Top NHLers to watch at final men’s Olympic qualification hockey tournament

Credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff

The big boys are back.

With NHLers set to return to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, the upcoming Olympic qualification tournaments this weekend will be of even more intrigue.

From Aug. 29 to Sept. 1, 12 nations will battle for three spots in Milan. The teams will be split up into three cities: Bratislava, Slovakia (Austria, Hungary, Kazakhstan, and Slovakia); Riga, Latvia (France, Latvia, Slovenia, and Ukraine); and Aalborg, Denmark (Denmark, Great Britain, Japan, and Norway).

The winner of each of the three tournaments will join the pack of 12 in Italy in 2026, with the host teams of all three events expected to be the favorites to move on. The teams with automatic invitations are Canada, Czechia, Finland, Germany, Italy (as hosts), Russia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.

There’s a bit of uncertainty, though. Russia is currently banned from IIHF competition in 2024-25, with it being unclear as to whether they’ll be included in the 2025-26 season. The IIHF will make a decision as to whether Russian players will be permitted to play in the Olympics next February, one year before the main event. If banned, the highest-ranked second-place team from one of the qualification tournaments will be promoted. Slovakia, Latvia, Demark, Norway and Austria are the highest-ranked IIHF teams in the next tier, ranking 7-13th.

Additionally, Belarus is not part of the final qualification due to the IIHF ban.

Final qualification round teams were divided into groups based on IIHF rankings. Ukraine, Great Britain, Japan, and Hungary advanced through qualification tournaments held in February to help complete the 12-team slate.

Don’t underestimate the level of talent playing in a tournament like this, either. Just because someone is an NHLer or a big-name prospect doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll outplay someone who has had to grind away to make a career happen for the past decade. Patrick Thoresen is 40, had just played his seventh year with Storhamar in the Norwegian league last year, and hasn’t played in the NHL since 2008, but he was just as good, if not better, than Mats Zuccarello at the 2024 World Championship.

Of note, Martin Fehérváry is listed on Slovakia’s roster but is currently dealing with an injury. At the time of writing this, it’s unclear if the Washington Capitals defender will indeed represent the Slovaks in their fight to build upon their bronze medal in 2022.

So, with that all out of the way, here’s a look at 14 NHL-affiliated players to keep a close eye on once the action gets underway on Thursday:

David Reinbacher, D, Austria (Montreal Canadiens)

Reinbacher looked quite good in the two games against Slovenia in exhibition play last week, scoring a goal and an assist while registering 11 shots on net. He averaged around 15 minutes a night and likely won’t be tasked with top-pairing duties due to his age and lack of experience. But Canadiens fans should still look to keep a close eye on him because there are some high expectations for him to bounce back after a difficult year in Switzerland. He has looked good against men internationally in the past, with the 19-year-old having an excellent showing in limited duty at the 2023 World Championship, so hopefully, we will see more of the same here.

Marco Kasper, C, Austria (Detroit Red Wings)

The Austrians should lean on Kasper to bring speed and skill to the lineup. Kasper’s first season in North America started off slowly, as he registered just five points in his first 16 games over the season’s first two months. He still had some difficult stretches, including a six-game pointless streak to close the regular season and kick off the playoffs. But he was so good when he was on his game, eventually finishing with 14 goals and 35 points. Hopefully, he can start the year off with a big showing on the international stage, surrounded by as much help as he’s ever had while representing the Austrians.

Frederik Andersen, G, Denmark (Carolina Hurricanes)

Andersen is easily the top goaltender playing in this event, having performed quite well down the stretch last year after dealing with some health issues. The 34-year-old has plenty of experience in Olympic qualification action, with his play at the 2012 tournament giving the Danes a fighting chance. Andersen might be hard to rely on in the NHL at times due to the number of injuries and other ailments he has dealt with, but he can be incredible when he’s dialed in – and he’s proven to be one heck of a performer on the international level. He hasn’t represented his nation since the 2018 World Championship, so his return should be exciting for the fanbase.

Nikolaj Ehlers, LW, Denmark (Winnipeg Jets)

If you can count on one thing in hockey, it’s that Ehlers will always put on a show when he plays for his country. If it wasn’t for his nine points in three games at the last OGQ, the Danes would have missed out on playing their first Olympics ever. Now, he’s got a chance to not only help lead them again but participate in the big event himself. Ehlers is coming off a bounce-back 61-point season with Winnipeg last year after multiple years of dealing with injury issues. If he really is back in peak form, Ehlers should be one of the most dangerous players at the qualification tournament, and maybe he and the rest of the Danes can play spoiler in Italy in two years.

Oliver Bjorkstrand, RW, Denmark (Seattle Kraken)

Ehlers wasn’t the only Dane that popped off back in 2021. Bjorkstrand was impressive, too, with three goals and five points in three games, marking just his third international tournament since turning pro in 2015. So the Danes don’t get him often, but they’re probably happy that he’s coming following a career-best 59 points with the Kraken this past year. Bjorkstrand was one of the few bright spots on Seattle, and he’ll be riding a nice confidence wave heading into this tournament – especially with the Danes expected to be serious contenders.

Lars Eller, C, Denmark (Pittsburgh Penguins)

At 35, this could be one of the final times we see Eller represent the Danes. It’s been a while, given his last World Championship came in 2019 when he had five points in three games. he’s also coming off a sneaky good season, scoring 15 goals and 31 points in his first year with the Penguins. The Danes will count on his veteran leadership, but he’s also out to prove he has more good hockey left. If all goes well, Eller can finally add “Olympian” to a resume that also includes a Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018.

