| Paul Kariya had already established a superstar reputation in international hockey prior to his arrival in the NHL. A minor contributor to Canada's disappointing sixth-place squad at the 1992 World Junior Championships, Kariya collected two goals and a team-leading six assists in seven games as Canada rebounded to win the gold medal in 1993. He was rewarded for his play that year with a selection to the tournament All-Star Team. Kariya also played for Team Canada at the World Championships that season and had two goals and seven assists in eight games, although Canada finished out of the medals despite a 6-2 record. A contract dispute with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (who had made him the fourth overall draft choice in 1993) resulted in Kariya joining Canada's National Team in 1993-94. He was a member of Canada's silver medal-winning team at the Olympics that year but was stopped in a shootout in the final game that gave the gold medal to Sweden. Kariya later redeemed himself at the World Championships, leading Canada in scoring with five goals and seven assists as Team Canada defeated Finland in a shootout to win the world title for the first time since 1961. Kariya was second only to Mats Sundin in scoring at the 1994 World Championships and was named the tournament's Best Forward as well as an All-Star.After joining the Mighty Ducks in 1994-95, Kariya again had the chance to represent Canada at the World Championships in 1996. Once again he was named the Best Forward and an All-Star although Team Canada could only manage a silver medal that year. Kariya was selected to the Canadian squad for the World Cup of Hockey in 1996 and the Nagano Olympics in 1998, but injuries kept him out of both tournaments.Kariya finally made his return to the Olympic games in 2002, where he added 3 goals and an assist to Canada's gold medal winning team. |
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