After 12 years, the NHL will finally send its players to the Winter Olympics. Well over 100 NHL players will head to the Olympics this season, with all 32 NHL teams having at least one representative. But for various reasons, some teams will send more players to Italy than others. Here are the top teams with the most representation: FLORIDA PANTHERS (10): The Florida Panthers [http://thn.com/florida] will send a league-leading 10 players to the Olympics, with Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, and Brad Marchand representing Canada; Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen, and Niko Mikkola representing Finland; Sandis Vilmanis and Uvis Balinskis representing Latvia; Matthew Tkachuk representing Team USA; and Gustav Forsling representing Sweden. That number could have been even higher for the Panthers as Seth Jones was initially selected to Team USA’s roster before he suffered an upper-body injury [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/ducks-jackson-lacombe-replaces-seth-jones-on-usa-s-olympic-men-s-hockey-team] that will hold him out of the tournament. Aleksander Barkov would have been a lock and the likely captain for Team Finland, and Tomas Nosek could have been selected to Czechia’s roster as a depth center. It’s not surprising to see this many players selected from the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions. Matty Boldy, Brock Faber, and Joel Eriksson Ek (Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/3f049232-7c4b-47dd-805c-656ee838fbe4.jpeg] Matty Boldy, Brock Faber, and Joel Eriksson Ek (Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images) MINNESOTA WILD (9): The Minnesota Wild [http://thn.com/minnesota] have become real contenders this season after the acquisition of Quinn Hughes, and it’s reflective of the number of their players selected to Olympic rosters. The Wild will send four players to represent Sweden: Filip Gustavsson, Jesper Wallstedt, Marcus Johansson, and Joel Eriksson-Ek. They’ll also be sending three American representatives, Hughes, Brock Faber, and Matt Boldy, as well as Nico Sturm for Germany and David Spacek for Czechia. Jonas Brodin was initially selected to Sweden’s roster before sustaining a lower-body injury. BOSTON BRUINS, COLORADO AVALANCHE, AND TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING (8): The next tier includes the Boston Bruins [http://thn.com/boston], who will supply Czechia with two players: David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha, Sweden with two: Hampus Lindholm and Elias Lindholm, Finland with two: Joonas Korpisalo and Henri Jokiharju, and the Americans with two: Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman. The Bruins benefited most from injury replacements, but it's still quite impressive for a team that missed the playoffs last season. The Colorado Avalanche [http://thn.com/colorado] and the Tampa Bay Lightning [http://thn.com/tampabay] were expected to have plenty of representatives, as they are among, if not the two best teams in the NHL. The Avalanche will send Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Devon Toews for Canada; Joel Kiviranta and Artturi Lehkonen for Finland; Gabriel Landeskog for Sweden; Martin Necas for Czechia; and Brock Nelson for Team USA. Could These 10 NHL Veterans Be Playing In Their Last Olympics? [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/556ed6d9-6a49-4678-a4ff-ed06dec78e7f.jpeg] Could These 10 NHL Veterans Be Playing In Their Last Olympics? Longtime NHL veterans, such as Canada's Sidney Crosby and Denmark's Lars Eller, will play crucial roles for their national team at the 2026 Olympics. But will this be their final chance to win an Olympic medal? [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/could-these-10-nhl-veterans-be-playing-in-their-last-olympics] As for the Lightning, they’ll watch Victor Hedman and Pontus Holmberg play for Sweden, Jake Guentzel for the Americans, Erik Cernak for Slovakia, Oliver Bjorkstrand for Denmark, Zemgus Girgensons for Latvia, J.J. Moser for Switzerland, and Brandon Hagel for Team Canada. Anthony Cirelli and Brayden Point were set to play for Canada before they were forced to withdraw due to injuries earlier this week. DALLAS STARS, NEW JERSEY DEVILS, AND VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (7): The Dallas Stars [http://thn.com/dallas] are in a heated race for the Central Division crown, which makes sense when remembering that they’ll have seven representatives at the Olympics, and they probably should have more. Four Stars players will represent Finland: Mikko Rantanen, Roope Hintz, Esa Lindell, and Miro Heiskanen. They’ll also see Radek Faska representing Czechia, Thomas Harley representing Canada, and Jake Oettinger representing the USA. The Stars could also have seen Jason Robertson represent the Americans and Wyatt Johnston represent Canada [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/why-canada-and-usa-snubbed-some-elite-offense-for-the-olympics] if different choices had been made. The New Jersey Devils [http://thn.com/newjersey] are in the midst of watching their season crumble, and they are hoping the Olympic break does them some good. In the meantime, they’ll send Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, and Jonas Siegenthaler to play for Switzerland, Jacob Markstrom and Jesper Bratt to Sweden, Simon Nemec to Slovakia, and Jack Hughes to Team USA. The Vegas Golden Knights [http://thn.com/vegas] are filled with Stanley Cup pedigree, and they are another team that was expected to be this high on the list. Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, and Shea Theodore will don the red and white for Canada; Noah Hanifin and Jack Eichel will rep the American flag; Akira Schmid will tend the goal for Switzerland; and Tomas Hertl will battle for Czechia. Jonas Rondbjerg, who has spent most of the season with the Henderson Silver Knights, will also head to Italy to represent Denmark. Mark Stone ranks fifth in the NHL in points per game at 1.46. (David Kirouac-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/9dd70405-16fd-48ae-9b66-93256802f3fb.jpeg] Mark Stone ranks fifth in the NHL in points per game at 1.46. (David Kirouac-Imagn Images) CAROLINA HURRICANES, LOS ANGELES KINGS, OTTAWA SENATORS, ST. LOUIS BLUES, AND VANCOUVER CANUCKS (5): The next tier will include the Carolina Hurricanes [http://thn.com/carolina], Los Angeles Kings [http://thn.com/la], Ottawa Senators [http://thn.com/ottawa], St. Louis Blues [http://thn.com/stlouis], and Vancouver Canucks [http://thn.com/vancouver], each of which will send five players to the Olympics. The Hurricanes representatives are Sebastian Aho (FIN), Frederik Andersen (DEN), Nikolaj Ehlers (DEN), Seth Jarvis [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/hurricanes-seth-jarvis-replaces-brayden-point-on-canada-s-olympic-team] (CAN), and Jaccob Slavin (USA). The Kings will send Joel Armia (FIN), Drew Doughty (CAN), Kevin Fiala (SUI), Adrian Kempe (SWE), and Darcy Kuemper (CAN). Should Matthew Schaefer Have Made Canada's Olympic Team Over Drew Doughty? [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/9302b653-a679-41dc-829a-02622aa843a7.jpeg] Should Matthew Schaefer Have Made Canada's Olympic Team Over Drew Doughty? New York Islanders rookie Matthew Schaefer is surging, while Los Angeles Kings blueliner Drew Doughty hasn't recorded a point yet in 2026. Should Schaefer have made Team Canada over Doughty despite playing different sides? [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/should-matthew-schaefer-have-made-canada-s-olympic-team-over-drew-doughty] The Senators will send Lars Eller (DEN), Nikolas Matinpalo (FIN), Jake Sanderson (USA), Tim Stutzle (GER), and Brady Tkachuk (USA). Senators will also send Mads Soogard, who’s with the Belleville Senators in the AHL [http://thn.com/ahl]. The Blues are sending Jordan Binnington (CAN), Philip Broberg (SWE), Dalibor Dvorsky (SVK), Colton Parayko (CAN), and Pius Suter (SUI). The Canucks are sending Teddy Blueger (LAT), Filip Hronek (CZE), David Kampf (CZE), Kevin Lankanen (FIN), and Elias Pettersson (SWE). The Canucks will send Lukas Reichel (GER), who is currently playing with their AHL team, the Abbotsford Canucks. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Image [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/879cf76d-46eb-4e50-b738-77736e9e2a6c.jpeg] For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free [https://thehockeynews.store/products/print-subscription?_gl=1*1ep8228*_ga*NDAxOTY4NTMuMTc1NTg5NTA0Mg..*_ga_ZET34ZFCGX*czE3NzA1NzM0NDQkbzcyJGcxJHQxNzcwNTc0MjM2JGo2MCRsMCRoMA..]. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
