We’re a little over a week away from the start of the men’s hockey tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, which is set to feature National Hockey League players for the first time since 2014, when Canada downed Sweden 2-0 to take their second consecutive gold medal.
There’s plenty of anticipation ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics and if the 4 Nations Faceoff was any indication, we could be in for the most skilled international hockey tournament in a very, very long time.
Before I get into my nation-by-nation breakdown, let’s take a look at how the tournament works, the format, the groups, venues.
Format & Groups
12 nations will be participating at the 2026 Winter Olympics, seven of which qualified via their IIHF ranking following the 2023 World Championship, one qualified as host (Italy), while the remaining four came through the final qualifying tournament in late-summer 2024. In a typical Olympic qualifying cycle, eight nations qualify via their IIHF ranking, however due to Russia’s ban, France was named as their replacement in early 2025.
The 12 nations have been placed into three groups of four, with each country playing three round robin games between February 11th and 15th. The top three nations, along with the highest seeded second place team after the round robin advance directly to the quarterfinals on February 18th, while the remaining eight countries, ranked 5-12, will battle it out in the preliminary playoff round on February 17th.
From there, the winners of the quarterfinals will meet in the semifinals on February 20th. The winner of each semifinal will advance to the gold medal game on February 22nd, with the losers playing for bronze one day prior on February 21st.
Group A will feature two-time gold medalist Sidney Crosby & Team Canada along with Team Czechia, Team Switzerland and Team France.
Group B will feature the defending Olympic gold medals, Team Finland, their Nordic rivals – Team Sweden, along with reigning Olympic MVP Juraj Slafkovsky & Team Slovakia and the hosts, Team Italy.
Group C will feature the Team USA – the gold medalists at last year’s IIHF World Championship, Team Germany, Team Latvia and Team Denmark.
Venues
The main venue for the Olympic hockey tournament has been the subject of controversy over the past few months. From delayed construction to a slightly smaller ice size than agreed upon by the NHL, NHLPA and IIHF. It’s been a race against the clock to get as much of it completed in time for Thursday’s game between Team Italy and Team France.
PalaItalia Santa Giulia (capacity: 16,000) will serve as the main venue for the tournament, hosting 24 of 30 games for the men, while Fiera Milano (capacity: roughly 15,000) will host six games, along with most of the games for the women, including three of Canada’s four in the round robin starting Saturday against Switzerland.
Team-by-team breakdown
Group A
Canada
Canada is sending a star-studded roster to the Winter Olympics, headlined by captain Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid and Cale Makar. The Canadians have won three of the last four Olympic gold medals when the NHL sent players to the Winter Games, including back-to-back in 2010 and 2014, and are certainly the favourites once again.
Their quest for gold begins next Thursday and it’ll be a tough test right out of the gate as they take on David Pastrnak, Lukas Dostal and Team Czechia. Canada will also face Team Switzerland and Team France in the round robin. In all likelihood, Canada should finish atop this group, maybe not with ease, but with the roster Doug Armstrong has put together, a 3-0-0-0 round robin seems like a good bet.
One big question for Canada will be their goaltending and who gets the first start for head coach Jon Cooper on February 12th. Will he go with the veteran & 4 Nations Face-Off champion Jordan Binnington or will he turn to Logan Thompson, who has arguably been the best Canadian goaltender in the National Hockey League over the last few years? For me, I personally would go with Logan Thompson, but wouldn’t be surprised if it is Jordan Binnington who’s between the pipes vs Czechia, both are solid options. As for Darcy Kuemper, who has had a pretty good season for the Los Angeles Kings, I wouldn’t expect him to dress for Canada unless an injury pops up.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Czechia at 10:40 am ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
- February 13th vs Switzerland at 3:10 pm ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
- February 15th vs France at 10:40 am ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
Czechia
This might be Czechia’s best roster they’ve sent to the Olympics since 1998 when they defeated the United States, Canada and Russia in the playoff round to win the gold medal in the first Winter Games featuring NHL players. That year, Czechia relied heavily on Jaromir Jagr and Dominik Hasek and this time around, it’ll be another forward-goaltending duo that could lead this group to a medal – David Pastrnak and Lukas Dostal.
With Tomas Hertl, Martin Necas, Pavel Zacha all set to feature in Czechia’s top-six, the nation could do some serious damage offensively, while Filip Hronek is set to lead the way on the blue line. Czechia’s defensive group will also feature some former NHLers that fans in North America are quite familiar with – Jan Rutta, Michal Kempny and Radim Simek.
