Caufield, Keller, Robertson, Thompson could be added to infuse youth at forward
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With the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics less than a year away, NHL.com is predicting the Olympic rosters for the four countries that participated in the 4 Nations Face-Off. Today, NHL.com senior writers Tom Gulitti makes his predictions for Team USA.
The United States will be one of the favorites at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics after losing to Canada 3-2 in overtime of the final of the 4 Nations Face-Off on Feb. 20. The final was a rematch of the United States’ 3-1 win against Canada in round-robin play. The Americans (2-0-1-1) also defeated Finland 6-1 in round-robin play before losing 2-1 to Sweden.
Even before the 4 Nations Face-Off began, however, the U.S. players had on an eye on Milan, knowing the NHL will pause for its players to compete in the Olympics for the first time since the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
“I think when you’re in this environment and you’re around the guys and you have the red, white and blue on again, I think it’s only human nature, think ahead,” U.S. center Jack Eichel said. “It’s been a while since we’ve been in an Olympic format and what that could mean for USA Hockey, so I’m sure it’s crossed people’s minds.”
The U.S. has not won an Olympic medal in men’s ice hockey since taking silver at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and hasn’t won gold since the Miracle on Ice at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. But this generation of American players has reason to be confident it can end that drought.
Will it? And what will the roster of 14 forwards, eight defensemen and three goalies look like?
Here are NHL.com’s predictions (in alphabetical order):
Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild
Cole Caufield, Monreal Canadiens
Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets
Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights
Jake Guentzel, Tampa Bay Lightning
Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils
Clayton Keller, Utah Hockey Club
Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
J.T. Miller, New York Rangers
Jason Robertson, Dallas Stars
Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
Matthew Tkachuk, Florida Panthers
Tage Thompson, Buffalo Sabres
Under consideration: Blake Coleman, Calgary Flames; Alex DeBrincat, Detroit Red Wings; Patrick Kane, Detroit Red Wings; Chris Kreider, New York Rangers; Brock Nelson, New York Islanders; Bryan Rust, Pittsburgh Penguins; Troy Terry, Anaheim Ducks; Vincent Trocheck, New York Rangers; Alex Tuch, Buffalo Sabres
The 25-player rosters for the Olympics — two more than for the 4 Nations Face-Off — create room for an additional forward and defenseman. We made some changes beyond that, though, to insert some younger forwards in place of veterans who will be another year older in Milan. Added are Caufield, 24, Keller, 26, Robertson, 25, and Thompson, 27, who all easily could have made the 4 Nations Face-Off roster. Subtracted are Kreider and Nelson, each 33, and Trocheck, 31. Caufield and Thompson were tied for third in the NHL among U.S.-born players this season with 26 goals heading into the 4 Nations break. Robertson rebounded from a from a slow start after missing the preseason to recover from foot surgery and had 51 points (20 goals, 31 assists) in 55 games heading into the tournament. Keller is having another strong season, with 60 points (20 goals, 40 assists) in 55 games at the break. Those four will strengthen an already deep collection of forwards with elite talents such as Matthews, Eichel, Hughes and Guentzel, the grit and skill of the Tkachuk brothers, and versatile players such as Larkin and Miller.
MTL@OTT: Caufield buries the loose puck to double the lead
Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild
Adam Fox, New York Rangers
Noah Hanifin, Vegas Golden Knights
Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks
Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins
Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators
Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets
Under consideration: John Carlson, Washington Capitals; Cam Fowler, St. Louis Blues; Shayne Gostisbehere, Florida Panthers; Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils; Lane Hutson, Montreal Canadiens; Seth Jones, Chicago Blackhawks; Neal Pionk, Winnipeg Jets
This is essentially the same defense corps as the one for the 4 Nations; Sanderson replaced Quinn Hughes before the tournament began after Hughes, the 2024 Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defenseman, withdrew because of an undisclosed injury. Slavin and Faber have proven to be an effective shutdown pair, which will be invaluable in the Olympics. There is an impressive collection of puck-moving and offensive skill among Hughes, Werenski, Fox and Sanderson, along with McAvoy and Hanifin. The imbalance of five left-handed shots (Hughes, Werenski. Hanifin, Slavin, Sanderson) to three right-handed shots (Fox, Faber, McAvoy) made us consider adding another righty such as Pionk or Carlson, but we opted to stick with Sanderson, who is blossoming into one of the NHL’s best defensemen at 22.
Discussing Quinn Hughes’ importance to the Vancouver Canucks
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets
Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins
Under consideration: Joey Daccord, Seattle Kraken; Thatcher Demko, Vancouver Canucks; John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks; Anthony Stolarz, Toronto Maple Leafs; Dustin Wolf, Calgary Flames; Joseph Woll, Toronto Maple Leafs
These are the same three goalies chosen for the 4 Nations, but the U.S. might be deeper at this position than any other country and has other options to choose from should any of them falter over the next year. Hellebuyck (34-7-2, 2.06 goals-against average, .925 save percentage, six shutouts in 43 starts at the break for the tournament) is on his way to winning his third Vezina Trophy, voted as the NHL’s top goalie. Oettinger (26-12-2, 2.35 GAA, .911 save percentage, one shutout in 40 starts at the break) isn’t far behind, and though Swayman has struggled at times this season (18-18-4, 2.98 GAA, .898 save percentage, three shutouts in 40 starts at the break) following protracted contract negotiations that caused him to miss training camp, expect him to rebound next season. Demko could play himself back into this conversation if he stays healthy after dealing with injuries the past two seasons.
USA@FIN: Hellebuyck makes an impressive save on Haula
