SOCHI, Russia – Sitting on the plane amongst the plethora of his St. Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. It wasnt until he touched base on the ground here in Sochi and separated from all but his Team Canada teammate and defensive partner Jay Bouwmeester that the magnitude of what lay ahead really set in. The 24-year-old Pietrangelo is among the youngest to wear the red Maple Leaf in 2014 as youth infuses what was previously a veteran-laden squad. Like fellow youngsters 23-year-old Matt Duchene, 24-year-old Jamie Benn, 23-year-old John Tavares and 24-year-old P.K. Subban, he is getting his first opportunity (of many) on the grandest stage and his NHL head coach couldnt be happier for it. "Hes just going to get better," said Ken Hitchcock, the bench boss in St. Louis and an assistant coach for Team Canada. "Any time you can experience something like this, it makes you a better player." The chance to train, practice and play amongst the countrys very best and compete, in the days ahead, opposite the worlds very best is a large part of the appeal as is the opportunity to represent Canada on the world stage. But in advising his Blues centerpiece prior to the Olympics, Hitchcock wanted Pietrangelo to absorb and understand just how high and intense the hockey will get, even amongst his own NHL teammates and future opponents. "Like dont expect Patrick Berglund to be what he is. Hes going to go up another level," Hitchcock said of the Blues centre, one among 10 players from St. Louis selected to play in these games, tied with Chicago and Detroit for the most in the NHL. "Dont expect Alex Steen to be what he is. Hes going to go up another level and thats just the way it is. "So dont be surprised because people play with passion ... Their sweaters and the crest on their sweaters is just as important for them as it is us. I said just dont be surprised by everybodys A-game when its out there." Pietrangelo has also heeded the advice of Bouwmeester – who is set to participate in his second Olympics – peppering the 30-year-old in the days and weeks leading up to their arrival in Russia. "I was able to pick his brain about the experience and he was pretty much bang on with everything he said," said Pietrangelo, who has 41 points in 57 games for the Blues this season. The best part, Bouwmeester advised, was the opportunity to take in the Olympic experience alongside other Canadians, not just those on the two hockey teams, but skiers, curlers, skaters, those in sports unfamiliar to the King City, Ontario native. "You see the skaters, you see the skiers on TV and you know that youre part of that group," Pietrangelo said. "Youre sitting in the lunch hall, the dinner hall now and you see them and you say hi and then you go out there and watch them on TV, its pretty special." On the ice, it was absorbing the complexities of the bigger international ice surface and systems employed by head coach Mike Babcock. Technical questions leveled at Hitchcock at an instructive Tuesday afternoon practice. "...he wanted to know, on defensive reads, whats his role because we play a different way [in St. Louis], especially on the back-check," Hitchcock said, noting Pietrangelos studious nature. The fourth overall pick in the 2008 draft is part of a youth revolution thats gradually crept into Team Canada and the hockey world. It was quietly prominent in Vancouver when a 21-year-old Jonathan Toews, 20-year-old Drew Doughty and 22-year-old Sidney Crosby all emerged at various points en route to gold, and its risen to new heights in Sochi. Gone from that triumphant squad on home turf are hardened veterans like Chris Pronger, Scott Niedermayer, Jarome Iginla and Brenden Morrow, replaced by a new wave that includes Pietrangelo, Duchene, Subban, Benn and Tavares. "We knew that when 2010 ended, there was going to be a changing of the guard," said Blues GM and Team Canada management member Doug Armstrong. "For quite of few of those players, their time had come. A lot of them are retired now. And you really cant keep these young players down." That would include Pietrangelo, who has surged to the heights of the defensive position on a powerhouse Blues squad, one that is tied for second-best overall with 84 points at the break. Still in just his fourth full NHL season, he is sitting fourth among all NHL defenders in points this season while averaging more than 25 minutes per game on one of the leagues preeminent defensive teams. A member of two Canadian World Junior teams – including a gold-snatching squad in 2009 – Pietrangelo was brought along carefully by the St. Louis organization, who signed him to a seven-year, $45 million contract this past summer. He played in just 17 games in the two years that followed his draft, rare patience that is quickly being rewarded. "Its hard to argue that right now," said Pietrangelo, gazing around at where he stood on Olympic ground. "Its a tough thing to go through as a young player. You always want to be playing at the highest level, but to see where I am right now, they were investing their time and money in me and they were going to make the best decision for me. Thats how I looked at it. Id like to think that its working right now." Los Angeles Dodgers Store . Obasi chested the ball past one defender, prodded it past another and then rounded the keeper before scoring from a tight angle in the 16th minute. 