Ozolins suits up for Olympics Latvian ice hockey team

  • 2014-01-07
  • From wire reports, RIGA

Legendary Latvian ice hockey defender Sandis Ozolins will suit up for the  national men's ice hockey team for the Sochi Winter Olympics.

Ozolins, 41, came out of retirement from the national team last February to help Latvia qualify for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

This will be his third Olympics and it's likely he will captain the Latvian team.

Meanwhile, promising Latvian ice hockey player Teodors Blugers has been included on Latvia's OIympic roster even though he has yet to make his debut on the national team.

Ozolins, who currently plays for Latvian ice hockey club Riga Dinamo, has represented Latvia in two previous Olympic Games - Salt Lake City (2002) and Torino (2006). and has also played for Latvia in two World Championships.

He has a total of 35 games for the national team, scoring nine goals and making 26 assists.

In his 15-year NHL career, Ozolins won the Stanley Cup once - in 1996 with the Colorado "Avalanche". Ozolins has also participated in seven NHL All-Star Games.

The Latvian team will open the Sochi Olympic Games with a game against Switzerland on Feb. 12. On Feb. 14, Latvia will take on the Czech Republic and Sweden on Feb. 15.

There will be three groups competing in the preliminary round of the Sochi hockey tournament. Latvia is in Group C together with the Czech Republic, Sweden and Switzerland.

This will be the fourth Winter Olympics in a row for the Latvian ice hockey team.

The full round up of Latvia's national team is as follows.

Goalkeepers : Christer Gudlevskis ( Syracuse " Crunch " , AHL ) , Erwin Muštukovs ( " Esbjerg " , Denmark) , Edgar Masalskis (no club ) ;

Guards : Sandis Ozolins , Arvid Reķis , George Pujacs , Krishjanis Rēdlihs , Christopher Sotnieks ( all Riga "Dinamo " , KHL ) , Oscar Bārtule ( Doņecas " Donbass " , KHL ) , Arthur Kulda ( Ufa " Salavat Julajev " KHL ) , Ralph Freibergs ( Bowling Green State Univ . NCAA ) ;

Forwards: Mick Indrašis Martins Cipulis , Vitaly Pavlov ( all Riga "Dinamo " , KHL ) , Martin Carded ( Moscow " Dynamo " , KHL ) , Michael Rēdlihs John Sprukts (both Yaroslavl " Lokomotiv " , KHL ) , King of Ronald ( Zurich " ZSC Lions ' NLA ) , Kevin Daugaviņš ( Geneva " Servette " CTP) , Herbert Vasilyev ( Krefeld " Pinguine " DEL ) , Koba Jass ( Liberec, " Bili tygři " , Czech Republic ) , Juris Stals ( SCM " Poprad " , Slovakia ) , Armands Berzins ( Aritavas " Beybaris " Kazakhstan) , Zemgus Girgensons ( Buffalo, " Sabres ' NHL ) , Lauris Dārziņš (no club ) .