Eleven Canadians among China's first-ever men's hockey roster

BEIJING — Brandon Yip was growing up in Vancouver when his grandmother figured he also needed a Chinese name to honour the family's heritage.

The matriarch decided "Jinguang" was a good fit, and the younger Yip continued on as a Canadian kid chasing his hockey dream.

The new moniker, however, stuck.

"I've just carried it with me," said the now-36-year-old winger.

Yip has carried it further than he could have ever dreamed — to the Beijing Olympics as a key member of China's first-ever foray into the men's tournament.

"A long time coming," he added. "Everyone's thrilled and excited to get going."

Yip is hardly alone as a transplant joining the national team ahead of the 2022 Winter Games.

The country's 25-man roster is comprised of 11 Canadians, seven Americans, one Russian and six homegrown Chinese players. The group has been together for a long stretch with club team Kunlun Red Star of the Kontinental Hockey League as China looked to beef up its extremely shallow talent pool prior to rolling out a welcome mat to the world.

A majority of the naturalized players have Chinese backgrounds, but there are others like Jake Chelios — son of Hall of Famer Chris Chelios — who has played the last three seasons with Kunlun and is permitted to suit up at the Olympics after meeting International Ice Hockey Federation residency requirements.

"We're as close as you can get because we have to be," said the 30-year-old Chicago native. "The amount of lockdowns and quarantines we've had to go through … and just trouble getting families over because of visas, we're always together.

"It's probably one of the friendliest and closest teams I've ever been on."

"We have the chemistry," added goaltender Jeremy Smith, a 32-year-old