While Chicago Blackhawks star Connor Bedard wasn\u2019t selected to Canada\u2019s roster, Hawks forward Teuvo Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen will play for defending Olympic champion Finland.<\/p>\n
In the women\u2019s competition \u2014 which begins Thursday, one day before the opening ceremony \u2014 Team USA has three Illinois-born players, headed by four-time Olympian Kendall Coyne Schofield of Palos Heights.<\/p>\n
Joining her are Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park), who also played on the 2022 U.S. team that took the silver medal, and Tessa Janecke (Warren), who\u2019s making her Olympic debut.<\/p>\n
Bedard\u2019s omission sparked intense discussion. Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong said the Hawks center\u2019s shoulder injury, which sidelined him for 12 games in December and early January, had \u201cnot a lot<\/a>\u201d to do with the decision.<\/p>\n Bedard, who entered Wednesday night\u2019s final game before the break with 23 goals and 30 assists in 43 games, took the Olympic snub in stride<\/a>. In the future, though, he hopes to be a no-brainer pick for the roster.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you don\u2019t meet an expectation or meet one of your goals, the only thing to do is look in the mirror and see where you can get better,\u201d Bedard said. \u201cThat\u2019s not on who\u2019s picking the team, that\u2019s on the players, and that\u2019s the positive I\u2019ve taken out of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen, 31, is the lone Hawk who will play in the Olympics. He also missed some time last month with an upper-body injury but returned Jan. 27.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an exciting time being back from a little injury, and then the Olympics are coming too,\u201d Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen said. \u201cIt\u2019s tough because we were playing like every day here, so you have to keep your focus here. And at the same time, some big games are coming too.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s his first Olympics, but he has represented Finland in other competitions. He was the captain of the gold-medal team in the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship and played for his country in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and the 2018 World Championship.<\/p>\n He also was named to Finland\u2019s roster for the inaugural NHL 4 Nations Face-Off last February but saw limited ice time (16:57) in two games. He was a healthy scratch in the third game, in which Finland was eliminated by Canada.<\/p>\n He\u2019ll look to have more of an impact in Italy.<\/p>\n \u201cI try to be myself playing my game, and that\u2019s why they have picked me on the team,\u201d Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen said. \u201c(I\u2019ll) try to make some plays when I can (and) be good on the defensive side.\u201d<\/p>\n Finland\u2019s roster includes NHL standouts such as the Dallas Stars\u2019 Mikko Rantanen and the Carolina Hurricanes\u2019 Sebastian Aho.<\/p>\n \u201cI played with all of them, so I think that\u2019s going to be one of our biggest strengths because we know each other really good,\u201d Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen said. \u201cGood to see them again and hang out and go to work.\u201d<\/p>\n The Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan is still a concern leading up to the games. It\u2019s not 100% finished<\/a>, and there are questions about the ice quality due to the late start of the rink\u2019s construction.<\/p>\n NHL players also will have to adjust to the rink size of 60-by-26 meters (196.85-by-85.3 feet), which is shorter and wider than an NHL rink (200-by-85 feet).<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll see how that feels (and if) it\u2019s going to be safe for everyone,\u201d Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen said. \u201cI\u2019m excited to see (if) the rink is going to be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n The women\u2019s tournament begins Thursday with three games at Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena and one at Santagiulia. Team USA takes on Czechia at Milano Rho (9:40 a.m. CST, Peacock).<\/p>\n The Americans\u2019 first game at Santagiulia is Monday against Switzerland.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cAs long as it\u2019s frozen, we\u2019ll be there,\u201d Coyne Schofield said. \u201cWe can\u2019t control anything else other than that. (I\u2019m) just excited to get over there.\u201d<\/p>\n Coyne Schofield owns one gold medal and two silvers from her previous Olympic trips to Russia, South Korea and China.<\/p>\n \u201cEach experience and the preparation leading up to the Olympic Games have been unique in their own ways,\u201d she said. \u201cFast forward to now, 2026, we are playing in a pro league (and) our league is going to pause and we\u2019re going to have an Olympic break.