Russian Team Picks Bryzgalov

Mighty Duck backup goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov on Friday was named to the Russian national team that will play in the Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy.

Bryzgalov, 25, joins the Chicago Blackhawks’ Nikolai Khabibulin and the San Jose Sharks’ Evgeni Nabokov as the goalies for Russia. The 23-player roster is highlighted by rookie sensation Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals.

Other NHL veterans selected for the Russian team were the New York Islanders’ Alexei Zhitnik and Alexei Yashin, the Atlanta Thrashers’ Ilya Kovalchuk, the Detroit Red Wings’ Pavel Datsyuk, the Montreal Canadiens’ Andrei Markov and Alexei Kovalev, the Boston Bruins’ Alexei Zhamnov, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sergei Gonchar, the New York Rangers’ Darius Kasparaitis and Fedor Tyutin, the Nashville Predators’ Danny Markov, the Buffalo Sabres’ Maxim Afinogenov, the New Jersey Devils’ Viktor Kozlov and the Ottawa Senators’ Anton Volchenkov. King forward Alexander Frolov is also on the Russian team. It will be his first Olympic appearance.

Bryzgalov is 6-9-0 with a 2.47 goals against average in his first full season in the league. He became the fifth Duck to make an Olympic roster, joining Scott Niedermayer (Canada), Teemu Selanne (Finland), Sandis Ozolinsh (Latvia) and Samuel Pahlsson (Sweden).