NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger has been covering the NHL regularly since 1999. Each Monday he will use his extensive network of hockey contacts for his weekly notes column, "Zizing 'Em Up," to preview the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
Zizing 'Em Up: United States, Canada would boast strong 2nd Olympic teams
Canadiens forward Caufield, Islanders defenseman Schaefer among those not named to initial rosters
© Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images; Steven Ryan/NHLI via Getty Images
By
Mike Zeisberger
NHL.com Staff Writer
TORONTO -- Let the second-guessing begin.
Wait. It already has.
From the moment Team Canada announced its 25-man roster Wednesday for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the flood of breakdowns identifying surprises and omissions started immediately. Ditto two days later when Team USA had its much-ballyhooed reveal.
What did each team of players not selected look like? How competitive would teams look like made up of players who were passed over?
General managers Bill Guerin of Team USA and Doug Armstrong of Team Canada have heard it all before, dating back 13 months ago when their respective rosters for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament were announced.
"Why did this player make it? Why did another player not?" Those debates of a year ago have surfaced once again, to the shock of no one.
"I've always said that Canada's has such a deep pool of players to choose from, that they could ice a second team," Guerin said. "Well, I think we've never had a deeper one as well in the U.S.
"I think that we've never had more skill to pick from. And I think we could ice a very strong second team too."
When you follow up Guerin's suggestion, he has a legitimate point. Consider what a second team for the United States and Canada would look like.
Would they be strong enough to be medal contenders? You be the judge. This much is certain: Both rosters would look pretty impressive. (Of note: players were selected on a talent basis and might have to play out of position like center to wing, right side to left side, etc.)
Here's a breakdown:
TEAM USA 2.0
Forwards
Jason Robertson -- Logan Cooley -- Cole Caufield
Patrick Kane -- Frank Nazar -- Alex DeBrincat
Matthew Knies -- Shane Pinto -- Alex Tuch
Cutter Gauthier -- Trevor Zegras -- Troy Terry
The Skinny: This group features six of the top 10 and 10 of the top 20 United States-born scorers in the NHL including Robertson (first), DeBrincat (tied for sixth), Caufield (ninth), Zegras (10th), Terry (11th), Gauthier (tied for 12th), Knies (tied for 15th), Schmaltz (tied for 15th), Tuch (22nd) and Smith (tied for 23rd). That doesn't include veteran Bryan Rust (tied for 15th), who could easily be on this team too. … Caufield and Robertson arguably were the two most controversial omissions from Team USA. In reality the Robertson-Cooley-Caufield line would be impactful for any team in Italy. … The Kane-Nazar-DeBrincat line would be a combination of present and former Chicago Blackhawks, with Kane and DeBrincat now playing for the Detroit Red Wings. Don't sleep on Nazar. The 21-year-old helped Team USA win its first IIHF World Championship since 1933 back in May, leading the team with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in 10 games. … The Knies-Pinto-Tuch line has a unique blend of hustle and muscle, with the potential of grinding opponents down. … Zegras, now with the Philadelphia Flyers, would be the perfect fit to play between Gauthier and Terry, his former Anaheim Duck teammates. … Ducks forward Chris Kreider is also an option and, like Rust, would bring veteran stability.
DAL@ANA: Robertson notches an impressive PPG to make it 5-1
Defensemen
Jackson LaCombe -- Justin Faulk
K'Andre Miller -- Shayne Gostisbehere
The Skinny: This group has seven of the top 14 highest-scoring U.S.-born defensemen in the NHL this season including Hutson (second), Gostisbehere (tied for fourth), Carlson (tied for fourth), Fox (seventh), LaCombe (tied for ninth), Hughes (tied for 12th) and Faulk (tied for 12th). … Imagine a power play quarterbacked by Hutson and Fox with the Robertson-Cooley-Caufield line up front? Impressive … The Ducks' Jacob Trouba or Ryan McDonagh of the Tampa Bay Lightning could always be brought in to add experience and attitude to the group.
Goalies
The Skinny: Demko's issue has never been stopping pucks, it's been the inability to stay healthy. Had he been able to do that the past couple of seasons he very well would have been in the conversation to battle Jeremy Swayman for a spot with Team USA. … Knight has a .910 save percentage for the Blackhawks, better than Swayman (.906), Jake Oettinger (.905) and Connor Hellebuyck (.905), the three goalies selected for Team USA. … Goalies are one of USA Hockey's strengths right now, and it shows in the candidates who could make this list in place of Wolf, including Joey Daccord of the Seattle Kraken, Joseph Woll of the Toronto Maple Leafs and rookie sensation Brandon Bussi of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Conclusion
Not only would this team be competitive in Italy, don't be surprised if you see a bunch of these names four years down the road at the 2030 French Alps Olympics led by Robertson, Caufield and Hutson, who'll be on a mission to prove they should have been picked this time around. Cooley, Gauthier, Smith and LaCombe have yet to even scratch the surface of their potential, painting a promising future for USA Hockey.
