With 2025 already halfway over, the 2026 Winter Olympics are rapidly approaching.
One of the most anticipated events next February in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy will be hockey, as NHL players return to the Olympic Games for the first time since the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The NHL missed the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea due to a disagreement between the league and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, China.
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The United States is out for revenge after Canada defeated the U.S. 3-2 in overtime in the finals of the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament at TD Garden in Boston this past February. It’ll be a tall task for the United States, as Canada has won each of the last four best-on-best tournaments where NHL players participated (2010 and 2014 Olympics, 2016 World Cup of Hockey and 4 Nations Face-Off).
Leading the charge for the United States is Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Charlie McAvoy and the Tkachuk brothers — Brady and Matthew — all who competed in the 4 Nations Face-Off. The lone player who made the first six for 2026 but didn’t play during the in-season tournament is Quinn Hughes, who missed the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament due to an undisclosed injury.
On Monday afternoon, all 12 countries announced their initial six players to roster, with the reveal for the remainder of the rosters coming sometime during the 2025-26 NHL season.
Here are the preliminary rosters for each country competing in the 2026 Winter Olympics:
United States
Auston Matthews, forward, Toronto Maple Leafs
Brady Tkachuk, forward, Ottawa Senators
Jack Eichel, forward, Vegas Golden Knights
Quinn Hughes, defenseman, Vancouver Canucks
Charlie McAvoy, defenseman, Boston Bruins
Canada
Sidney Crosby, forward, Pittsburgh Penguins
Connor McDavid, forward, Edmonton Oilers
Nathan MacKinnon, forward, Colorado Avalanche
Cale Makar, defenseman, Colorado Avalanche
Brayden Point, forward, Tampa Bay Lightning
Sam Reinhart, forward, Florida Panthers
France
Alexandre Texier, forward, St. Louis Blues
Yohann Auvitu, defenseman
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, forward
Denmark
Lars Eller, forward, Washington Capitals
Olver Bjorkstrand, forward, Tampa Bay Lightning
Frederik Andersen, goalie, Carolina Hurricanes
Jonas Rondbjerg, forward, Vegas Golden Knights
Jesper Jensen Aabo, defenseman
Slovakia
Juraj Slafkovsky, forward, Montreal Canadiens
Erik Cernak, defenseman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Simon Nemec, defenseman, New Jersey Devils
Martin Pospisil, forward, Calgary Flames
Martin Fehervary, defenseman, Washington Capitals
Germany
Leon Draisaitl, forward, Edmonton Oilers
Lukas Reichel, forward, Chicago Blackhawks
Nico Sturm, forward, Florida Panthers
Tim Stutzle, forward, Ottawa Senators
Moritz Seider, defenseman, Detroit Red Wings
Philipp Grubauer, goalie, Seattle Kraken
Switzerland
Kevin Fiala, forward, Los Angeles Kings
Nico Hischier, forward, New Jersey Devils
Timo Meier, forward, New Jersey Devils
Nino Niederreiter, forward, Winnipeg Jets
Roman Josi, defenseman, Nashville Predators
Jonas Siegenthaler, defenseman, New Jersey Devils
Czechia
Martin Necas, forward, Colorado Avalanche
Ondrej Palat, forward, New Jersey Devils
David Pastrnak, forward, Boston Bruins
Pavel Zacha, forward, Boston Bruins
Radko Gudas, defenseman, Anaheim Ducks
Lukas Dostal, goalie, Anaheim Ducks
ItalySweden
Gabriel Landeskog, forward, Colorado Avalanche
Adrian Kempe, forward, Los Angeles Kings
Lucas Raymond, forward, Detroit Red Wings
William Nylander, forward, Toronto Maple Leafs
Rasmus Dahlin, defenseman, Buffalo Sabres
Victor Hedman, defenseman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Finland
Sebastian Aho, forward, Carolina Hurricanes
Aleksander Barkov, forward, Florida Panthers
Mikko Rantanen, forward, Dallas Stars
Miro Heiskanen, defenseman, Dallas Stars
Esa Lindell, Dallas Stars
Juuse Saros, goalie, Nashville Predators
Latvia
Elvis Merzlikins, goalie, Columbus Blue Jackets
Artus Silovs, goalie, Vancouver Canucks
Zemgus Girgensons, forward, Tampa Bay Lightning
Tedors Blugers, forward, Vancouver Canucks
Uvis Balinskis, defenseman, Florida Panthers
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Team USA hockey roster: Six players named for 2026 Winter Olympics