The 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics marks the sixth time the National Hockey League has participated in the men's hockey tournament. In an upcoming article, we will look at some of the top Flyers-related Olympic performances both before and during NHL participation. This year's tournament marks the NHL's return for the first time since 2014. For this feature, we'll look at which Flyers took part in the five previous Olympics that included active NHL players.
1998: Nagano, Japan
On the heels of Team USA's championship at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey (which included three games in Philadelphia), excitement ran especially high for the first Winter Olympics in which the NHL was a full participant. The Flyers were very well represented in the tournament. Returning to the national USA and Canadian teams from the World Cup, Eric Lindros (Canada), John LeClair (USA), Eric Desjardins (Canada), and Joel Otto (USA) reprised their on-ice roles from the World Cup from a year and a half earlier. This time, Lindros served as Canada's captain. Meanwhile, LeClair and Otto were featured on the cover of TV Guide.
Flyers defenseman Petr Svoboda won the gold medal with Team Czech Republic, in fact scoring the lone goal in the Gold Medal game against Russia. Fellow Flyers defenseman Janne Niinimaa (also a World Cup of Hockey participant) won the bronze medal with Team Finland. Canada finished fourth, losing to the Finns in the bronze medal game. Team USA finished a very disappointing sixth.
Notes:
* Flyers general manager Bob Clarke served as the general manager for Team Canada in the tourney.
* Lindros hit the post on his shootout attempt against Dominik Hasek in the semifinal game. The Czechs won the shootout, 1-0, and the game, 2-1.
* Flyers Hall of Famer Mark Recchi, then a member of the Montreal Canadiens before returning to Philly, represented Team Canada.
* In between his two Flyers stints, Mikael Renberg (Tampa Bay Lightning) represented Sweden.
* In between his own two Flyers stints, defenseman Dmitri Yushkevich (Toronto Maple Leafs) represented Russia.
* Future Flyers who played in the 1998 Olympics included Peter Forsberg (Sweden), Jaromir Jagr (Czech Republic), Kimmo Timonen (Finland), Sami Kapanen (Finland), Chris Pronger (Canada), Derian Hatcher (USA), Tony Amonte (USA), Jeremy Roenick (USA), John Vanbiesbrouck (USA), Marcus Ragnarsson (Sweden), Ulf Samuelsson (Sweden), Valeri Zelepukin (Russia), Alexei Zhitnik (Russia), Andrei Kovalenko (Russia), Roman Cechmanek (Czech Republic) and Jiri Dopita (Czech Republic).
* Future Flyers defenseman Mark Streit (Switzerland) did not participate in the Olympics per se but played for the Swiss in the Olympic qualifiers.
* Former Flyers goaltender Tommy Soderstrom, a national team regular, was on Team Sweden's roster, where Peter Forsberg's father, Kent, was head coach.
* Flyers Hall of Famer Paul Holmgren again served as a Team USA assistant coach as he did at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.
Flyers assistant coach Wayne Cashman served as a Team Canada assistant coach. Andy Murray, who served as a Flyers assistant coach during Paul Holmgren's head coaching tenure, was also a Flyers assistant coach. Team Canada head coach Marc Crawford is the father of current day Flyers video coach Dylan Crawford.
* Thirty-five-year old Steve Tsjiura, a Flyers draft pick back in 1981 and longtime Maine Mariners player, represented Team Japan due his Japanese heritage and experience playing pro hockey in Japan for the Kokudo Bunnies.
2002: Salt Lake City, Utah
The 2002 tournament saw Team USA and Team Canada clash for the gold medal, with Canada prevailing. Russia took bronze. This tournament saw seven active players from the Flyers participate: Simon Gagne (Canada), John LeClair (USA), Jeremy Roenick (USA), Kim Johnsson (Sweden), Ruslan Fedotenko (Ukraine), Roman Cechmanek (Czech Republic), Jiri Dopita (Czech Republic).
NOTES:
* Future Flyers in this tournament: Tony Amonte (USA), Kimmo Timonen (Finland), Sami Kapanen (Finland), Jaromir Jagr (Czech Republic), Chris Pronger (Canada), Mark Streit (Switzerland captain), Marcus Ragnarsson (Sweden), Michal Handzus (Slovakia), Ilya Bryzgalov (Russia), Alexei Zhamnov (Russia), Mike York (USA) and Tomi Kallio (Finland).
* Twenty-year-old Flyers prospect Dennis Seidenberg, a defenseman, represented Team Germany.
* After his second stint with the Flyers, Mikael Renberg (Toronto Maple Leafs) played in his second Olympics with Team Sweden.
