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Hockey Canada had some tough decisions to finalize its roster for the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics but assembled a team that is the gold medal favorite this month in Italy.

Canada initially announced six players -- Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby, Brayden Point, Sam Reinhart and Cale Makar -- back in the summer. However, Point suffered an injury right before the Olympic break and was replaced by Seth Jarvis on Thursday.

Budding stars Macklin Celebrini and Connor Bedard made an impressive push for Olympic roster spots this season, but Celebrini got the nod and Bedard will be staying at home.

Another youngster who built an impressive case was New York Islanders rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer. The 18-year-old has been stupendous in his young NHL career, but he just missed out on joining Team Canada.

The real question for Canada was what it would do in goal. Jordan Binnington, who started and won the 4 Nations Face-Off final less than a year ago, struggled early in the 2025-26 NHL season. Meanwhile, players like Logan Thompson and Darcy Kuemper played their way into Olympic consideration.

Here is the full roster Team Canada will take to the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics:

*denotes injury replacement

Forwards

Defensemen

Goalies

  • Jordan Binnington, Blues
  • Darcy Kuemper, Kings
  • Logan Thompson, Capitals

Bedard, Schaefer among snubs

Connor Bedard and Matthew Schaefer are among the best young players in the league right now, and they're both in the midst of exceptional seasons. Bedard's shoulder injury may have had some impact on this decision by Canada, but by leaving him in North America, the Canadians will leave behind a ton of offensive upside. 

When it comes to Schaefer, Hockey Canada was probably always going to be hesitant about throwing an 18-year-old into the Olympic fire. Having said that, Schaefer hasn't really been playing his age as he has more than held his own against the best in the world at five-on-five, and I think he may have been a better choice over Harley or Sanheim.

Binnington makes the cut

While Binnington did lead Canada to gold in the 4 Nations Face-Off earlier this year, he's done everything he can to play his way off the Olympic roster in 2025-26 with uninspired play on the NHL stage. Canada must have a lot of faith he can turn it around by the time the team plane lands in Italy.

That's especially the case because there were more intriguing options, like either of the Colorado Avalanche goalies. Scott Wedgewood has been a revelation this season, and Mackenzie Blackwood has quietly put together an impressive resume over the last two or three years. If the decision was based strictly off NHL performance, either one of those goalies would have gone over Binnington, but the 4 Nations Face-Off clearly made a big impact.

Canada running it back on defense

The Canadians are rolling with the same defensive group that helped them win the 4 Nations. On the one hand, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Then again, there may have been some possible upgrades out there for Team Canada.

Sanheim brings stability and reliability, but he provides little in the way of offensive upside. Harley, despite a breakout 2024-25 season, has been woefully ineffective this season. That's why I'm a little surprised that the Canadians didn't take one of Evan Bouchard or Jakob Chychrun. The former may have some defensive lapses, but he is an offensive wizard. The latter is currently building a Norris Trophy candidacy with 30 points and spectacular underlying numbers. Even the rookie Schaefer could have provided a stronger two-way game.