For me, the biggest question mark for the Czechs comes down to depth and if they’ll have enough of it to knock off one of the three big favourites in the tournament – Canada, Sweden and the United States. Their first game of the round robin against Canada will give us a bit of an answer as to if their depth can keep up.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Canada at 10:40 am ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
- February 13th vs France at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 15th vs Switzerland at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
France
After appearing in five straight Olympics from 1988 to 2002, French hockey has taken a bit of a hit and have failed to qualify for the last five Winter Games, but will make a return this year due to the IIHF’s ban of Russia. France finished behind Latvia in qualifying back in August/September of 2024, and by virtue of being the best second place team of the three final qualifying tournaments, qualified as Russia’s replacement.
Do I expect much from the French in this tournament given their group? No. But they do have some exciting names that I enjoy watching on a yearly basis at the IIHF World Championship. Former NHLer Pierre-Edouard Bellemare will lead the charge for the French, wearing the ‘C’, while Montreal Canadiens forward Alexandre Texier, Washington Capitals prospect Antoine Keller, Anthony Rech, Stephane Da Costa, and Jules Boscq are all names to keep an eye on.
If the French are going to sneak out a win, it’ll likely come in their opening game of the tournament against Switzerland, who have a strong roster themselves, but aren’t nearly close to the level of Canada and Czechia. My realistic expectation is that France will finish at the bottom of the group and be seeded either 11th or 12th for the playoff round on February on February 17th, where they’d face the 5th or 6th seeded nation following the round robin.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Switzerland at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 13th vs Czechia at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 15th vs Canada at 10:40 am ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
Switzerland
The final team in Group A is Switzerland, who has plenty of offensive firepower to utilize at this year’s Winter Olympics and after claiming the silver medal at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, losing to the United States 1-0 in overtime, they want to prove that they can compete with the top nations at a best-on-best tournament.
Switzerland’s history at the Winter Olympics has been a bit rocky. This is set to be their seventh straight appearance at the Winter Games, but haven’t finished higher than sixth, which came in Turin 2006. Two exits in the playoff round and four in the quarterfinals dating back to 2002, with the nation finishing eighth in Beijing four years ago after a very poor showing in the round robin.
This year’s Winter Olympics will likely mark the final appearance on this stage for several of Switzerland’s mainstays including goaltenders Reto Berra (39), Leonardo Genoni (38), Roman Josi (35) and potentially Nino Niederreiter (33). With names like Kevin Fiala, Nico Hischier and Timo Meier, this Swiss squad could certainly pull off an upset along the way.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs France at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 13th vs Canada at 3:10 pm ET (CBC & CBC Gem)
- February 15th vs Czechia at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
Group B
Finland
The defending Olympic gold medalists come into the Milano-Cortina Games as one of the favourites to at least reach the semifinals and will have one player from that 2022 squad on their roster – defenseman Mikko Lehtonen, who currently plays with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland, but has previously spent time in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Finland has some elite offensive talent such as Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho and Roope Hintz, but this roster was built with defense at top of mind and they’ll go into the Olympics missing one of the nation’s best players – Aleksander Barkov, the perennial Selke Trophy candidate who tore his ACL and MCL in training camp. The Finns will preserve though, they always do, and I expect them to compete for a medal once again.
As I mentioned with Canada, Finland’s goaltending is a question mark for me, which wouldn’t have been the case if you asked me 12 months ago. Juuse Saros is projected to be Finland’s number one, no surprise there, but he hasn’t played all that well in Nashville this season with a 3.20 goals against average and .892 save percentage in 44 games. Beyond Saros, the Finns have Kevin Lankinen and Joonas Korpisalo to rely on if anything goes wrong.
Schedule:
- February 11th vs Slovakia at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem, TSN)
- February 13th vs Sweden at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem, TSN)
- February 14th vs Italy at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem, TSN)
Italy
The Italians are back at the Olympics for the first time since they last hosted, 2006, and will be led by a familiar face – Jukka Jalonen, who coached Finland to gold at the 2022 Winter Games in China and three IIHF World Championships. Italy is hoping for a much better showing than last time as they finished 11th out of 12 nations, with only Latvia being behind them.
