Denmark 'really looking forward to' best-on-best test vs. U.S. in Olympics

MILAN -- The impact of NHL participation in the Olympics will be on display Saturday.

Team Denmark will play against a lineup full of NHL stars for the first time in a best-on-best tournament, facing Team USA at Santagiulia Arena (3:10 p.m. ET; Peacock, USA, ICI Télé, CBC Gem, TSN).

Even though Denmark will be a huge underdog in the Group C preliminary round game at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, it will be a special moment. When the Danes made their first Olympic appearance in men’s hockey in Beijing in 2022, NHL players weren’t there.

“It was still like something was missing,” said Denmark forward Nicklas Jensen, who played 31 games in the NHL from 2012-17 and now plays professionally in Switzerland. “This time, it’s literally the best athletes in the world competing in ice hockey, which is not making our chances easier, but it’s making the tournament way cooler, and this is the way it should be. It’s going to be a very, very tough game for us but a game we’re really looking forward to.”

Denmark has 6 million people and 29 indoor rinks, according to the International Ice Hockey Federation. Only 31 players born in Denmark have been selected in the NHL Draft, and only 19 have played in the League, including seven this season.

Nikolaj Ehlers ranks first in NHL history among players born in Denmark with 563 points (239 goals, 324 assists) in 731 games. The Carolina Hurricanes forward is representing his country in Milan.

Next is Frans Nielsen, who had 473 points (167 goals, 306 assists) in 925 games as a forward for the New York Islanders and Detroit Red Wings from 2006-21. He is now working in European player development for the Seattle Kraken and as an analyst for TV 2 in Denmark at the Olympics.

“I don’t give them a lot of chances tomorrow, to be honest,” Nielsen said with a laugh. “But you know what? I think just being from a small nation like Denmark, this is one of those games where it’s just cool that we get to play the U.S. when they bring the best they have. It’s something Denmark has never seen before.”

Nielsen said there is a buzz about this game. Denmark sent only 39 athletes to the Olympics; 25 of them are on the hockey team.

“We’re not really a winter country, so having a full hockey team is big, and it’s getting a lot of attention,” Nielsen said. “Now people in Denmark and hockey fans in Denmark, they get to see the best against our guys, so it’s going to be fun.”

The biggest win in Danish hockey history came May 22, when the Danes upset Team Canada 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the 2025 IIHF World Championship in Stockholm.

The Canadians’ lineup included NHL stalwarts like Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon and Macklin Celebrini, though it wasn’t as loaded as their roster is in Milan. Ehlers was the lone NHLer playing for Denmark.

This will be another level. Team USA is stacked. The Americans defeated Team Latvia 5-1 at Santagiulia Arena on Thursday, while the Danes lost to Team Germany 3-1 at Rho Arena.

Denmark coach Mikael Gath said he will not start No. 1 goalie Frederik Andersen against the United States, likely saving him for a more winnable game against Latvia at Rho Arena on Sunday. The Danes have an older defense corps and could be outshot heavily by the Americans.

“We expect them to have the puck, especially in our ‘D’ zone, a lot,” Gath said. “… Of course, we want to be strong in front of the net, but still we have to put a little bit pressure on them, because they’re so skilled. If we just let them play without pressure, I think we are in big trouble.”

Nielsen said the key for Denmark will be the breakout. Its strength is up front with Ehlers and fellow NHL players Oliver Bjorkstrand of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Lars Eller of the Ottawa Senators. Oscar Fisker Molgaard, a 20-year-old who has played three games for the Kraken this season, scored the Danes' lone goal against Germany.

“Right now, for them, how do they get out of their own end, so they don’t get stuck down there, right?” Nielsen said. “That’s the No. 1 thing. Once they get out of there, I mean, they’ve got Ehlers, Bjorkstrand, Molgaard. They’ve got some really talented players. If they get down there [in the offensive zone], they can do some damage.”

If they get down there.

“We know it’s going to be a very tough game,” Jensen said. “I mean, we can’t be naive. Obviously, they’re the favorite. We’ve got to have everything jump our way, and hopefully everything is jumping not their way.”