Way-Too-Early Team Canada Predictions for the 2026 Winter Olympics
We got to watch Canada again prove it has the best team in the world after their thrilling 3-2 overtime win against the United States in the 4 Nations Face-Off Championship Game on Thursday night.
Even though the Canadians made their fans sweat it out throughout the tournament, they again proved you can't be the best until you beat the best.
That's what makes picking the roster Canada will take to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy may be the hardest easiest job around. Yes, the team has the most talent, but it also has the most pressure to win the gold medal.
Canada has won gold in men's ice hockey at three of the last four Olympics in which NHL players participated (2002, 2010, 2014) and in three out of five overall with NHLers and it will be the heavy favorite to win in 2026 no matter who suits up for the team.
However, we're going to make our own picks as to who should be there a year out from the Games.
We're picking 26 players (15 forwards, eight defensemen, three goalies). We'll break it down by lines and pairs, but we're winging it even harder there. We know you'll have thoughts of your own, so hit us with them in the comments.
First-Forward Line
1 of 10
Brayden Point, Connor McDavid and Tom Wilson
One of the switches Canada head coach Jon Cooper made late in the tournament was to take Brayden Point off of the line he was on with two of his Lightning teammates and slid him in next to Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby against the United States in their first matchup.
The move helped get more out of the 28-year-old offensively, and he remained with McDavid in the games that followed.
Those two elite talents could use a different element on their line, though. A rough-and-tumble power forward who also excels on the power play and can use some of his other skills to step in against the likes of Brady or Matthew Tkachuk when needed.
Tom Wilson was sorely missed by Canada against the U.S. and just imagine how much wilder their first meeting would have gone with him in the lineup.
The 30-year-old is also a solid scorer and net-front presence on the power play and at 5-on-5. And even though fighting is a no-go in the Olympics, it never hurts to have a guy willing to mix it up against opponents who like to do the same.
Second-Forward Line
2 of 10
Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon and Sam Reinhart
We know a lot of people consider Sidney Crosby old, but did you watch him play in the 4 Nations?
Sure, the 37-year-old is not the same guy we saw in his early-20s, but he’s still a brilliant playmaker with the kind of competitive nature that his teammates feed off.
Having Crosby with Nathan MacKinnon alongside him works great. The 29-year-old's speed and attacking nature lends itself well to how the veteran reads the game and sets up plays.
Sam Reinhart has become an outstanding 200-foot player and menace around the net, which are another set of traits that leans into Crosby's best abilities.
This trio is elite in all ways, particularly offensively, and creates matchup problems for any opponent.
Third-Forward Line
3 of 10
Mark Stone, Mark Scheifele and Mitch Marner
If it felt like Mitch Marner was either outstanding or totally invisible throughout the 4 Nations, you'd be right.
His natural way of playing by trying to find space by skating around and handling the puck often didn't work well against the U.S. whose forecheck and physical nature interrupted that.
Getting the 27-year-old with players who go straight-line and mix it up around the net like Stone and those who attack the offensive zone with authority like Mark Scheifele would help get the best out of Marner and make Canada that much more dangerous.
Canada won the 4 Nations Face-Off, so many of the issues it dealt with will get glossed over, but not having Scheifele on the roster was a brutal omission. And the way the team struggled offensively at times only highlighted his absence more. It's a mistake that should not be repeated.
.jpg?w=256)
Fourth-Forward Line
4 of 10
Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett and Wyatt Johnston
This line wouldn’t be very large, but my goodness what a pain it would be to deal with.
Brad Marchand wasn't quite the same player we've known over the years in the 4 Nations, but getting older can make that happen.
He’ll be 37 when the Olympics come around, and it may be harder to include him in the starting lineup if others step up. Still, his particular skills are hard to ignore; and if Canada wants a change-of-pace line, having him with Sam Bennett again would do it.
Bennett provided a needed edge to the forward group, and his kind of energy and physical play provided a jolt when needed. Teams don't enjoy playing against the 28-year-old because he wears out opponents with how he forechecks as well as hits.
Wyatt Johnston didn't get the call for the 4 Nations because of injury and he’s having a bit of a down year, but he'll be a fixture on the Canada roster in the years to come and Milan in 2026 should be the start of that.
The 21-year-old is a gamer, clutch and capable of getting everywhere on the ice.
Extra Forwards
5 of 10
Seth Jarvis, Anthony Cirelli, Connor Bedard
The big one here, of course, is Connor Bedard. He wasn't part of the 4 Nations roster, which was a big deal because it was assumed he would just be there.
