U.S. hockey names first 6 players for '26 Olympics

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- The U.S. named Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy arsenic its archetypal six players for the 2026 Olympics, avoiding goaltenders connected the archetypal roster unveiled Monday.

Some assortment of Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger, Jeremy Swayman and Thatcher Demko fig to marque the squad erstwhile afloat rosters are submitted successful aboriginal January.

"Our goalies played good for us, large seasons: Connor conscionable got the Vezina and Hart, which is incredible," U.S. wide manager Bill Guerin said connected a video telephone with reporters. "It was conscionable benignant of the happening we talked that astir earlier we did it for 4 Nations: Do we adhd a goalie, bash we not adhd a goalie? I felt it was champion we enactment accordant and conscionable fto the goalies play it retired during the season."

All 12 teams that qualified -- with France replacing Russia due to the fact that of the International Olympic Committee's prohibition connected that state for squad sports implicit the warfare successful Ukraine -- announced the commencement of their groups acceptable to instrumentality portion successful Milan. This tourney marks the instrumentality of NHL information and what should beryllium the archetypal Olympics for Canada's Connor McDavid and galore different apical players who person not yet gotten that opportunity.

"Incredibly honored to correspond my state astatine the biggest sporting lawsuit successful the world," McDavid said aft helium and the Edmonton Oilers practiced during the Stanley Cup Final. "You deliberation of the Canadian players that tin beryllium named to that squad and to beryllium selected again, it means a lot."

McDavid would person been determination had the NHL not pulled retired of the 2022 Beijing Games due to the fact that of pandemic-related scheduling issues. Along with McDavid, Canada picked Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Brayden Point and Sam Reinhart, the second of whom is besides successful the last with the defending champion Florida Panthers.

"When you're increasing up erstwhile you're watching arsenic a kid, it's Stanley Cup Finals and it's Team Canada," Reinhart said. "Those are the 2 things that you imagination astir playing for. To person that accidental is beauteous exciting."

Three different Panthers players -- Aleksander Barkov for Finland, Nico Sturm for Germany and Uvis Balinskis for Latvia -- are penciled successful for Milan. Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl headlines the database for Germany, which reached the last successful 2018 erstwhile the NHL skipped the Olympics.

"There's not a batch of elite centermen successful the league: I deliberation Leon is successful that category, Sasha [Barkov is] successful that category," Sturm said. "Big left-handed centermen that you tin exemplary your crippled after. He's decidedly idiosyncratic that I look up to a batch and effort to larn from."

Obviously, overmuch tin alteration implicit the adjacent 8 months, from injuries to performance, and this process with the IOC and International Ice Hockey Federation follows what the U.S., Canada, Sweden and Finland did successful naming six archetypal players past summertime for the 4 Nations Face-Off that was a monolithic occurrence successful February.

"I recognize it from a selling position to get things up and running," Canada GM Doug Armstrong said. "We astir apt had a wide berth of players we could person named, but it is what it is. I deliberation it's accordant with the 4 Nations and the lawsuit before, truthful we're OK doing. As I said to someone: 'I deliberation the casual part's down us, these six. Now it gets absorbing arsenic we capable retired that roster.'"

Sweden chose forwards Gabriel Landeskog, Lucas Raymond, William Nylander and Adrian Kempe and defensemen Victor Hedman and Rasmus Dahlin. Finland picked Barkov, chap skaters Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Miro Heiskanen and Esa Lindell and goaltender Juuse Saros.

This is Barkov's 2nd Olympics aft being successful Sochi successful 2014. That was arsenic a young, part-time player.

"That was my imagination arsenic a kid to beryllium there, and I got to acquisition that for a small spot for 2 games," Barkov said. "Now, to beryllium named again is simply a immense honor. I'm really, truly blessed and honored and thankful for that opportunity."

Much of the absorption to the roster merchandise connected societal media had to bash with Russia not taking part. That means all-time starring extremity scorer Alex Ovechkin, MVP finalist Nikita Kucherov and two-time Cup-winning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy volition not get the accidental to spell to Milan.

"It's disappointing that they're not successful this event, but it's surely thing that the participants successful the lawsuit tin control," Armstrong said. "You person to play the teams that are connected your schedule, and unluckily this clip astir the Russians won't beryllium there."