Of Kings players with a chance at making their respective Olympic rosters, Drew Doughty was the only one with past experience. He was also probably the most nervous heading into the selection. And the most relieved coming out of it.
Doughty said he had trouble sleeping in the days leading in. Once he got the call?
“Best phone call I’ve had in a long time.”
For the 36-year-old defenseman, this is more likely than not his final opportunity to represent Team Canada in a best-on-best tournament. Doughty is a two-time gold medalist in 2010 and 2014 and was selected as the tournament’s best defenseman at the latter event, as he was a leader on a stacked blueline. Now, 12 years later, he’ll get an opportunity he never full knew was possible.
In 2022, NHL players were set to participate in the Olympics but they were eventually pulled as the league cancelled games due to the spread of COVID-19. Doughty likely would have made that team, as I've heard at least, but never got the chance. Four years later, he finally will. His Olympic swan song. He plans to embrace every second of it.
“That’s the thing, I’m 36 now, next one I would be 40, who knows if I’m still playing hockey, so yeah, this kind of seemed like my last kick at the can,” Doughty said. “I can’t even explain you guys how happy I am, how happy my family is. This is the first one that my kids will be around for, so that’s super special.”
Doughty’s role is unlikely to be what it was in 2014. On the right side of Team Canada’s blueline, Cale Makar is the undisputed number-one option. Not sure anyone would care to argue with that. While Doughty isn’t at his Norris Trophy winning prime, he’s an experienced player on a team that lacks it on this stage. With the NHL not participating in 2018 or 2022, it has deprived so many players the chance to play in the Olympics. For the 2026 Team Canada, there are few players who have played on this stage. Doughty is one who has.
Doughty can bring it in that area, as he did at last season’s 4 Nations Faceoff. Doughty went into that event perhaps on the outside looking in, even of playing in Top-6. He worked his way onto the third pair and was playing number-four defenseman minutes by the end of the tournament, as Canada won gold in overtime against the United States.
Depending on how the pairings shake out, Doughty feels likely to be in the lineup, but exactly where and how much he will play remains to be seen. I think that Hockey Canada values Doughty’s experience, especially in a short tournament, where he’s been there before and has played at this level, understanding the pressure and expectations that come along with it. He has delivered internationally in every tournament he has played in. He’s a defensive-first defenseman at this stage of his career but this isn’t a team that should have any problem producing goals. There’s a place in the Team Canada lineup for Doughty, certainly, and I’d be surprised if he didn’t seize it.
There’s also the locker room element and Doughty is a loud personality who will go in and be himself. On a quieter group of top-end players, think that’s something that adds value as well and that goes for whatever role Doughty will play.
“I don't think I performed even close to as well as I can perform in that 4 Nations. That was, that was a tough situation I put myself into, but they saw the stuff off the ice, I think, as well as where I kind of help. Let's say I don't make the top six, they know I'm going to be a great teammate there for leadership, be loud in the room. When you go in a room with a ton of different guys, you're going to be yourself, but there’s not really going to be a lot of loud guys. I don't care who I'm with, when I'm with them, I'm going to be the same guy I always am. So, I bring that element for the team at the other end.”
Doughty/Canada Olympic Schedule
February 12 – Canada vs. Czechia, 7:40 AM Pacific
February 13 – Canada vs. Switzerland, 12:10 PM Pacific
February 15 – Switzerland vs. France, 7:40 AM Pacific
After those three games, all 12 participating teams will be seeded based on their point totals in group play. The group winners and the second-placed team with the most points advance directly to the quarterfinals. The teams ranked 5 – 12 will compete in the playoff round, with the winners also advancing to the quarterfinals. Participation for all Kings players will be determined by the performance of their teams in the preliminary round.
The playoff round begins on February 17, followed by the quarterfinals on February 18. The semifinals are all on February 20, followed by the bronze-medal game on February 21 and the gold-medal game on February 22.
