Sweden goalie decision, Bedard status among questions ahead of Olympic roster reveals

NHL.com is counting down the days until the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 begin. The Opening Ceremony will be held on Feb. 6, which is 50 days from today, and the men’s ice hockey tournament, which will feature NHL players for the first time since 2014, starts on Feb. 11.

Today, NHL.com Senior Writer Dan Rosen looks at 10 questions to consider before the Olympic rosters for the 12 participating countries are revealed in the coming weeks.

In 50 days, the NHL season will pause (after the last game of the night on Feb. 5) and the best hockey players in the world will turn their focus to playing for a gold medal in the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

It will be the NHL's first trip back to the Olympics since 2014, which was the last in a string of five consecutive Winter Olympics that featured the best players in the world (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014).

Rosters for the 12 participating nations are due on Dec. 31 with the announcements to follow, giving us time to ask and attempt to analyze and answer some of the questions that have been a major part of the national and international conversation around the NHL this season.

Here are 10 questions that don't exactly have the easiest answers, illustrating the challenges facing the executives and coaches who are in charge of selecting the teams that will compete for gold in Milan.

How does Connor Bedard's injury impact his Olympic status?

The Chicago Blackhawks center is out through at least the rest of December with an upper-body injury. He will be re-evaluated in January, Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill said.

The 20-year-old had played his way from Canada's bubble into a potential lock with 44 points (19 goals, 25 assists) in 31 games. Entering Wednesday, he was tied for seventh in the NHL in goals and tied for fourth among Canada eligible skaters.

But the injury sustained on Dec. 12, and the vague timeline for his return, clouds his chances of being named to Canada's roster on Dec. 31.

One option for Canada is to name Bedard to the roster, evaluate him in January and, if necessary, replace him before going to Milan. Another is to leave him off and have him available as a replacement if he gets healthy and someone else sustains an injury that prevents them from playing in the Olympics.

Either way, Bedard's injury and unclear return-to-play timeline does not definitively eliminate him from Canada's Olympic roster.

Will Canada take Bedard and Macklin Celebrini, Bedard or Celebrini, or neither?

Canada is loaded at forward, so much so that a popular refrain you hear is that the Canadians can bring two teams to Milan and each would be able to medal.

It's a nice thought, except for the fact that you can only bring one, which means determining the value and role for each of the 14 forwards will determine who gets named to the roster on Dec. 31.

Bedard and Macklin Celebrini, the San Jose Sharks' 19-year-old center, have unquestionably been two of the best Canadian forwards in the League this season.

Celebrini entered Wednesday third in the League with 51 points in 34 games, trailing only fellow Canadians Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (58 points in 33 games) and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers (56 points in 34 games), who were named to Canada’s preliminary roster in June. Bedard's production is right behind Celebrini's in three fewer games.

But does Canada want to bring two forwards, one who is 20 and the other 19? Does Canada want to bring Bedard and Celebrini knowing their value is in a scoring role and on the power play? Does Canada want to play each of them in a top-six role?

There is no question Bedard and Celebrini have done all they can to make the team, but for Canada it comes down to value and role, building a team that can roll four distinct lines, that has enough skill, speed, size and grind, and not just an overload of one or two of those attributes.

How many games will Matthew Tkachuk play before the Olympics?

Outdoor hockey in Miami, Jan. 2, 2026, the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers against the Original Six New York Rangers, one day shy of six weeks before the United States plays its first game in the Olympics -- oh what a stage that would be for Matthew Tkachuk to make his season debut.

The Panthers play the Rangers in the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic at loanDepot Park in Miami on Jan. 2 (8 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SNW, SNO, SNE, TVAS). It wouldn't be surprising to anyone if Tkachuk, the Panthers magnetic forward, is eyeing that game to play for the first time since last season's Stanley Cup Final.

USA Hockey certainly would welcome a Tkachuk return on Jan. 2. That would give him as many as 18 games to ramp up to be at peak Tkachuk level in the Olympics. The U.S. opens the tournament against Latvia on Feb. 12.