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Down 2-1 after Rick Nash scored on a penalty shot, the Oilers ran off four unanswered goals in the remainder of the second period on the way to a 6-3 victory on Sunday.TORONTO – Mason Raymond was coming off what he believed to be a pretty good sixth season in Vancouver. He scored 10 goals in 46 games and entered the summer of 2013 as an unrestricted free agent for the first time. But when September rolled around and training camps were due to open in a matter of days, Raymond found himself without the safety and security of a contract. “We all knew what was happening with the cap,” he told the Leaf Report. “But did I think Id be in that situation? No, not at all.” Amid the now forgotten wreckage of the last NHL lockout was the plunge in the caps upper limit from $70 million in 2013 to $64.3 million this fall. The dip in available dollars and subsequent uncertainty left many veterans, like Raymond and new Leaf Jerred Smithson, searching with frustration for amenable contracts, often with little or no success. Though he had played in over 300 NHL games and had scored 25 goals as recently as 2010, Raymond had no better option but a professional tryout in Toronto on the eve of training camp. Suffice it to say, the lack of opportunity took him by surprise and remains a source of bewilderment. “I had a good year last year,” said the 27-year-old, who totaled 22 points in his final season with the Canucks. “I fully expected something to materialize. To be honest, I didnt really know that youd come into a team on a tryout five days before camp opened. I was optimistic and so was my agent, but it just seemed like for whatever reason a lot of players got stuck in the situation that I did.” There was a general sense among teams, including the Leafs, that cost-effective opportunities might present themselves because of the cap crunch this summer. But to find Raymond available on the eve of training camp was certainly an unexpected and pleasant surprise. Inked to a one-year contract for an even $1 million, he has proven a valuable find so far. Averaging what would be a career-high of 19 minutes, Raymond has scored five goals and 11 points in 17 games. His speedy presence, amid a 10-game suspension to David Clarkson and early injuries to Nik Kulemin, James van Riemsdyk and Joffrey Lupul, as well as current ones to Tyler Bozak and Dave Bolland, has been an obvious aid to the Leafs, who sit third in the Atlantic division. “Ive always believed Im an NHL player,” Raymond said. “I thought that prior to coming to camp, I thought that all summer and I think that to this day. You have to go out and prove that more importantly to yourself, I think. Im a big believer that, [if] you do the right things, play some good hockey, everything else will take care of itself.” Some fled to Europe with no jobs to be found as the summer months waned and became fall. Others stuck around and remained as patient as possible, Raymond and Smithson, a veteran of 588 career games prior to this season, among them. “I knew the situation,” said Smithson, in conversation with the Leaf Report. “I knew the cap was going down, but nothing can really prepare you for that. I figured I was still good enough to get a job, get a one-way deal somewhere and, when it didnt happen, it was tough.dddddddddddd It was not so much humbling, but more frustrating. I knew it was a possibility, but once it really hit, it [was] not a good feeling.” Unlike Raymond, Smithson wasnt able to land even a tryout in the NHL, but one instead with the Marlies of the AHL. It was mid-October. He and his fiancé were parents of a newborn baby. Patience had been predictably difficult to keep. “I knew right away I wasnt obviously a big name, that teams were going to go after the first few days, so I was prepared to be patient – maybe not this patient, but prepared to be patient,” he said. “Once August rolled around and still, there wasnt anything that was really coming out at me. There were a few tryout offers or two-way deals, but nothing that I was really willing to bite on right away.” Smithson and his agent were forced to give a good, long look to Europe. “It was never a dream of mine to go over to Europe,” he said. “And I made that clear to my agent right away that Im willing to be as patient as I can. It was obviously a lot harder than I originally thought, but it worked out.” Injuries to Bozak and Bolland finally opened a door back into the NHL for Smithson last week - the 34-year-old signed a one-year deal for the veteran minimum of $550,000. A noted faceoff specialist and penalty killer, he has quickly gained an important role for Randy Carlyle, plugging the gap of the two injured centres in both regards. “Im not a big fan of the term ‘it is what is, but I cant control [the cap crunch],” said Smithson, who played seven seasons in Nashville, also making stops in Los Angeles, Florida and Edmonton. “I could just control my attitude and try to stay in the best shape as I possibly could and, if a phone call came, just be ready for when that opportunity knocked. Im very grateful for the opportunity the Leafs gave me, with the Marlies and with them, [and Im] just looking to take advantage of it.” Though Smithson projects as more of a stop-gap option, Raymond could earn himself a larger contract next summer with a productive season. Two years ago, Clarke MacArthur joined the Leafs late in the summer on a bargain one-year deal, worth $1.1 million. Now a member of the Ottawa Senators, MacArthur busted out with a career season that first year in Toronto, subsequently signing a two-year deal worth $6.5 million the following offseason. Raymond could be in line for something similar if he remains productive. At the very least, with the cap expected to rise once more, he is unlikely to find himself in such a precarious position again. "Thats hockey, thats life, thats the cards you were dealt and you have to deal with it,” Raymond said of the cap crunch this past summer. “You can sit here and say the what ifs, whatevers, and all that, but it was a situation and, unfortunately, it happened to some of us. I think [the cap was] the reason, [but] I dont know the exact reason. For [Smithsons] sake and my sake things have worked out well.” ' ' '