Italy doesn’t have any NHL experience to call upon for their Winter Olympics roster, however they do have an intriguing NHL prospect at their disposal with goaltender Damian Clara, who is a second round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2023. Clara is currently in the first year of his three-year entry-level contract with the Ducks, who loaned him to the Swedish Hockey League’s Brynas IF for the 2025-26 campaign. Clara might not go into the tournament as Italy’s number one however as Davide Fadani has been lights out for EHC Kloten in Switzerland this season, where he has a 2.43 goals against average, a .922 save percentage and two shutouts in 24 games.
Among the notable names on Italy’s roster include veteran defensemen Thomas Larkin and Luca Zanatta, forwards Luca Frigo, Diego Kostner and Alex Petan, along with former Montreal Canadiens prospect Matt Bradley, former Peterborough Petes forward Tommy Purdeller and former Barrie Colts defenseman Greg DiTomaso.
Schedule:
- February 11th vs Sweden at 3:10 pm ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 13th vs Slovakia at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 14th vs Finland at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
Slovakia
After shocking the hockey world and making it all the way to the bronze medal game, where they took home the nation’s first-ever Olympic medal in hockey, Slovakia is out to prove that was no fluke, with a more experienced Juraj Slafkovsky – the reigning MVP – and Simon Nemec set to play a big role once again.
The Slovaks have a fair strong defensive core for the 2026 Winter Games, with the aforementioned Simon Nemec along with Erik Cernak, Martin Fehervary, Patrik Koch, Martin Marincin and Martin Gernat. Meanwhile their forward group is going to be a lot of fun to watch, led by Juraj Slafkovsky who is having a very good year with the Montreal Canadiens thus far. Joining Slafkovsky is former NHLer Tomas Tatar, Martin Pospisil of the Calgary Flames, Pavol Regenda of the San Jose Sharks and Dalibor Dvorsky of the St. Louis Blues.
Between the pipes is where things get very interest for the Slovaks as they’re quite young. 30-year-old Stanislav Skorvanek is the elder statesman of the goaltending trio, while 24-year-old Minnesota Wild prospect Samuel Hlavaj and 21-year-old Chicago Blackhawks prospect Adam Gajan, who is currently in the NCAA, will also stake their claim for the starting role. It’s hard to say for sure who will get the start for their first game of the tournament against Finland, but Stanislav Skorvanek is probably the favourite at this point given his 1.95 GAA in the Czech Extraliga this season.
Schedule:
- February 11th vs Finland at 10:40 am ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 13th vs Italy at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 14th vs Sweden at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
Sweden
Sweden enters the 2026 Winter Olympics as one of the favourites for the gold medal, which they won back in 2006, the last time Italy hosted. The Swedes currently have the third-best odds to win the gold medal according to DraftKings Sportsbook at +600 behind Canada and the United States.
Their 4 Nations Face-Off performance, while missing out on the Final, was encouraging as they took Canada and Finland to overtime and defeated the United States in regulation, where they got a stellar goaltending performance from Samuel Ersson, who was left off their Olympic roster. Instead, the Swedes will turn to Filip Gustavsson or Jesper Wallstedt of the Minnesota Wild, while 36-year-old Jacob Markstrom also remains an option.
While they might be missing Leo Carlsson, the Swedes have a ton of offensive talent to work with – Filip Forsberg, Jesper Bratt, Adrian Kempe, William Nylander and Mika Zibanejad, among others. Sweden also boasts defensive corps in the entire tournament with Rasmus Andersson, Rasmus Dahlin, Victor Hedman, Erik Karlsson and Gustav Forsling. Don’t be surprised if at least 30 percent of the top-ten in scoring after the round robin are Swedes.
Schedule:
- February 11th vs Italy at 3:10 pm ET (CBC, CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
- February 13th vs Finland at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 14th vs Slovakia at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & Sportsnet)
Group C
Denmark
After making their Olympic debut in 2022 and reaching the quarterfinals, the Danes are back, with a lot more talent at their disposal than four years ago. Denmark needed to qualify for the 2026 Winter Games and hosted a group that featured Norway, Great Britain and Japan in August/September 2024, which several of their NHLers showed up to including Nikolaj Ehlers, Lars Eller, Jonas Rondbjerg and Frederik Andersen.
The Danes have an interesting roster this year, which features a number of players that helped upset Canada at the 2025 IIHF World Championship on home ice last May and reached the bronze medal game, where they ultimately fell to Sweden. While on paper it’s probably unlikely that Denmark will make it past the preliminary playoff round, they do have an opportunity to surprise, especially within their group.