But it's far from a guarantee that Tkachuk will be back for the Panthers on Jan. 2. He is skating on his own and getting closer, but Tkachuk is also still recovering from surgery he had to repair a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia on Aug. 22. When asked on Wednesday if Tkachuk would play in the Winter Classic, Panthers GM Bill Zito said, “I don’t know.”

Whether it's Jan. 2, Feb. 2 or somewhere in between, Tkachuk's spot on Team USA is guaranteed unless he has a setback. But the more he plays before the Olympics the better he and USA Hockey will feel about his role in the tournament.

Will Victor Hedman be ready in time for Team Sweden?

The answer is yes, according to the Tampa Bay Lightning, who revealed Monday that Sweden's captain at the 4 Nations Face-Off and presumed captain in the Olympics, required a procedure on his elbow that will allow him to return in time to play in Milan.

But assuming the star defenseman, who was placed on injured reserve Dec. 11, doesn't play again for the Lightning until the Olympic break, he'll be heading to Milan having played three games in three months.

He missed 12 games from Nov. 12-Dec. 4, returned for three, and has been out since Dec. 11. If he doesn't play again before the Olympics, Hedman will have missed 25 consecutive games.

That begs the question of how ready the 34-year-old will be when Sweden opens its Olympic schedule against Italy on Feb. 11. Even Lightning coach Jon Cooper, who doubles as Canada's Olympic team coach, said Hedman's body will be ready, but the biggest hurdle is the mental side of things when you have to sit out for so long.

Is Jordan Binnington still a lock for Canada?

The struggles of the St. Louis Blues’ goalie illustrate the dilemma Canada has in net.

Clearly, Binnington, is the most experienced and best "big-game" goalie Canada has. He won Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2019. He was excellent in the 4 Nations Face-Off last season, helping Canada win the title. He has been at his best in the biggest moments of his career. The Olympics, it seems, would not be too big for him, even though it's the biggest stage in the sports world.

But can Canada take him and rely on him with the struggles he's had this season? He is 7-8-5 with a 3.49 goals-against average and .869 save percentage in 21 games.

Or do Canada's decision-makers, namely general manager Doug Armstrong, who is also the Blues GM, believe in Binnington despite what the numbers say this season? Do they see it as a Blues problem and not a Binnington problem?

Canada's other top options in goal include Logan Thompson (Washington Capitals), Darcy Kuemper (Los Angeles Kings) and Scott Wedgewood (Colorado Avalanche). But Binnington's history in the clutch and performance at the 4 Nations Face-Off might be enough to give Canadians comfort that he can find his game in Milan.

Has Jesper Wallstedt played his way onto Team Sweden?

The Minnesota Wild rookie goalie has done enough to move from could-he-make-it status to he-should-make-it status.

Wallstedt is 9-1-2 with four shutouts, a 1.95 GAA and .937 save percentage in 12 games. He allowed two goals in a win against the Colorado Avalanche, who lead the NHL in goals per game. He shut out the Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers, who are second and third in goals per game, respectively.

Wallstedt has arguably been the best Swedish goalie in the NHL this season, his numbers blowing away everyone else except his own Wild teammate, Filip Gustavsson (11-8-3, 2.49 GAA, .912 save percentage).

Linus Ullmark (Boston Bruins) and Jacob Markstrom (New Jersey Devils) might be battling to be Sweden's No. 3 at this point because of the emergence of Wallstedt and the steadiness of Gustavsson.

Has Elias Pettersson played his way off Team Sweden?

Pettersson leads the Vancouver Canucks with 22 points (eight goals, 14 assists) in 28 games, but that is 10th among all Swedish forwards this season; eighth if you go by his points per game (0.79).

Leo Carlsson (Ducks), William Karlsson (Vegas Golden Knights), Elias Lindholm (Boston Bruins), Joel Eriksson Ek (Wild), Mika Zibanejad (New York Rangers) and Mikael Backlund (Calgary Flames) could all make Team Sweden at center over Pettersson. Two of them will be on the wing. The Swedes have already named Gabriel Landeskog (Avalanche), William Nylander (Toronto Maple Leafs), Lucas Raymond (Detroit Red Wings) and Adrian Kempe (Kings) to the preliminary roster. They still have Filip Forsberg (Nashville Predators), Jesper Bratt (Devils), Rickard Rakell (Penguins) and Marcus Johansson (Wild).

