Some of the biggest names in women’s hockey will be heading to Italy for the 2026 Winter Olympics — and several of them are from the Chicago area.

Hilary Knight, Kendall Coyne Schofield, Abbey Murphy and Tessa Janecke are among the notable names on Team USA’s 23-player roster, which includes 20 skaters and three goaltenders.

The 36-year-old Knight, who grew up in Lake Forest, headlines the list, which returns only 11 members from the team that won silver at the 2022 Beijing Games, and features several newcomers.

Knight will set a U.S. women’s hockey record for most Winter Games appearances after winning gold in 2018 and three silver medals. The Seattle Torrent captain previously announced these will be her final Winter Games, while planning to continue her PWHL career.

The U.S. roster features various familiar faces, including forward Coyne Schofield, a Palos Heights native who will both be competing in her fourth Winter Games, and Murphy, of Evergreen Park, another returning member of the 2022 team.

Janecke, of Orangeville, Illinois, is among the newcomers.

While those four names represent Illinois on the team, many of the names on the roster have Midwest ties.

There’s veterans like defender Lee Stecklein, who plays for the Minnesota Frost and will be competing in a fourth Winter Games. 

And there’s players like Caroline Harvey, who at 23 is completing her senior season at Wisconsin; or 21-year-old defender Laila Edwards, a University of Wisconsin senior set to become the first Black female hockey player to compete for the U.S. at the Olympics.

There’s Britta Curl-Salemme, Grace Zumwinkle, Kelly Pannek and Taylor Heise, all forwards with the Minnesota Frost; Joy Dunne, a forward at Ohio State University and the youngest player on the roster at 20 years old; Kirsten Simms, a forward at the University of Wisconsin; Caroline Harvey, who plays defense at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, alongside goaltender Ava McNaughton.

The roster has otherwise been transformed under coach John Wroblewski, who placed an emphasis on a youth movement upon being hired in June 2022.

This year’s team features seven players still competing at college. The goalie trio is also new, with projected starter Aerin Frankel, projected backup Gwyneth Philips, and third-stringer McNaughton set to make their Olympic debuts.

The Americans open the Olympics facing the Czech Republic on Feb. 5, with the gold-medal game set for Feb. 19.

The U.S. is favored to win its third Olympic gold medal, and first since defeating Canada at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games. The Americans also won the inaugural tournament at Nagano in 1998, with the Canadians winning gold at the other five Olympic competitions.

These are the first Olympics since the PWHL began play in 2024, with the now eight-team league expected to make an impact by raising the level of international competition and bridging the gap among nations trailing the two global powers U.S. and Canada.

The U.S. roster features 16 PWHL players.

The Associated Press Contributed to this report.