with a fourth-place finish in the 2004 World Cup.

It's possible that was the most talented group ever put on ice by USA Hockey, the organizing body for U.S. national teams. Mike Modano, Doug Weight, Chris Chelios and other stalwarts have done more than their share for Team USA. It's far past time for a new generation of American players to step forward.

If Team USA wants to do more than be competitive — and perhaps steal a medal in 2010 — roster changes are just the start of changes needed.

Before considering who will wear red, white and blue, focus should be placed on the management team and coaching staff.

There would be no better choice for manager than Anaheim Ducks GM Brian Burke. Burke's familiarity with USA Hockey complements his managerial skills. USA Today hockey writer Kevin Allen says Burke "is a leader with drive, purpose and a vision for how an organization is to be run." Allen also calls Burke a relentless battler with a vision for not just winning, but winning in an entertaining way. Other scribes echo Allen's sentiments.

Sure, critics consider Burke cranky, but he brings with him a patriotic commitment to USA Hockey. Born in New England and raised in Minnesota, Burke is involved in the transition under way in USA Hockey. He worked alongside Nashville Predators GM David Poile and their Atlanta Thrashers counterpart, Don Waddell, to build the 2007 U.S. team for the IIHF world championships. That team, considered an also-ran by the Canadian hockey media, finished a surprising fifth.

Better yet, Burke is an outsized personality. He has a good relationship with the hockey media, which could help draw attention to Team USA. And in this tournament he won't have to worry about how he is perceived in Edmonton.

If things get hairy in Vancouver and the team needs a lightning rod, Burke would get that done.

Burke has a long relationship with Ron Wilson, who coached U.S. teams for more than a decade, most famously the '96 World Cup team. But with an overhaul under way, it might be time to look elsewhere for a coach.

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There was a time when Team USA's coach came from the college or amateur ranks. It worked in many ways, as the U.S. had two gold medals, six silvers and a bronze in the era before professional players entered the Games. There were notable failures as well. The 1984 team that included young Pat LaFontaine and Chris Chelios fell flat in the shadow if the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" team. The furniture-smashing meltdown in 1998 by roster filled with pros was Team USA's nadir.

Wilson is one of four NHL coaches from the United States. The others are John Tortorella, who won the Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning; Peter Laviolette of the Carolina Hurricanes, who won in 2006; and Waddell, who took over as Thrashers coach early this season. Wilson was born in Ontario, but raised in Rhode Island. Otherwise, the pickings are pretty slim.

So in 2010 Team USA should swallow its pride and hire someone from outside its national borders. And if USA Hockey is broadminded and brave enough to take a step like that, its first call should be to Scotty Bowman.

Yes, Bowman is Canadian. Yes, he will be 76 by the time of the Vancouver Games and hasn't been behind the bench since winning the Stanley Cup in 2002 with the Detroit Red Wings. And yes, there will be questions about how the old master of mind games would handle a young team.

Then again, having Bowman at home in Buffalo contemplating ways to win gold without the day-to-day distraction of running an NHL team ought to be enough to convince USA Hockey to at least try. Bowman is the greatest tactician the game has ever seen. As for relating to today's players, Bowman led teams to the Stanley Cup finals for nearly four decades. He adapted then and will adapt now.

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