* Now-former Flyers defenseman Janne Niinimaa (Edmonton Oilers) represented Team Finland in his second Olympics.
* Former Flyers defenseman Michal Sykora played for Team Czech Republic.
* Team Sweden goaltender Johan Hedberg was a Flyers' draft pick in 1994, but his rights were traded to the San Jose Sharks before he debuted in the NHL.
2006: Torino, Italy
A half-dozen active Flyers roster players participated in the 2006 tournament: Peter Forsberg (Sweden), Simon Gagne (Canada alternate captain), their Flyers "Deuces Wild" linemate Mike Knuble (USA), goaltender Antero Niittymaki (Finland), Derian Hatcher (USA), and goaltender Robert Esche (USA). Forsberg, dealing with repeated groin pulls since Thanksgiving as well as a congenital foot issue, gritted it out in the Olympics to help the Swedes to the gold medal in a classic championship game victory over Niittymaki and the Finns.
Notes:
* Future Flyers in the tournament: Mark Streit (Switzerland captain), Kimmo Timonen (Finland alternate captain), Lasse Kukkonen (Finland), Chris Pronger (Team Canada alternate captain), Vincent LeCavalier (Canada), Danny Markov (Russia), Ilya Bryzgalov (Russia), Andej Meszaros (Slovakia), Pavel Kubina (Czech Republic alternate captain), and, once again, the legendary Jaromir Jagr (Czech Republic).
* In between his two playing stints with the Flyers, Vaclav Prospal (Tampa Bay Lightning) played for the Czech team in the 2006 Olympics.
* Former Flyers defenseman Dennis Seidenberg (Phoenix Coyotes) once again represented Germany.
* Flyers head coach Ken Hitchcock served as a Team Canada assistant coach along with Flyers assistant coach Wayne Fleming.
* Team Canada's Dany Heatley (Ottawa Senators) became a Flyers scout years after his playing days.
2010: Vancouver, British Columbia
Team USA entered the gold medal game against Canada with an undefeated record. In a classic encounter with gold at stake, Canada won a 3-2 overtime decision decided by a Sidney Crosby goal. Finland won the bronze medal. The Flyers had four representatives in the tournament: Chris Pronger and Mike Richards for Team Canada, Kimmo Timonen for Finland and defenseman Oskars Bartulis for Latvia. Pronger and Timonen served as alternate captains for their respective national teams. Flyers center Jeff Carter was named to Team Canada as a reserve in case of injury, but was not activated to suit up.
Notes:
* Defenseman Ole-Kristian Tollefsen (Norway) was a member of the Flyers at the time the Olympic roster was named. However, he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings for Ville Leino on Feb. 6, 2010. The tournament started on Feb. 16.
* Future Flyers in the tournament: Jaromir Jagr (Czech Republic), Pavel Kubina (Czech Republic), Ilya Bryzgalov (Russia), Andrej Meszaros (Slovakia), Valtteri Filppula (Finland)
* Former Flyers center Peter Forsberg, attempting to come back from the foot issue that ultimately ended his playing career, played his final Olympics for Sweden.
* Former Flyers center Michal Handzus represented Team Slovakia.
* Former Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki, now with Tampa Bay, represented Finland again.
* Former Flyers defensemen Lasse Kukkonen and Joni Pitkanen suited up for Team Finland.
* Former Flyers winger Branko Radivojevic played for Team Slovakia.
* Former Flyers defenseman Dennis Seidenberg once again represented Germany.
2014: Sochi, Russia
Canada won the gold medal once again (their 9th in Olympic history). Sweden settled for silver. Finland defeated Team USA in the bronze medal game. The Flyers had five active roster players in the tournament: Jakub Voracek (Czech Republic), Kimmo Timonen (Finland), Mark Streit (Switzerland), Andrej Meszaros (Slovakia), and Michal Raffl (Austria). Timonen and Streit were alternate captains for their respective teams.
Notes:
* Jaromir Jagr's one season in Philadelphia (2011-12) fell in between the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. Now a member of the New Jersey Devils, Jagr suited up yet again for the Czech team at these Olympics.
* Former Flyers center Petr Nedved, who represented Canada in 1994 after defecting from the former Czechslovakia four years earlier, represented the now democratic Czech Republic in the 2014 Olympics.
* Former Flyers defenseman Oskars Bartulis once again represented Latvia.
* Kevin Romy, a 2003 Draft pick by the Flyers, never played professionally in North America. He represented Switzerland in this tournament at age 29.
* Team Sweden defenseman Johnny Oduya later finished his NHL career with one game as a Flyer on March 4, 2018.
