NHL players are officially set to return to the Winter Olympics for the 2026 Games in Milan-Cortina. The National Hockey League (NHL), the National Hockey League Players` Association (NHLPA), and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) have successfully finalized a deal that guarantees player participation in the prestigious tournament.
This formal agreement confirms what had been widely anticipated. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman had indicated for several months that league players would be participating in the upcoming Olympic Games. The preparation for the tournament is already underway, as all 12 national men`s hockey teams involved named their initial six players last month.
The 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics will mark the first time NHL players have competed on the Olympic stage since the 2014 Sochi Games. They were absent from the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics due to an inability of the NHL and IIHF to reach a participation agreement at that time. NHL players also did not attend the 2022 Beijing Olympics, as the league withdrew due to the significant disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to its regular-season schedule.
Historically, the last two times NHL players were featured in the Olympic men`s hockey tournament, Canada claimed the gold medal, winning in Vancouver in 2010 and repeating the feat in Sochi in 2014.
For the 2026 tournament, which is scheduled to run from February 11th to 22nd, Canada has already revealed the first six players named to its roster: Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Connor McDavid, Brayden Point, and Sam Reinhart.