- The U.S. Olympic men’s hockey team is a reprise of the 4 Nations Face-Off squad with a few reviisions.
- The newcomers are Buffalo’s Tage Thompson, Utah’s Clayton Keller and Florida defenseman Seth Jones.
- The USA will have some of the strongest goaltending at the tournament and is built like a team, rather a collection of All-Stars.
Tuning in to U.S. men’s hockey games at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics might give you a sense of deja vu.
Team USA is mostly running it back with the players who took part in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
That’s a sensible approach because the USA fell one game short of winning the 2025 tournament, losing to Canada in overtime of the championship game. Canada has brought back 19 players and added six newcomers.
The 2026 U.S. Olympic team has only three newcomers – Clayton Keller, Tage Thompson and Seth Jones – among the final roster announced on Friday, Jan. 2. Adam Fox and Chris Kreider aren’t back from the 4 Nations team.
Here’s the team that will be going to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, the first appearance by NHL players since 2014 (*-was on 4 Nations roster):
First six named
F Jack Eichel, Golden Knights*
F Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs*
F Brady Tkachuk, Senators*
F Matthew Tkachuk, Panthers*
D Quinn Hughes, Wild* (missed 4 Nations with injury)
D Charlie McAvoy, Bruins*
Additional Team USA forwards
Matt Boldy, Wild*
Kyle Connor, Jets*
Jake Guentzel, Lightning*
Jack Hughes, Devils*
Clayton Keller, Mammoth
Dylan Larkin, Red Wings*
J.T. Miller, Rangers*
Brock Nelson, Avalanche*
Tage Thompson, Sabres
Vincent Trocheck, Rangers*
Additional Team USA defensemen
Brock Faber, Wild*
Noah Hanifin, Golden Knights*
Seth Jones, Panthers
Jake Sanderson, Senators*
Jaccob Slavin, Hurricanes*
Zach Werenski, Blue Jackets*
Team USA goaltenders
Connor Hellebuyck, Jets*
Jake Oettinger, Stars*
Jeremy Swayman, Bruins*
Team USA Olympic hockey roster analysis
GM Bill Guerin told The Athletic that he wanted to build a team, not an All-Star team. And he has that. There’s scoring, there’s grit, there’s checking, there’s some of the best goaltending in the Olympics. The power play has the potential to be strong, there are plenty of penalty killers and their centers are solid on faceoffs. Plus, players are familiar with one another, important in a short tournament. One could argue that the USA might have won the 4 Nations if Quinn Hughes and McAvoy weren’t hurt and Matthew Tkachuk was able to play the full championship game.
But is the best team based on how players are playing this season? Miller has had an up-and-down season. Slavin has been limited to five games by injury. Tkachuk is still rehabbing from offseason surgery but is getting close to returning. Each player in the first six has been hurt at some point this season, suppressing their stats. Some U.S. players having solid seasons didn’t make the cut.
Team USA Olympic hockey roster snubs
As with Canada, the USA’s player pool is so deep that it’s a matter of hard choices rather than snubs. But a few names stand out. Dallas’ Jason Robertson has been on fire and is the U.S. leader in points and is second in goals. Montreal’s Cole Caufield has had a strong season, as his teammate, defenseman Lane Hutson.