TEAM CANADA 2.0
Forwards
Seth Jarvis -- Connor Bedard -- Mark Scheifele
Carter Verhaeghe -- Sam Bennett -- Morgan Geekie
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Wyatt Johnston -- Zach Hyman
Robert Thomas -- John Tavares -- Quinton Byfield
The Skinny: This group features seven of the top 20 Canada-born scorers in the NHL including Scheifele (tied for fourth), Johnston (tied for fourth), Bedard (tied for 11th), Geekie (13th), Batherson (tied for 15th), Tavares (17th) and Guenther (tied for 18th). … Truth be told, this is all about Bedard. The 20-year-old was having a breakout season with 44 points (19 goals, 25 assists) in 31 games before sustaining a shoulder injury last month and easily could have made the roster that is heading to Italy in February. … So too could have Scheifele, who is tied for sixth in scoring among Team Canada-eligible players with 135 points (59 goals, 76 assists) since the beginning of the 2024-25 season yet was passed over for both the 4 Nations and the Olympics. … Jarvis, a member of Canada's victorious 4 Nations Face-Off team, has not played since he sustained a rib injury Dec. 19. … Surprise and shock was the reaction when Team Canada passed over Bennett, who scored the tying goal in the 3-2 overtime win against the United States in the 4 Nations championship game and went on to win the Conn Smythe Trophy voted as MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs four months later. The 29-year-old is the perfect linemate for Verhaeghe, his teammate with the two-time defending Cup champion Panthers. … Johnston leads the NHL with 14 power-play goals. … Others deserving of consideration: Travis Konecny of the Flyers, Adam Fantilli of the Columbus Blue Jackets, veterans Ryan O'Reilly and Steven Stamkos of the Nashville Predators, Nazem Kadri of the Calgary Flames, and Gabriel Vilardi of the Winnipeg Jets.
CGY@CHI: Bedard spurs Blackhawks to win with hat trick
Defensemen
Matthew Schaefer -- Aaron Ekblad
Jakob Chychrun -- Evan Bouchard
Noah Dobson -- Brandon Montour
The Skinny: How did the Schaefer, the 18-year-old rookie for the New York Islanders, respond to being passed over by Team Canada? By scoring a pair of electrifying goals including in overtime against his hometown Maple Leafs to win 4-3 on Saturday … Raddysh is tied for third in goals among defensemen with 12. Talk about being a late bloomer … Chychrun, 27, is tied for the League lead with 15. … Mike Matheson of the Montreal Canadiens, Owen Power of the Buffalo Sabres and Darnell Nurse of the Edmonton Oilers also are worthy of consideration.
Goalies
The Skinny: Wedgewood was a finalist for the third spot for Team Canada but was edged out by Darcy Kuemper of the Los Angeles Kings. …Wedgewood and Blackwood have combined to go 31-3-5 for the juggernaut Colorado Avalanche. …Greaves, the 24-year-old undrafted rookie with the Blue Jackets, has a 2.64 goals-against average and .910 save percentage and is one of the feel-good stories of the season … New Jersey Devils veteran Jake Allen could also be considered here.
Conclusion
Forget 2026 for a moment and fast forward four years down the road. At that time, Bedard will be 24; Macklin Celebrini, who was picked to represent Canada this time around, will be 23; and Schaefer will be 22. How's that for a young core to build around? By that time, they'll be Canada's new kids on the block, poised to take the torch from the Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon. Or at least share it, anyway.
POWER PLAY PLUS
Hockey is played with only one puck on the ice at a time.
That could be an issue for Vegas Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy, the Team Canada assistant who'll be in charge of one of the most talented power plays we've ever seen come next month in Italy.
Cassidy had the same duties at the 4 Nations Face-Off. In that tournament, Canada only had four power-play opportunities and converted on one of them, a brilliant goal in their opener against Sweden when Sidney Crosby fed a between-the-legs pass to fellow Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, native MacKinnon, who ripped a one-timer into the net.
It was a preview of just how spectacular this power play could be in Italy.