\u201d<\/p>\n The PWHL is growing as the premier professional women\u2019s hockey league. Coyne Schofield\u2019s Minnesota Frost recently visited Allstate Arena in Rosemont on the league\u2019s Takeover Tour<\/a> to face the Ottawa Charge and Joliet native Taylor House. Another game on the tour between the Montr\u00e9al Victoire and New York Sirens set a women\u2019s hockey attendance record<\/a> of 17,228 at Capital One Arena in Washington.<\/p>\n The women\u2019s Olympic tournament could continue the viewership trend. That momentum, and the easing of pandemic restrictions, will make these games extra special for Coyne Schofield.<\/p>\n \u201cThe journey between 2022 and 2026 has been special, it\u2019s been hard, but it\u2019s been so rewarding,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s one thing that separates (this from) the other three by far.\u201d<\/p>\n The Olympic freeze is long for a hockey fan wanting NHL and PWHL games back, but it goes by in the blink of an eye for the players. That\u2019s something Coyne Schofield learned after her first Olympics in 2014 \u2014 to enjoy the blur.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s something that I not only learned through the Olympics, but also the World Championships, is these tournaments (are) a sprint, it\u2019s not a marathon,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen we get on the ground in Milan, it\u2019s a sprint to the finish line.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an experience that you work your whole life for, and you blink and it\u2019s over. What I learned is it goes by so fast and to enjoy each day, each moment, and embrace it.\u201d<\/p>\n Olympic preparation is different from a PWHL or NHL game. The stakes for each game are higher, and there\u2019s that heavy weight of representing your country. What advice does Coyne Schofield have for her younger teammates such as Murphy and Janecke?<\/p>\n First, take in the rare opportunity. Second, don\u2019t drastically change what got you there in the first place.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way you prepare is what has allowed you to be at the pinnacle of the sport,\u201d Coyne Schofield said. \u201cWhether you\u2019re preparing for a practice, a pro game, a college game, Olympic game, that process has allowed you to be the best you.<\/p>\n \u201cReally the difference is when you\u2019re playing for Team USA, you\u2019re on a super team. The difference is owning your role and knowing your role may be different and embracing that difference \u2026 knowing it is likely going to be different because the team is made up of 23 all-stars. The team that can adjust, adapt and settle into whatever role is being asked of them, those are the teams that usually come out on top.\u201d<\/p>\n Coyne Schofield\u2019s long list of career accolades also includes six 4 Nations Cup titles, two World Championship gold medals and back-to-back Walter Cups in the PWHL.<\/p>\n Now, she says, she has checked off the biggest accomplishment of her career \u2014 becoming a hockey mom. Her son, Drew John Schofield, 2<\/a>, has become a driving force for the Frost captain.<\/p>\n \u201cBecoming a mom has allowed me to be the best version of me that has ever existed,\u201d Coyne Schofield said. \u201cI\u2019m excited to go into the games knowing that I think I\u2019m my best self on and off the ice.<\/p>\n \u201cThe balance, the perspective and the patience that becoming a mom has provided me has allowed me to be a better hockey player and ultimately the best mom that I can be. (I can) balance both and be great at both at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t![\"Blackhawks](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770298754_477_ctc-l-hawks-sharks-0202-38.jpg\")
Blackhawks center Connor Bedard falls toward the ice after being pushed by Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro during the third period Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, at the United Center. (Armando L. Sanchez\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"Blackhawks](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/CTC-HAWKS-CAPITALS-010926-12_257997026.jpg\")
Blackhawks center Teuvo Ter\u00e4v\u00e4inen looks to pass against the Capitals on Jan. 9, 2026, at the United Center. (John J. Kim\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"Minnesota](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/CTC-PWHL-1221-45_256350564.jpg\")
Minnesota Frost forward Kendall Coyne Schofield controls the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Charge during the PWHL Takeover Tour at Allstate Arena on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (Eileen T. Meslar\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"Minnesota](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/ctc-l-women-athletes-coyne014_230492270.jpg\")
Minnesota Frost captain Kendall Coyne Schofield greets her son, Drew, and husband, Michael Schofield, before the start of a game against the Toronto Sceptres on March 30, 2025, at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. (Stacey Wescott\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n