Team Italy hoping to 'surprise some people' at Olympics

MILAN -- The Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 are in the backyard of Thomas Larkin, a defenseman with Team Italy.

It still hasn't sunk in for him.

"It's very exciting for me personally; my mother grew up just a few minutes from here and I grew up about an hour away," he said Monday after the Italian team practiced at the auxiliary rink at Santagiulia Arena. "It's very surreal to play a tournament here. It's not something that I ever dreamed could happen. When you grow up playing hockey in Italy, it's not even in the realm of possible things to happen.

"I'm very proud to have grown up here and be from right here."

None of this was supposed to happen for Larkin, who literally fell into the sport almost three decades ago when his family happened upon a hockey practice while going for swim lessons at the pool that adjoined the rink in Varese.

Italian hockey players don't play in the Olympics. They don't often play against the best players the sport has to offer. They play in relatively anonymity, before friends and family and a small but dedicated hockey community.

But with Italy hosting these Olympics, the hockey team got a bye into the tournament and went from playing second-tier opponents at the IIHF Division IA World Championships to playing against the best teams in the hockey universe.

That journey will start against Team Sweden in Group B play here Wednesday (3:10 p.m. ET; Peacock, USA, CBC Gem, SN, TSN, CBC).

"It'll be an incredibly hard-fought match against what many are saying is one of the favorites in the tournament," Larkin said. "We've been looking forward to this for a long time."

Italy will also play Team Slovakia and Team Finland in group play.

Larkin is one of 13 home-grown players on the roster. They are joined by nine Canadian-born players, two players from the United States and a player from Sweden, each of whom was able to meet nationality requirements. They are coached by Finnish coach Jukka Jalonen, who coached Finland to an Olympic gold medal in the 2022 Games.

Italy has no players on its roster who have ever played in the NHL.

Each of Sweden's 25 rostered players plays in the NHL.

Regardless, these Italians are united in bringing glory, in whatever form it takes, to Team Italy.

"We are very excited, we understand the responsibility we have not only ourselves, but all the hockey players in Italy," Larkin said. "They've dreamed of this chance. We are excited to get going and to show Italian hockey to the world and carry our colors with pride."

The journey to this point has been a thrill ride for Larkin.

He left Italy at 14 to join Phillps-Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, where he blossomed and caught the eye of NHL scouts. He was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the fifth round (No. 137) of the 2009 NHL Draft, the first Italian-trained player to be taken in the draft, but never played in the NHL.

Larkin played four seasons at Colgate University. Two seasons in the American Hockey League with Springfield followed.

Then, it was two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League before joining the Duetsche Elite League, where he has played for the past nine seasons, including the past three as captain of Schwenninger.

Through it all, it was hard to believe Larkin would ever reach a pinnacle like the one he is experiencing during the Olympics.

He said he was deeply emotional during the Opening Ceremony on Friday at San Siro Stadium, which he called, "as close to a cathedral as you can have for the non-religious if you are from here."

The event was emotional and exhausting.

"I woke up in the village after the ceremony and felt like I had already played a game or two," he said. "You wake up after an event like that and you didn't play a game, but you feel like you got put through the wringer. It's good we got those emotions out of the way."

Sunday was just as surreal for Larkin.

He showed up at the dining hall in the Olympic Village and found NHL stars in line with him. He made some small talk but said he was gobsmacked by the company he was keeping.

"There was a moment of star gazing for sure," he said. "Saw the faces you are used to seeing on TV right there in line for the lasagna. The whole Olympic experience, people hyped it up and it was undersold."

On Wednesday, he won't be rubbing elbows and making small talk with NHL players in food lines. He will be throwing body checks in corners and talking trash in front of his net. He will be in the maelstrom and he will be happy.

"All we ever wanted was the opportunity to be out there and compete against them," Larkin said.

Minnows rarely fare well in this tournament and Italy is the smallest minnow in recent memory.

But success is measured differently for these teams.

For Larkin, it's quite clear what will compromise passing this once-in-a-lifetime challenge.

"I want to be able to, after the game, to make sure we have left everything on the ice," he said. "I think we are going to surprise some people. I think we are definitely going to be underestimated. It is easy to look at our roster and underestimate us and we are going to try to use that to our advantage."