Hockey fans have waited more than a decade to see NHLers return to the Olympics, and now that wait is almost over.
This week, 42 players gathered in Calgary at an orientation camp with hopes of making the Canadian team that will travel to Milan, Italy, in February. Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar don’t need to hope. Their spots are already assured. Others, even some who represented Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off, haven’t cemented theirs yet.
The door is even still open for a handful of players who weren’t invited to camp — to force their way onto the roster. The odds will be slim, and anyone on the outside looking in will need to have a very strong start to the NHL season to get noticed, but stranger things have happened.
Injuries could make competitions for certain positions more wide open and we’ve seen players ascend quickly in the past. I don’t think many pegged Thomas Harley to be a factor at the 4 Nations, but an injury to Shea Theodore forced the Dallas Stars defenceman into action and he ended up being a critical part of the team.
General manager Doug Armstrong told Sportsnet’s Eric Francis on Thursday that he has an additional 50 players on his radar who weren’t invited to camp that he’ll consider for roster spots. Olympic rosters will have 25 players on them.
Even if those excluded from this week’s festivities might be long shots to make the team, let’s make a case for a few players who could crack the squad.
Kadri didn’t hide his disappointment at not being invited to camp and should now be motivated to prove Team Canada brass wrong. “I feel like I deserve a chance,” Kadri told The Athletic earlier this month. “I think, over the last few seasons, I’ve certainly proven that with my statistics and the winning pedigree. I think it speaks for itself.”
The Flames forward has been doubted before, with some believing he couldn’t play close enough to the edge without crossing it. He ultimately figured things out when he was dealt to the Colorado Avalanche and was a pivotal piece to their Stanley Cup run in 2022. Kadri will turn 35 in October but isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, scoring a career high 35 times for a Flames squad that finished 29th in goals for last season.
There are other reasons beyond offence to give Kadri some real consideration, too. You can never have too many centres and if the 4 Nations was any indication, Kadri’s blend of grittiness and skill could be valuable for a potential showdown with the United States. The rivalry between the two border-mates hit a crescendo last February with several fights and skirmishes, and though Armstrong mentioned he wouldn’t build the team with that hostility in mind, Kadri’s skillset certainly wouldn’t hurt to have around in case things get contentious. Kadri’s ability to agitate and play physically could help Canada deal with the Tkachuk brothers should the need arise.
John Tavares was in a similar position at the start of last season, as many felt it was unlikely he’d have a shot at making the 4 Nations squad. Despite an excellent year from Tavares, though, it still wasn’t enough for him to make the team. So, Kadri is going to have a major uphill climb on his hands if he hopes to go to Milan, but I’d expect him to have a really strong push to start the season and make things as difficult as he can on Armstrong.
Perhaps one of the more controversial omissions from the 4 Nations squad, Thompson continues to face a challenging battle to earn a spot between the pipes. Despite a phenomenal season a year ago, Thompson didn’t see his name on the list of invitees to Calgary this summer.
That 2024-25 campaign saw Thompson finish near the top of the league in a few key metrics, and if not for a late-season injury, he very well may have been nominated for the Vezina Trophy. Thompson lost only six times in regulation last year, finishing with a 31-6-6 record and 26 goals saved above expected. Only Connor Hellebuyck and Andrei Vasilevskiy had more. The 28-year-old also got his first true taste of playoff action as an official starter this past spring and acquitted himself well with a .917 save percentage.
What’s working in Thompson’s favour is that Canada remains very thin in the crease. Jordan Binnington came through in the big moments at the 4 Nations and has a Stanley Cup title to his credit, but he’s been inconsistent over the past few seasons. Adin Hill is also coming off a disastrous post-season, and Samuel Montembeault’s big-game experience is extremely limited. That means the competition to crack the roster in goal should be up for grabs, and Armstrong said as much Thursday.
“That’s probably the most open competition in our group right now,” Armstrong added. “I’ve reached out to the other goalies that we believe have a legitimate chance, and told them the thought process behind bringing the three. They all understood that, and I gave them the vision of scouting, what we’re going to do, and that we’re going to take the guys that give us the best chance to win. They’re going to have that opportunity from Oct. 7 to Jan. 1 to prove who should be on the team.”
If Thompson has another torrid start this season it’s going to be almost impossible to deny him a spot on Canada’s roster.
Although Thompson, and perhaps Tom Wilson, are two Capitals players who could earn a spot on the Canadian team this time around, don’t forget about Dylan Strome.
The 28-year-old wasn’t invited to the orientation camp in Calgary despite averaging a point per game in 2024-25 and slowly but surely becoming a very reliable offensive player. Strome has posted 65, 67 and 82 points respectively in his three seasons in Washington and added 11 points in 10 post-season contests last spring. He probably also isn’t getting enough credit for helping Alex Ovechkin surpass Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL goals record last season.
Strome assisted on more than half of Ovechkin’s 44 goals, including 12 of his first 15 that put Washington’s captain on pace to break the mark. The pair played together more than 63 per cent of the time at even strength and developed a really great chemistry. There’s no reason why Strome couldn’t be a facilitator and help create offence for Canada’s most potent goal scorers as well.
What is likely working against Strome’s quest to make the team is that he’d almost certainly be in a bottom-six role, and Canada opted for more defensive options like Anthony Cirelli in that spot at the 4 Nations. That said, it’s unlikely Canada brings back all the forwards they chose last February, as skaters like Travis Konecny and Seth Jarvis, who played sparingly and were scratched at times, might be hard-pressed to make the roster again.
That could open the door for someone like Strome if he gets off to a strong start to the 2025-26 campaign and Canada opts for a little more offence on its third and fourth lines at the Olympics.
You won’t see Tanev on too many highlight reels, and he provides minimal offence, but even at 35, there are few who can defend better than he can. His puck retrieval ability and knack for creating smooth zone exits could really help Canada in its own end. Tanev is also used to averaging about 20 minutes per game against the opposition’s top lines, so he won’t have an issue matching up with some of the best players in the world. And if you’re concerned about his age, keep in mind that Armstrong chose three players older than Tanev for the 4 Nations. He won’t hesitate to take an older player if he thinks they are the best fit for the team.
The Maple Leafs defender can also help in some of the grittier areas of the game, like blocking shots. He’s regularly near the top of the league in that category, and only four players blocked more shots per game than Tanev in 2024-25. And while he wasn’t speaking about Tanev, Armstrong also noted recently that he values a lot of the attributes that are a big part of Tanev’s game.
“We want strong, hard (defence) that can play in front of our net and we want to be able to play and get inside,” Armstrong said. “We want big strong players that can play in hard areas.
“Everyone has great skill, we just want to play with great determination.”
One of the best arguments for bringing Tanev along could be the lack of a bona fide high-end goalie for Canada. They proved they could win with Binnington in February, although expecting him or any of their other options to steal a game or two for them at the Olympics is a stretch. They’re going to need to support their netminders with strong defensive play to help prop them up, and there isn’t a long list of players better than Tanev at doing so.
