Gretzky won't helm Team Canada for 2010 Winter Olympics

Wayne Gretzky will not manage Canada's hockey team again at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, although he is expected to be involved in some capacity.

Gretzky was the executive director for the team that won the gold medal at Salt Lake City in 2002 and failed to medal at Turin, Italy, in 2006. Gretzky played in the 1998 Games in Nagano, Japan, where NHL players made their Olympic debut and Canada lost in the semifinal.

"It's best for Wayne Gretzky not to be GM given his focus on his job as head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes," Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson said Monday.

Nicholson wants to solidify Gretzky's role with the 2010 team by the end of October when he also intends to say who will be running the squad. Gretzky could play a role in selecting the next GM, Nicholson added.

Candidates to manage the team include Edmonton Oilers president Kevin Lowe and Oilers GM Steve Tambellini. They were Gretzky's assistant and director of player personnel in 2002 and 2006. Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings and Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens also are possibilities.

Former Red Wings forward Steve Yzerman could be involved. He's been general manager of the Canadian teams that won silver and gold medals at the last two world championships.

"We're as deep in managers and coaches as we are in players," Nicholson said. "We've got to put the right person in with the right group."

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

AP-NY-09-15-08 1737EDT