Auditions are well underway as the world’s hockey nations are getting ready to select their best and brightest players to represent them at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
Hockey fans got a taste of best-on-best action last season when Canada beat the United States in overtime to win the 4 Nations Face-Off, which also included Sweden and Finland.
There will be more than four nations participating at the Olympics as players continue to use the first half of the 2025-26 regular season to audition for spots.
Canada already knows that Pittsburgh Penguins legend Sidney Crosby, Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid, a pair of back-to-back Stanley Cup champions in Sam Reinhart (2024, 2025) and Brayden Point (2020, 2021), and the Colorado Avalanche duo of Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar have already been selected as the first six players on their preliminary roster.
TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button and TSN Hockey Analyst Mike Johnson now make their projections on who should join the first six and what the roster construction will look like.
Starting with the team’s top line, Button and Johnson have Crosby, MacKinnon, and Reinhart together. All three played for Canada at last year’s 4 Nations and are well accomplished at both the international and NHL levels.
Crosby will be entering his third Olympics and is trying to become the first Canadian to win three Olympic gold medals in men’s hockey. The 38-year-old had 33 goals and 91 points in 2024-25 and is second on the Penguins in scoring this season with nine goals and 20 points through 17 games.
The Cole Harbour, N.S. native has also represented Canada three times at the World Hockey Championship, winning gold in 2015, and helped lead his country to first place at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto.
Joining McDavid and Point on Canada’s second line, Button and Johnson have penciled in Oilers winger Zach Hyman to fill the left side.
Hyman had a career season in 2023-24, registering 54 goals and 77 points, but came back down to earth last year with 27 goals and 44 points. The 6-foot-1 winger has yet to play a game this season after sustaining a broken wrist during the Western Conference Final last season, but is reportedly nearing a return.
The Toronto native has never represented Canada as a professional and would take his usual place beside Oilers teammate McDavid, who scored the 4 Nations overtime winner over the United States in last year’s final.
The third line has Vegas Golden Knights forward Mitch Marner joined by Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and San Jose Sharks phenom Macklin Celebrini.
Marner is the only one of the trio to have played in last year’s 4 Nations, recording a goal and three points, which included a crucial overtime winner against Sweden which helped allow Canada to reach the final.
The 6-foot winger has new surroundings this season after leaving the Toronto Maple Leafs after nine seasons for Vegas. He has four goals and 18 points through his first 14 games as a Golden Knight.
Suzuki has been one of the Canadiens’ best players on a team that leads the Atlantic Division with a 10-3-2 record. The 5-foot-11 centre leads the team with four goals and 20 points in 15 games and an Olympic appearance would be his first time representing his country as a professional.
Celebrini came out on fire in his sophomore NHL season, currently sitting third in NHL scoring with 16 goals and 24 points. The 19-year-old represented Canada at the 2024 World Juniors, the 2025 World Championship and was invited to Canada’s Olympic orientation in September.
Button and Johnson turn to a familiar face in Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand, and he skates on the left side with New York Islanders centre Bo Horvat and Washington Capitals winger Tom Wilson on the fourth line.
Marchand has been a proven winner every time he’s worn the red and white, winning gold at the 2008 World Juniors, 2016 World Cup of Hockey, 2016 World Hockey Championship, and 4 Nations last season.
The Halifax native was traded to the Panthers at the deadline last season and helped them win their second of back-to-back Stanley Cups. He is in the midst of his first full season in Florida, recording 10 goals and 16 points through 14 games.
Horvat has been quietly having a great offensive season with the Islanders, where he has 11 goals and 18 points in 15 games with a plus-8 rating. The London, Ont., native has represented Canada twice at the World Hockey Championship, but has not won a medal.
An appearance in Italy would be the first time Wilson represents Canada as a professional. Wilson is coming off a career season in Washington that saw him record 33 goals and 65 points. He has nine goals and 16 points to start this season, and Canada would be relying on his trademarked physical style of play to give them an advantage in the Olympic tournament.
Button and Johnson have Lightning forward Brandon Hagel and Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele as the team’s two extra forwards.
