The veteran defenseman completes a remarkable career resurgence, leading Tre Kronor’s quest for gold alongside alternates Mattias Ekholm and Lucas Raymond in this highly anticipated international tournament.
Team Sweden has announced their captains for the 2026 IIHF World Hockey Championships ahead of the start of the tournament on May 15th.
The captain of the club will be Toronto Maple Leafs defencemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson. The alternates will be Edmonton Oilers' Mattias Ekholm and Detroit Red Wings' Lucas Raymond.
Ekman-Larsson had this to say about the news:
“I feel honoured by the opportunity to be captain of Tre Kronor for the third time in my career," Ekman-Larsson said, via an English translation of Sweden’s national team’s Twitter account. "We have already now begun building a strong team spirit, and we will continue to build it every day during this championship.”
This isn't the first time that OEL will represent his country. He was named to the 2026 Winter Olympic roster and played in five games but failed to register a point. He also suited up during the 2014 Winter Olympics, where he had three assists in five games.
This has to be a surreal moment for the 34-year-old, as his career was thought to be over after he was bought out by the Vancouver Canucks. However, after that he signed with the Florida Panthers and went on to win a Stanley Cup. That revitalized his career and allowed him to land a multi-year contract with the Maple Leafs, where he has found even more success.
This past season, he had eight goals and 31 assists for 39 points in 78 games and quickly became one of their more reliable blue liners.
Now, he and his teammates will try and bring a Gold Medal back to Sweden.