Denmark is set to open things up against Leon Draisaitl and Germany, before taking on the United States in their second game and will wrap things up against Latvia on February 15th in what should be their “easiest” test in the round robin and one that could dictate whether they’re going to be seeded in the 8-9 range, which they’re probably hoping for, in the preliminary playoff round.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Germany at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 14th vs United States at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 15th vs Latvia at 1:10 pm ET (CBC Gem)
Germany
Six years ago in Pyeongchang, Germany opened eyes around the world as with current Boston Bruins head coach Marco Sturm behind the bench, the nation reach the gold medal game, where they were just one goal away from being crowned Olympic champions. Unfortunately for the Germans, a penalty in overtime cost them as Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov scored the winner, giving the Olympic Athletes from Russia the gold.
Flash forward to Milano-Cortina, Italy 2026 and it’s safe to say that Germany is icing their best Olympic roster ever. With star forward Leon Drasaitl making his Olympic debut, along with fellow NHLers Tim Stutzle, JJ Peterka, Moritz Seider, Nico Sturm and Philipp Grubauer.
While the Germans might have a tough time taking that first spot in Group C away from the United States, they should be considered the favourites to take second place and potentially even be the fourth seed after the round robin, giving them a bye to the quarterfinals. A lot of that will depend on their defense and goaltending, the latter of which will be handled mainly by the aforementioned Philipp Grubauer, who has a 2.43 goals against average (seventh best in the NHL) and a .916 save percentage (tied for third best) in 22 games for the Seattle Kraken.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Denmark at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 14th vs Latvia at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 15th vs United States at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem, CBC & TSN)
Latvia
Latvian hockey on the rise and with their first-ever IIHF World Championship medal under their belt – bronze in 2023 – the nation is hoping to show to the world that they’re ready to take that next step and can be a problem for whoever they end up facing in the preliminary playoff round on Tuesday, February 17th.
The Latvians have a nice mix of NHLers, veteran players and up-and-coming prospects, including 18-year-old defenseman Alberts Smits, who appeared at the IIHF World Juniors back in December and was second among international skaters by NHL Central Scouting in their mid-term draft rankings.
Beyond Smits, some others that fans should keep an eye on from Lavtia’s roster include Dans Locmelis, Sandis Vilmanis, Arturs Silovs and who can forget Kaspars Daugavins, who initially retired from professional hockey in November 2024 but returned in the fall after inking a contract with the Kassal Huskies in Germany’s second division – DEL2.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs United States at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem, CBC & Sportsnet)
- February 14th vs Germany at 6:10 am ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 15th vs Demark at 1:10 pm ET (CBC Gem)
United States
And that brings us to our final nation and the one that will give Canada their biggest challenge for the gold medal and that’s the United States, who are coming off their first IIHF World Championship title in 92 years with four members of their Olympic roster in attendance – Jeremy Swayman, Zach Werenski, Clayton Keller and Tage Thompson.
Last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off loss was crushing for the United States and there’s no question that they’ll use that as motivation heading into the Winter Games. USA Hockey has named a roster loaded with talent including Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk and Quinn Hughes, among others, but there are some big question marks as well with the inclusion of players like J.T. Miller and Vincent Trochek, while Jason Robertson and Cole Caufield were left at home.
Up and down their roster, the United States is deep and have everything it takes to win the gold medal at the Winter Olympics this year, which would be their first since Lake Place in 1980, the Miracle on Ice. Mike Sullivan’s squad should have no issues landing the top spot in Group C and being the first or second seed after the round robin, but as the tournament gets tighter in the playoff round, it’ll be interesting to see if the United States can put their past Olympic woes in the rearview mirror and preserve this time around, or will they be looking at another medal-less tournament, much like 2014 when NHLers were last at the Winter Games.
Schedule:
- February 12th vs Latvia at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem, CBC & Sportsnet)
- February 14th vs Demark at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem & TSN)
- February 15th vs Germany at 3:10 pm ET (CBC Gem, CBC & TSN)
We’re officially less than a week away from the start of the men’s tournament and as the athletes make their way to the Olympic village in Milan, the excitement is growing among the hockey community. Sit back and enjoy the next couple of weeks, we’re in for some incredible hockey, there’s no doubt about that.