Steve Yzerman played for Team Canada during the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagono, Japan. Both Canada and the United States were heavily favoured; they had previously faced off in the final of the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. After a below-expectations performance in the tournament which included only one win, several American players trashed their rooms in the Olympic Village and never apologized. The Canadian team, despite a strong start in the round robin, failed to play well after losing their semifinal match, and disappointed Canadians who wished for Wayne Gretzky to get an Olympic medal, playing a lacklustre bronze medal game. Nonetheless, Gretzky encouraged all of his teammates to attend the closing ceremony. 
Memorably, during the shootout in their semifinal match against the Czech Republic, Canadian coach Marc Crawford opted to have defenceman Ray Bourque shoot in the shootout instead of high-scoring forwards Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman. Hockey commentators alternatively criticized Crawford's decision (Bourque, like the other four Canadian shooters, failed to score) and praised it on the grounds that Bourque was one of hockey's most accurate shooters at the time and Gretzky had always been surprisingly mediocre on breakaways. Thanks to the goaltending of Dominik HaĊĦek, who was considered the best goaltender throughout Olympic play as well as the NHL, and Robert Reichel, the only successful goalscorer in the shoot-out, the Czech Republic won the semi-final shootout en route to shutting out Russia to win the gold medal. During the 6 games Yzerman played in the tournament he netted one goal, got one assist and had 10 minutes in penalties.
STeve Yzerman Team Canada '98 Olympic Jersey
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