Slafkovsky, Nemec among first six players named to Slovakia’s 2026 Olympic team

Slovakia’s men’s hockey team has announced its first six players for the 2026 Winter Olympic tournament, taking place in Milano, Italy from Feb. 11-22, 2026.

The Slovaks have named forwards Juraj Slafkovsky, Martin Pospisil and Tomas Tatar, as well as defensemen Simon Nemec, Martin Fehervary and Erik Cernak to the team.

Slovakia’s Olympic countdown is on. Here are the first 6 players on their preliminary roster.🇸🇰👏#IIHF #Olympics #NHL #NHLPA @hockeyslovakia @olympics @nhl @nhlpa pic.twitter.com/ihiqrqA5No

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) June 16, 2025

Final rosters aren’t due until just prior to the tournament, with most rosters expected in early 2026.

Slovakia has seen a resurgence on the international stage in recent years. They finished fourth in 2010, which was their best result at the time since leaving Czechoslovakia. They struggled with 11th-place finishes in the next two events and needed to win a qualification tournament to advance to the 2022 event. That’s where they found their magic, taking home bronze for the first time ever.

Slafkovsky was a big reason why they won a medal that year. He scored seven goals in seven games to earn MVP honors after leading the tournament in both goals and points. He hasn’t played a ton of international hockey since then, but the Montreal Canadiens forward has 15 points over his past 16 games at the World Championship. Slafkovsky is coming off a new personal best of 51 points, just edging out the 50 he set as a sophomore in 2023-24.

Like Slafkovsky, Nemec was also a notable draft prospect at the 2022 Olympics. He had a quieter showing with just one assist in seven games, but he was still an integral piece of the team’s blueline. He has played in numerous international events since then, and even helped the Slovaks win their Olympic qualification tournament this past summer. Nemec split this past season between the NHL and AHL, registering four points in a deeper role with the New Jersey Devils.

Tatar also has Olympic experience, having registered two points back in 2014. He’s coming off a disappointing 17-point season with the Devils, with Tatar later going on to sign with EV Zug in Switzerland for the 2025-26 season.

Slovakia will play in Group B against Finland, Sweden and the hosts from Italy.