Canada returns the pieces of that power play to its Olympic roster. Think of the potential here. It has the top two scorers in the NHL, MacKinnon and McDavid. It has a likely Hockey Hall of Famer in Crosby. It has the defending Norris Trophy winner, voted as the NHL's top defenseman, in Cale Makar. The remaining spot could be up for grabs, although the inside track would seem to go to the Panthers forward Sam Reinhart, who ha scored 48 power-play goals since the beginning of the 2023-24 season.
It's not like Cassidy can slice the pucks up into five pieces like it's a piece of pie.
"It's a nice issue to have, isn't it?" Cassidy chuckled during a phone interview this weekend from Chicago, where the Golden Knights were preparing to play the Blackhawks.
"The biggest thing I think is going to help this time around is the fact that I know these guys a bit now. I know what they like to do, their tendencies, what they're all comfortable with. That's a big deal because prior to 4 Nations, I didn't know them very well other than from coaching against them."
One potential dilemma he faced entering 4 Nations: MacKinnon and McDavid, as Cassidy puts it, "like to play the same spot on the power play" for their individual NHL teams. It was McDavid who quickly supplied a solution at 4 Nations.
"Connor immediately said: 'No problem, I like to move around in those situations anyway. I'll volunteer to shift,'" Cassidy recalled. "That says all you need to know. He'll do anything to win. They all will."
Cassidy said the familiarity gleaned at 4 Nations will be invaluable in planning details such as who will be the puck carrier at full speed for zone entries, especially when you have three of the fastest skaters in the sport in McDavid, MacKinnon and Makar at your disposal.
"Coming out of 4 Nations, the feeling process is over," Cassidy said. "We can go there and immediately get to work. It puts us ahead of the curve.
"I'm not sure there's really going to be a lot of power play opportunities at the Olympics. But when they do arise, they are going to be so valuable, especially in a short tournament like this where every game matters.
"I can't stress enough the importance of the me knowing the guys and the guys knowing me going in. It allows us to get to work right away."
OLYMPICS STOCK WATCH
A look at who's hot heading into the Games next month
Mika Zibanejad, F, Sweden (New York Rangers)
How do you celebrate being named to your country's Olympic team in the morning? In Zibanejad's case, you score a hat trick that night in an outdoor game in Miami in front of a capacity crowd of 36,153 fans at the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Classic, many of them wearing short sleeves. You can't make this stuff up. His five points (three goals, two assists) were the most ever by a player in an NHL outdoor game, breaking the mark of four set by Jordan Kyrou of the St. Louis Blues in the 2022 Winter Classic. "It's hard to grasp the whole day like that," Zibanejad said afterward. "It was a great 12-16 hours." Was it ever.
NYR@FLA: Zibanejad rolls with five points in Winter Classic
QUOTE/UNQUOTE
"They told me not to book any trips or anything quite yet, so it's still a waiting game. Obviously, I'm never hoping anyone gets hurt. Obviously, if they call my name, I'll be more than ready, more than happy to come contribute, but I'm not holding out too much hope. I'm not wishing ill on anybody. If I do get picked and it just so happens I go, awesome. If not, I've already dealt with all the emotions of it, and I've moved past it, so I'm good to go." -- Carolina Hurricanes F Seth Jarvis, a member of 4 Nations Face-Off team, on being passed over for Team Canada but being asked to stay ready if a named player cannot participate because of injury.
THE LAST WORD
It's never boring around Jordan Binnington.
Why should it be any different now?
Heading into 4 Nations last February, the biggest question mark surrounding Canada was the goaltending situation. In the end, it was anything but, with Binnington's heroics against Team USA in overtime of the title game setting the stage for McDavid's dramatic winner in the championship game.
Eleven months later, Binnington finds himself under scrutiny yet again heading into an international tournament, this time the Olympics. Indeed, his struggles with the St. Louis Blues this season are well-documented, leaving some critics crying foul after he was named to the team on Wednesday.
One thing the hockey world has learned over the years: Binnington is at his best when he plays with a chip on his shoulder, as is the case right now.
As such, there he was at his spectacular best Saturday, three days after the Olympic announcement, making 25 saves in a 2-0 Blues victory against the Montreal Canadiens. It was his first shutout in exactly a year, his previous one coming against the Ottawa Senators (4-0) on Jan. 3, 2025.
"I think it's really important, not so much for 'Binner,' because Binner's self-belief is unbelievable," Blues coach Jim Montgomery said. "But I think it's really important for people in the NHL to see how good he is and nothing has changed.
"It's been us in front of him and not him that has allowed for the numbers that go under him, but for me, his goaltending has really been solid all year. Every year there's a couple games you want to have back, but if I have to worry about Binnington, I don't have anything to worry about."
Those words are music to the ears of the Team Canada brass.
Now let's see if Binnington can keep it up.
