The start of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, is just a few weeks away. The opening ceremony takes place on February 6 and the tournament closes on the 22nd. The Flyers will be well-represented in the men's hockey tournament with four players representing four different national teams. Here's a look at the international hockey experience of the four Flyers' representatives.
Rodrigo Ābols (center, Latvia): The 30-year-old forward comes from a hockey family. He has played hockey in five countries during his career and is fluent in English, Swedish and Russian as well as his native Latvian. In international hockey, he's a mainstay on the Latvian national team. Ābols has represented Latvia at different age group levels for the last 13 years, from the Under-18 level on up. At the senior level, Ābols has played in the IIHF World Championships eight times. The Milano-Cortina Games will be his second Olympics, having previously played in the 2022 Games in Beijing (one goal, two points in four games). Before finally achieving his lifelong dream of playing in the National Hockey League, Ābols was a force for surprise bronze medalist Latvia at the 2023 IIHF Worlds (five goals, seven points in 10 games). He was also a key player for the Latvians at the 2022 and 2026 Olympic qualification tournaments, notching a combined five goals and eight points in the three-game tourneys.
Rasmus Ristolainen (defenseman, Finland): Internationally, the greatest moment of Ristolainen's career came on January 5, 2014. He scored in overtime against previously undefeated Team Sweden to capture the World Championship gold medal. It was his third goal of the tourney. Two years later, Ristolainen played in the World Cup of Hockey tournament. Last year, Ristolainen was named to Finland's 4 Nations Face Off squad but had to withdraw due to a triceps injury that required surgery. The 31-year-old defenseman is currently dealing with a day-to-day injury. It is not expected to threaten his 2026 Olympic participation.
Travis Sanheim (defenseman, Canada): The 29-year-old reigning Barry Ashbee Trophy winner first gained leaguewide scouting notice around the NHL at the 2014 IIHF Under-18 World Championship. His strong tourney (including six assists in seven games) cemented him as a first-round lock at the 2014 NHL Draft. Later, Sanheim represented Team Canada at the 2015-16 World Junior Championship. At the senior level, Sanheim donned the Canadian national team sweater for the silver-medal winning squad at the 2022 IIHF Worlds. Last year, Sanheim was part of Team Canada's championship roster at the 4 Nations Face Off. Months later, he dressed in all eight games Canada played at the 2025 World Championships.
Dan Vladař (goaltender, Czechia): The 28-year-old Czech netminder is currently sidelined with a lower-body injury. The Flyers -- and the Czech Hockey Federation -- are hopeful that his absence will not be long term. Internationally, Vladař has represented the Czech Republic at various junior levels as well as during the 2015 IIHF World Championships. At the 2025 Worlds, he appeared in four games, posting a sparkling 3-0-0 record 1.09 goals against average and .951 save percentage. Most notably, he shut out Team Germany. During his junior hockey career, Vladař helped backstop his national team to a silver medal at the 2014 Under-18 World Championships. He was a backup goalie at the 2015-16 World Junior Championship and made two starts at the 2016-17 WJC.
Barkey Named to AHL All-Star Game
Rookie winger Denver Barkey played two-plus months of strong all-around hockey for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms prior to earning his first NHL recall to the Flyers. He currently remains with the parent club. However, it's possible that the Flyers could loan Barkey back to the Phantoms during the Olympic break. In the meantime, Barkey was named to the 2025-26 American Hockey League All-Star Game (February 10-11 in Rockford, Illinois).
At the AHL level this season, Barkey posted 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in 26 games played. More important than his scoring stats, however, Barkey drew notice for his speed, two-way awareness and hunger for the puck. He has since dressed in 12 NHL games with the Flyers (1g, 4a). Barkey was scratched in Wednesday's game in Buffalo but responded with a pair of primary assists plus two golden scoring chances of his own the next night in Pittsburgh. Playing on a line with Matvei Michkov and Sean Couturier, Barkey's play in the Penguins game was a bright spot in an otherwise frustrating 6-3 loss.
Here's a look at the history of Phantoms players in the AHL All-Star game since the team relocated in 2014 from Glens Falls, New York, to Allentown.
2015 (Utica, NY) – Brandon Manning
2016 (Syracuse, NY) -- Nick Cousins, Anthony Stolarz
2017 (Allentown) -- T.J. Brennan, Taylor Leier, Jordan Weal
2018 (Utica) -- T.J. Brennan, Oskar Lindblom, Danick Martel
2019 (Springfield, Mass.) -- Greg Carey, Colin McDonald
2020 (Ontario, Calif.) -- Morgan Frost
2021 and 2022 -- No game
2023 (Laval, Que.) -- Tyson Foerster, Cam York, Ronnie Attard
2024 San Jose, Calif.) -- Samu Tuomaala
2025 (Coachella Valley, Calif.) -- Olle Lycksell
Golden Anniversary of the Red Army Game
January 11 marked the 50-year anniversary of the Flyers' 4-1 triumph at the Spectrum against the world famous CSKA (Red Army) team. An upcoming documentary about the game looks at the political backdrop of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions taking on the previously undefeated Soviet team in the final game of their series against NHL opponents. The Red Army team was the more powerful of the two Russian clubs (the other was the Soviet Wings), and their tie game against the Montreal Canadiens and head-to-head clash with the Flyers were the culmination of the tour.
Flyers head coach Fred Shero, who attended two off-season international coaching symposiums behind the Iron Curtain, devised a brilliant strategy to concede the perimeter and win the game in the corners and the middle of the ice. Red Army coach Konstatin Loktev never adjusted his team's strategy. The Red Army team could not stand up either to the Flyers' positional play or their physicality. Famously delayed by 15 minutes when the Red Army team left the ice to protest an Ed Van Impe hit on star forward Valeri Kharlamov, the Flyers broke a scoreless tie shortly after the Red Army team returned.
Goals by Reggie Leach, Rick MacLeish, Joe Watson (shorthanded) and Larry Goodenough gave Flyers goalie Wayne Stephenson (Hall of Famer Bernie Parent was out with an injury) all the support he needed. The Flyers outshot the Red Army by a 49-13 margin on the way to the historic 4-1 win.
