But no, coach Ben Smith, the guiding hand for the U.S. national women’s team since 1997, the man who led his team to a stunning Olympic gold in 1998, and the man who finally got the U.S. its first Women’s World gold just a few months earlier, had decided that Granato, at age 34, was too slow, too old for the new women’s game. She would not be going to Italy with her teammates and was cut from the team preparing for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games.

The last time such a decision of similar magnitude had been made came in 1997 when coach Shannon Miller cut Angela James from Canada’s Olympic roster. Canada ended up with a silver. Connection? Who can know, but in 2006, it was difficult to see any good coming out of the move, especially as Smith didn’t identify a young and rising star as the reason for cutting the legendary Granato.

It can be safely stated that Granato was the very face of the U.S. women’s program. She played in the first Women’s Worlds in 1990 at age 18. She had played in all eleven major events from that time through the historic 2005 Worlds. She was the all-time leader in IIHF women’s hockey in goals, assists, and points. No one could have seen this move coming, not Granato, not her teammates... and not her opponents.

Granato kept in touch with her teammates and was hired by Olympics broadcaster NBC as a commentator for women’s hockey in Turin. So, yes, she went to Italy, but not as a participant, not to walk in the Opening Ceremonies, but to watch, to observe, to comment.