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Joe Thornton brings ageless energy to Team Canada

TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 26: Joe Thornton #97 of Team Canada talks to the media during the World Cup of Hockey 2016 practice sessions at Air Canada Centre on September 26, 2016 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/World Cup of Hockey via Getty Images)
Joe Thornton of Team Canada talks to the media during the World Cup of Hockey 2016 practice sessions at Air Canada Centre on September 26, 2016 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Getty Images)

TORONTO – Before the World Cup of Hockey started Team Canada players were shown snippets of the 2004 World Cup.

As they watched, they saw one subtle difference in forward Joe Thornton, who was then 25 years old.

“Way bigger beard (now) for sure,” defenseman Shea Weber joked. “It’s definitely neat. It just goes to show that he continues to excel and almost get better as he’s gotten older. He’s obviously been a great player for a long time but he seems to continually produce and be a top end player.”

Just by the eyeball test, there’s no doubt that the 37-year-old Thornton is Team Canada’s oldest player. His giant speckled beard and defined crows feet around his eyes are dead giveaways. The next youngest player on the team is 32-year-old defenseman Jay Bouwmeester. But Thornton is also the team’s most energetic and has turned into one of the major cogs that has driven the group to World Cup dominance in advance of their final round series against Team Europe.

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“This is the first time I’ve really gotten to meet Joe and get to know him and I’m not surprised why he’s still having so much success. He comes to the rink every day. Great attitude, big smile on his face. Loves to have fun, joke around, really enjoys to be out there with the guys,” forward John Tavares said. “He’s a funny dude, so just his personality, it really puts everyone in a good mood. Especially as an older guy to have been there and been around. For me, I didn’t really know him, so you’re kind of taken aback a little by him and I remember watching him growing up and finally getting to be around him is pretty cool. So for him to have that type of energy and excitement and passion still, I think you can see why he’s still so effective and he had such a great year last year, so he has been great for us.”

After being on Canada’s 2010 gold medal winning Olympic team, Thornton fell off the group’s radar to a degree. He wasn’t picked for the 2014 Games and wasn’t a member of the first 16 players picked for this World Cup – despite being on his way to a second team All-NHL selection with 82 points in 82 games.

When teams were asked to reveal the rest of their rosters in late May, Canada decided to add Thornton, who at that point had led the San Jose Sharks to a Stanley Cup Final.

This tournament he has played every game as a winger on a line with Matt Duchene and Ryan O’Reilly. The Canadian coaches have also put him on the team’s first line power play, where he can use his passing ability to feed the group’s elite snipers.

During this stretch, Thornton has more than just kept up with the game, and in fact has pushed the pace. He has two points in the four games.

“With Joe it’s like he’s 21 out there,” forward Steven Stamkos said. “He just wants to be on the ice and get better and continue to play. That’s the attitude you hope to have at that age and accomplish everything that he has. It’s pretty great to see and he’s a guy you can really try to look up to as you progress the rest of your career.”

Thornton has seemed generally enthused about this event from the get-go.

He has been bullish on the best two-of-three championship format, saying it would produce more entertainment than the 2004 tournament, which was a one-game winner-take-all contest.

“It’s a little playoff series, which is a neat theory I think,” he said.

He doesn’t mind not playing big minutes, because he’s enjoying the talent level of Canada.

“It is really is a privilege to play on these teams,” he said.

And as for some ribbing from his teammates about his age – he has taken that in stride as well.

“It has been 12 years since the last one, so to be back here again is a pretty neat feeling,” he said when asked about this. “It’s pretty cool.”

Overall he has brought the type of attitude you would expect out of a youngster on his first international team. But this is how Thornton has been able to continue to produce at his age. Not does he still have all of his skills, he also brings the right type of mindset to the rink.

“He’s an awesome guy. Awesome, awesome guy. You can sometimes think some of those old veterans can get a little grumpy but not him,” Tavares said. “He comes with some of the most energy we got in our group. He’s a funny dude and he enjoys being out there on the ice.”

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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