However, the 19-year-old hasn't made a big step forward this season while on a Chicago team that is playing poorly again, and it's affected Bedard to a degree.
That should change next season, and it will be impossible to look past the 2023 No. 1 draft pick when it comes time to pick the Olympic team.
Bedard's skills, smarts and abilities are too good to ignore, and he would be yet another game-changer to put in the lineup.
It's not as if Canada needs more players like that, but with how much the gap has been narrowed by all countries, especially the other three at the 4 Nations, having more is definitely better.
Keeping Seth Jarvis and Anthony Cirelli makes sense because their skill sets allow them to be depth options to create different matchups and looks in a lineup that can wreak havoc on opponents.
First-Defense Pair
6 of 10
Devon Toews and Cale Makar
What's not broken should not be fixed. Devon Toews and Cale Makar are one of the best defense pairs in the NHL, and they showed throughout the 4 Nations why they're so good.
Toews holds it down with solid all-around play on the blue line while Makar is a freak of nature capable of sparking the offense in a way few other players can.
Even while Makar missed time in the tournament through illness, Toews was able to flex his own puck-moving abilities and help keep the offensive wheels moving.
Keeping these two on the roster together is one of the easiest decisions to make.
Second-Defense Pair
7 of 10
Josh Morrissey and MacKenzie Weegar
We missed out on seeing Josh Morrissey in the 4 Nations final because of illness, but we didn't see the best of him when he was on the ice, either.
Known for his puck-moving as well as his ability to distribute and create offense, the 29-year-old didn't really hit his stride or find a comfort level. That can happen in a short tournament, especially when working with teammates you're unaccustomed to playing with.
Make no mistake, though, Morrissey is really good and should be on this team, but finding a comfort level faster would be huge.
No player out there made more of a case for himself to be on the Canadian roster than Weegar. He wants it bad, and his all-around game should have been reason enough to have him part of the team.
After watching how other players handled the spotlight this time around, going with Weegar and allowing him to flourish wearing the maple leaf would do the team so much better.
Third-Defense Pair
8 of 10
Shea Theodore and Alex Pietrangelo
Let’s run it back, shall we? This was supposed to be a pairing for Canada at the 4 Nations until Vegas decided to keep Alex Pietrangelo at home because he's been working through an injury and didn't want to risk him worsening it.
It turned out to be a prescient decision because Theodore wound up getting injured and knocked out of action week-to-week after taking a big hit against the United States in the round-robin matchup.
Theodore, 29, played well to start the tournament and there's no reason to not bring him back next year.
A healthy Pietrangelo, 35, calms things down immensely on the backend and gives Canada another guy capable of making an impact at both ends of the ice.
Extra Defense
9 of 10
Thomas Harley and Evan Bouchard
The way Thomas Harley was able to step into the lineup when Theodore went down and hold his own was notable, and there's no doubt everyone on the Canadian management team noticed him, too.
The 23-year-old is a solid player for the Dallas Stars, and the experience he earned during the tournament will carry him forward.
Canada's power play doesn't need more help, but it could stand to have another player capable of blowing the game open from the backend with Evan Bouchard.
It was controversial that the 25-year-old didn't make the 4 Nations roster, but with the way things broke down health-wise with Makar, having him to jump into that spot as opposed to Harley or Travis Sanheim might have worked out a little better.
Goaltenders
10 of 10
Jordan Binnington, Mackenzie Blackwood and Logan Thompson
Remember when we were all burying Canada for not only picking Jordan Binnington but then naming him the starter and sticking with him throughout the 4 Nations Face-Off?
Remember when the 31-year-old became Superman in overtime and stopped three or four Grade-A chances by the United States that helped Canada stay alive to win the title? What fools us mortals be.
Binnington's spot on the Olympic team is all but locked up for Milan because of how he performed. Sure, you could argue about the goals he gave up in the first matchup against the U.S. but also remember he gave up only two in that game.
Goaltending may not be a strength of the Canada roster, but the St. Louis Blues netminder's clutch play made it much less of a worry in the end.
All the frets and worries about goaltending do make the other two selections more important just in case things get funky.
And while Adin Hill and Sam Montembeault didn't get pressed into tournament duty, leaving Mackenzie Blackwood and Logan Thompson at home is something Canada shouldn't do again.
.jpg?w=480)
.png?w=600 "New NBA Mock Draft 📝")
.jpg?w=600 "Offseason Moves for Every Team 👉")
