‘It’s surreal’: For Canada’s top NHLers, the Olympic experience is a long-time coming
Only two players on the 2026 Canadian Olympic men’s hockey roster took part the last time the NHL was involved 12 years ago: Sidney Crosby and Drew Doughty.
For the rest? Milan was a long, long time coming.
Many of the game’s top stars – Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Brad Marchand, you name it – were either in a limited NHL role back in 2014, or weren’t in the league altogether. Of the 10 players currently under contract from the 2014 tournament, three – Carey Price, Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Weber – aren’t actively playing due to injury.
So for much of this team, getting to Milan and wearing their nation’s colors at the biggest stage in international hockey will be an all-new experience.
“I’m excited to be here and be with the guys and get out there and see the rink and get our first skate under us,” McDavid said during an IOC media availability on Sunday. “It’s exciting. It’s surreal.”
Canada enters as one of the tournament favorites, having won gold three times with NHLers (2002, 2010 and 2014). While best-on-best action has been hard to come by over the past decade, Canada also won the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.
With the NHL skipping out on 2018 and 2022, many of the game’s biggest stars missed out on the opportunity to go for gold. Still, the participants aren’t taking the opportunity for granted.
“All of us are in our prime, so it is a good time to be here,” MacKinnon said.
Even for coach Jon Cooper – one of the greatest bench bosses of his time – it’s an all-new experience. Cooper won consecutive Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning to kick off the 2020s, and led the team to the 4 Nations championship, as well. The Olympics is a whole other animal, though.
“I’ve watched the Olympics every four years my entire life,” Cooper said. “Now to actually be here and see it and see the passion, is super cool.”
Canada’s roster isn’t immune to big moments. So many have won Stanley Cups, World Championships, and, of course, the 4 Nations tournament last winter. Between the 25 men on the roster, they have combined for 22 Stanley Cups, 10 World Junior Championships and eight gold medals at the World Championship.
But the pressure is always a bit different when Olympic gold is on the line – something Crosby and Doughty have experienced twice already.
“You have to be open-minded and go with the flow,” said Crosby, who was named captain over the weekend. “There’s always different things, whether it’s your team or different things that come up. You just have to embrace the whole experience.”
Canada is set to begin its tournament on Thursday, Feb. 12 against Czechia. No matter where they play, the Canadian hockey team always seems to have plenty of supporters. The PalaItalia Santa Giulia arena has a capacity of 16,000, and you can almost assure yourself it will be a loaded barn when Canada hits the ice for the first time.
“I can’t wait to see what it’s like when people are here, because it looks like it’s going to be a pretty cool atmosphere,” Cooper said.
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