Alexandre Texier, C, France (St. Louis Blues)

Texier has had a wonky past few seasons, which included a one-year deal with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland before jetting back to Columbus for 2023-24. He was moved to St. Louis for a fresh start in 2024-25, where he’s expected to have a depth scoring role. Texier was excellent in the 2021 Olympic qualification event, so they hope for more of the same as France’s primary offensive threat. He has had his ups and downs while playing for the national team, but they’ll need him to be excellent if they’re going to advance.

Teddy Blueger, C, Latvia (Vancouver Canucks)

Blugers is coming off a decent 22-assist, 28-point season with Vancouver, his first season with the club. It came two seasons after he captained Latvia at the 2021 Olympics, his first time participating in an event like that. The 30-year-old has plenty of experience wearing his nation’s colors, but this will be easily the most important of his career to date. This tournament might be the only time he gets to showcase his offensive chops this year, but he has that dog in him to be one heck of an annoyance out there, too.

Zemgus Girgensons, C, Latvia (Tampa Bay Lightning)

It’s going to be weird not seeing the 30-year-old wearing the blue and gold in Buffalo next year, but it was time for both parties to move on. For Girgensons, this is the first time he has represented Latvia internationally since the 2021 qualification tournament. Before that, he often played a similar support role with Latvia to what he did in Buffalo, making him a solid presence on a team that has built a reputation for being stronger defensively than offensively. Don’t expect a ton of offense from him, but he’ll help out his team in his own zone.

Mats Zuccarello, RW, Norway (Minnesota Wild)

The Zucc represented Norway internationally for the first time in 2004, before some players on this list were even born. So you can say he’s been around the block, given this is now his fourth Olympic qualification tournament. Zuccarello was also part of Norway’s team that qualified for both the 2010 and 2014 tournaments, so he knows how big of a deal it is to play at a level like that. Zuccarello has seen his play decline a bit the past two years, but he’s still coming off a 51-assist, 63-point season with the Wild last year. He capped the year off with six assists in five World Championship games while also battling an ailment. This is likely Zuccarello’s last chance at the Olympics, so he’ll want to make it count.

Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, RW, Norway (Detroit Red Wings)

Brandsegg-Nygard might not be the flashiest player, but he’s a battler. And as the 2024 World Championship wore on, it was good to see him getting more opportunities alongside Zuccarello and Thoresen. MBN also received lots of love from those who watched him in some exhibition action over the past few weeks, too, which is an excellent sign for one of Detroit’s top prospects. He had one of the best shot releases in the 2024 draft, and with the right linemates, he will be one heck of a scoring threat in the NHL – and, hopefully, for Norway at this tournament, too.

Simon Nemec, D Slovakia (New Jersey Devils)

Nemec has played about as much international hockey as anyone over the past half-decade. Heck, he’s only 20, but it’s his second Olympic qualification tournament after playing a more minor role in 2021, only to make the final roster in 2022. Nemec was fantastic at the World Championship last year after breaking through with the Devils on a full-time basis and I expect him to play a pretty significant role after the year he had. I’m excited to see what he can do with the Devils with a full blueline again, given Nemec was thrust into more ice time than expected once Dougie Hamilton went down with an injury.

Tomas Tatar, LW, Slovakia (New Jersey Devils)

Tatar had a difficult season last year, struggling to produce with both Colorado and Seattle. He had a decent World Championship, and he’s back to New Jersey, where he looked good in 2022-23, so maybe there’s hope for him to have a bit of a comeback. Tatar has captained Slovakia in his last two World Championship tournaments so they clearly think very highly of him, and a lot of the younger players can be seen leaning on him throughout a given game. They’ll need Tatar to play a big role with Juraj Slafkovsky not participating – and if we’ve learned anything from him internationally, it’s that Tatar doesn’t give up.

Martin Pospisil, C, Slovakia (Calgary Flames)

Pospisil was a human wrecking ball at the World Championship last year, hitting everyone in sight while also scoring three goals and seven points. It was quite the men’s national team debut for Pospisil, who had just put up 24 points and 109 PIM in his rookie season with the Flames. I appreciate that he’s willing to mix it up with just about anyone, and I am excited to see if he can have another excellent international showing for a team that will need some help generating high-quality chances.

Others with NHL contracts/rights: Stian Solberg, D, Norway (Anaheim Ducks), Martin Fehérváry, D, Slovakia (Washington Capitals), Mads Sogaard, G, Denmark (Ottawa Senators), Patrik Koch, D, Slovakia (Utah HC), Adam Sykora, LW, Slovakia (New York Rangers), Artur Cholach, D, Ukraine (Vegas Golden Knights), Vinzenz Rohrer, C, Austria (Montreal Canadiens), Noah Steen, LW, Norway (Tampa Bay Lightning), Pierrick Dube, RW, France (Washington Capitals), Samuel Knazko, D, Slovakia (Columbus Blue Jackets), Pavol Regenda, LW, Slovakia (Anaheim Ducks), Jonas Røndbjerg, LW, Denmark (Vegas Golden Knights), Milos Kelemen, RW, Slovakia (Utah HC), Mathias Emilio Pettersen, C, Norway (Dallas Stars)