Russian general manager Vladislav Tretiak says goaltender Evgeni Nabokov will start in Tuesday night's Olympic opener against Latvia, AP reported.
Tretiak says Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin and Pavel Datsyuk will be on the top line.
Russia plans to use goalie Ilya Bryzgalov in its second game on Thursday night against Slovakia.
Tretiak says the keys to winning the tournament for the first time in almost two decades will be goaltending, playing with discipline to avoid penalties and taking advantage of power plays.
The Russians won eight of 10 Olympics - losing only to the U.S. in 1980 and 1960 - in a stretch that ended with the Unified Team of former Soviet Union republics getting to the top of the medal stand in 1992.