Petterson had no points and two shots on goal in three games at the 4 Nations Face-Off. He has 67 points (23 goals, 44 assists) in 92 games since the start of last season; this from a player who had 191 points in 162 games from 2022-24.

The Olympics are not a lock for Pettersson.

Who replaces Aleksander Barkov and Patrik Laine on Team Finland?

Finland will not have its captain and top center Aleksander Barkov in the Olympics. The Panthers star is out for the season after tearing his ACL in training camp.

Laine was on the Finns roster at the 4 Nations Face-Off too, but he's been out all season rehabbing from core muscle surgery. The Montreal Canadiens forward was given a timeline of 3-4 months, putting him on pace for a return in late January or February.

Assuming Laine is a no-go for the Olympics and knowing Barkov won't be there, it means Finland has at least two forwards from its 4 Nations roster that it has to replace. And that's not including the potential that Kaapo Kakko (Seattle Kraken) also won't make it on merit.

Canadiens center Oliver Kapanen has played his way into consideration, if not to be a lock to make it. Kapanen, a rookie, has 16 points (10 goals, six assists) in 33 games, often playing as Montreal's No. 2 center. He can handle defensive responsibilities.

Eeli Tolvanen (Kraken) has a chance. He has 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in 31 games.

The good news is Finland's forward depth remains strong with Sebastian Aho (Hurricanes), Mikko Rantanen (Dallas Stars), Roope Hintz (Stars), Artturi Lehkonen (Avalanche), Anton Lundell (Panthers), Eetu Luostarinen (Panthers), Mikael Granlund (Ducks), link-placeholder-7, Joel Armia (Kings) and Teuvo Teravainen (Blackhawks).

Has Matthew Schaefer done enough to make Team Canada?

This wasn't even a thought when the season began, but the New York Islanders’ 18-year-old rookie defenseman and No. 1 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft has been so good through his first 34 NHL games that there is a serious ongoing conversation about if he fits on Canada's Olympic team.

Schaefer has impressed with his speed, puck handling, defensive acumen, ability to handle contact and overall confidence. He has 26 points (nine goals, 17 assists) and a plus-8 rating averaging 23:48 of ice time.

Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche said on the "NHL @TheRink" podcast a few weeks ago that Schaefer has changed the team. All of a sudden the Islanders look like one of the faster teams in the League when before he arrived they were easily one of the slowest.

It might still not yet be his time, but Schaefer has at the very least played his way into the conversation.

Are big changes coming for Team USA?

If you go back to the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game you'll see that the U.S. basically reduced its forward depth down to nine who played after the second period. Matthew Tkachuk was hurt and didn't play at all. But Chris Kreider (then Rangers, now Ducks) played 57 seconds in the third period and didn't see the ice in overtime. Vincent Trocheck (Rangers) played 1:56 in the third and 41 seconds in overtime. Kyle Connor (Jets) was a healthy scratch.

That's a one-off game, but it signals exactly what is happening now, that the U.S. is looking at a lot of different options at forward, potentially with an eye on having more speed in the lineup.

U.S. general manager Bill Guerin has said he won't be trying to reinvent the wheel, that he liked the chemistry the of 4 Nations team and he wants to see it in the Olympics. But that doesn't preclude some significant changes.

At forward, the U.S. has to be looking at Cutter Gauthier of the Ducks, Jason Robertson of the Stars, Cole Caufield of the Canadiens and Tage Thompson of the Sabres, among others.

On the back end, Anaheim's Jackson LaCombe and Montreal's Lane Hutson have played their way into the conversation. It's hard to argue against Florida's Seth Jones too, especially with how well he played in the playoffs and the Stanley Cup Final last season.

The U.S. has reached the point now where it, like Canada, is strong enough that it could pick two teams that would have a chance to medal in the Olympics, but you only get one and that's making the decision making super tough for Guerin and the USA Hockey staff.