Hagel was a member of last year’s 4 Nations winning squad and, like Wilson, provides a physical punch and can play anywhere in the lineup. He has also appeared for Canada at two World Hockey Championships, winning gold in 2021.
Scheifele is coming off a career-high 39 goals and 87 points last season to help lead the Jets to a Presidents’ Trophy as the top team in the regular season. The 6-foot-3 centre has not slowed down this year, registering nine goals and 21 points through 15 games.
The Kitchener, Ont., native has represented Canada three times at the World Hockey Championship, winning gold in 2016 and silver in 2017.
Button and Johnson have a very similar defence corps for the Olympics as the 4 Nations with seven of the eight blueliners participating in last year’s tournament.
Makar, Devon Toews, Josh Morrissey, Shea Theodore, Travis Sanheim, Colton Parayko, and Thomas Harley all participated in the 4 Nations Face-Off in some form while Brandon Montour was the only one who was not on the team.
The pairing of Makar and Toews was instrumental for the Avalanche to win the 2022 Stanley Cup and will continue to stick together here. Makar won the Norris Trophy last season and leads all defenders in scoring this season with six goals and 22 points.
Toews had 10 goals and 44 points in 76 games while averaging 24:35 of ice time last season with a plus-30 rating. He has six assists in 16 games while averaging 23:09 of ice time to start this season.
On the second pairing Morrissey is teamed with Theodore, who were both sidelined at some point during the 4 Nations tournament.
Morrissey appeared in three games, but missed the final with an illness while Theodore was knocked out after the opening game with a wrist injury.
Theodore had seven goals and 57 points last season with the Golden Knights and has five assists in 14 games to begin this season. Morrissey helped the Jets to a Presidents’ Trophy with 14 goals and 62 points with a plus-17 rating last year and has two goals and 13 points this year with a plus-eight rating.
The third pairing has Sanheim with Parayko.
Sanheim played his way onto Canada’s 4 Nations team after registering six goals and 27 points in his first 57 games while averaging 25:33 of ice time. He previously represented Canada twice at the World Hockey Championship, taking home silver in 2022.
Parayko is a veteran of Team Canada, representing his country three times at the World Hockey Championship and winning silver in 2017. The 6-foot-6 right-shot defenceman recorded 16 goals and 36 points in 64 games last season with a plus-12 rating and has six assists in 16 games this season.
The final pairing has Harley suiting up alongside Montour.
Harley joined Canada mid-tournament in relief of Theodore and Morrissey and appeared in two games, recording an assist. The 6-foot-3 left-shot defenceman previously represented Canada at the 2021 World Juniors in a silver-medal finish and had a career high 16 goals and 50 points with the Stars last season.
Montour is the only member of the defence corps who was not on last year’s 4 Nations team but represented Canada at the 2025 World Hockey Championship in a fifth-place finish. He helped the Panthers win their first Stanley Cup title in franchise history in 2024 and then moved to Seattle where he registered 18 goals and 41 points in 81 games last season.
Jordan Binnington leads Button and Johnson’s Canadian goaltending as he looks to repeat a masterful performance at the 4 Nations.
The Richmond Hill, Ont., native went 3-1 in the tournament with a 2.37 goals-against average and .907 save percentage to lead Canada to victory. Binnington has gotten off to a lacklustre start this season, going 3-5-2 with a 3.34 GAA and .859 save percentage but Canada is counting on his ability to come up big at the right times that helped him become a Stanley Cup winner in 2019.
Capitals netminder Logan Thompson has had the best start of any Canadian goaltender this season leading the NHL with his 1.61 GAA and is second in the league with a .930 save percentage. The Calgary native was instrumental in the Capitals landing the top spot in the Eastern Conference last season going 31-6-6 with a 2.49 GAA and .910 save percentage.
The third goaltender on the team is Los Angeles Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper, who has been solid since joining the Kings last season. After being acquired by the Capitals in June of 2024, Kuemper went 31-11-7 last season with a 2.02 goals against average and .922 to lead his team to the playoffs.
The Saskatoon, Sask., native has been solid to start this season going 5-3-3 with a 2.52 GAA and .905 save percentage.