The men’s tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina begins on Thursday with Slovakia vs. Finland and Sweden against the host Italians. Both the United States and Canada play their opener on Thursday, against Latvia and Czechia. The two Buffalo Sabres playing in Italy will be playing prominent roles for the United States and Sweden.

Tage Thompson practiced playing on the right side with Detroit Red Wings Dylan Larkin at center and Winnipeg Jets Kyle Connor playing on the left. Sabres team captain Rasmus Dahlin skated with veteran Tampa Bay Lightning blueliner Victor Hedman on Sweden’s top-pairing and played his offside, as he has been doing with Mattias Samuelsson most of this season.

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There are a number of former Sabres on a variety of squads. Jack Eichel is centering Team USA’s top line between Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, while Sam Reinhart was slotted on Team Canada’s third line along with Florida Panthers teammate Brad Marchand and Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon.

The large ex-Sabre contingent on Finland's roster includes defensemen Rasmus Ristolainen, Henri Jokiharju, and winger Joel Armia. Ristolainen is paired with Panthers blueliner Niko Mikkola, while Jokiharju skated with Utah Mammoth defenseman Olli Maatta. Armia skated on the Finnish fourth line with Seattle Kraken winger Eeli Tolvanen and Nashville Predators center Erik Haula.

Tampa Bay’s Zemgus Girgensons is on Latvia’s top line with Florida winger Sandis Vilmanis and Vancouver Canucks center Teddy Blueger. Germany’s top line consists of Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl, Ottawa Senators center Tim Stutzle, and former Sabre JJ Peterka, while Dominik Kahun skated on the fourth line with DEL wingers Alexander Ehl and Frederik Tiffels.

Thompson is expected to be heavily relied on as a trigger man for the US squad, which did not select talented goal scorers Cole Caufield and Jason Robertson, opting for the more defensively inclined Brock Nelson, Vincent Trocheck, and JT Miller. The Americans fell short in the Four Nations Face-off due to injuries to key players (Charlie McAvoy and both Tkachuks) and have a number of players (Matthew Tkachuk, Jack Hughes) who just returned from the injured list before heading to Italy.

Dahlin and Pittsburgh’s Erik Karlsson are expected to be the point men for Sweden’s power play units and primary puck carriers, as Hedman just returned to the Lightning lineup from an elbow injury.

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Lineup Disposition Of Current And Former Sabres At The Winter Olympics