2026 Milan Olympics Team USA Preview

This article is part of an ongoing series that follows up on Predicting Olympic Rosters as Chris, Roberto, and Chip take note of how their predictions match each countries official line up for the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics. To view more of the series go here.

"I'm not looking for the best players, Craig, I'm looking for the right ones."

Here's the problem with that logic. This isn't 1980 anymore and you can rest assured that even if by some chance Team USA takes gold in Milan, it's not going to come anywhere close to the legendary tale that was the Miracle On Ice. Not to mention, Herb Brooks was looking for the "right" players versus the "best" players because Team USA's best players back then were in the NHL and were nowhere near the skill level of the Soviets and other countries, to the extent that they weren't even expected to medal at Lake Placid in the first place. Modern day USA Hockey now actually has some of the best players in the world, yet they willingly left some of them off for ... what, exactly?

Questionable roster decisions aside, the Americans are expected to medal. Next to Canada, they're the favorites entering the tournament and are looking for revenge following the overtime loss they suffered in the 4 Nation Face-Off championship game. Team USA has only ever won gold in ice hockey in 1960 and again for the Miracle On Ice in 1980. In 2002 and 2010, they came home with Silver Medals after falling to Canada in the championship round.

Will this year be more of the same, or will they snap a 46 year drought?

Chris (21 out of 25)

B. Tkachuk - Matthews - M. Tkachuk 
J. Hughes - Eichel - Guentzel 
Robertson - Cooley - Keller
Knies - Larkin - Thompson
Connor - Miller - Boldy 

Q. Hughes - McAvoy 
Werenski - Faber
Sanderson - Fox 
Slavin - Hanifin 

Hellebuyck - Oettinger - Daccord 

I’m sorry, but Bill Guerin simply isn’t interested in winning with some of these decisions. And in a similar respect, I’m not interested in any opinion that suggests he was justified in leaving Jason Robertson off this roster.

Roles on the team aside, Matthew Tkachuk had not yet played a meaningful hockey game this season up until a couple of weeks ago. While I had no doubt he'd be good to go for the Olympics (and has eight points in three games, so he certainly seems fine) you were banking on at least one unsure thing in your top six. God forbid he or anyone in the top six goes down, who is scoring goals for this team? You clearly have loads of talent but you're not going to take the American born skater with the most goals in the league? Why?!?

Again, assuming specific roles is fine, but there is no need to take both Miller and Trocheck. One of them (or Brock Nelson) centering your fourth line with Thompson and Larkin on the wings is perfect and that leaves you with a stacked top nine.

Chip (21 out of 25)

B. Tkachuk - Matthews - M. Tkachuk 
J. Hughes - Eichel - Guentzel 
Knies - Cooley - Boldy
Keller - Larkin - Thompson
Kane - Miller - Tuch

Q. Hughes - McAvoy 
Werenski - Faber
Sanderson - Fox 
Slavin - Hanifin 

Hellebuyck - Oettinger - Quick 

Well, Billy Guerin is right, I do think he's pretty dumb. He built a team that would probably win a Stanley Cup if it went up against the rest of the NHL, but in this contest they'll be lucky to medal. Look, Adam Fox is injured so that takes the blame away from him not being named to Team USA. But how this jabroni can look at the seasons Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller are having and say with a straight face that they deserve Olympic roster spots over Jason Robertson and Cole Caufield is buffoonery that buggers the imagination. Seriously, if this is how Guerin thinks on a daily basis I'm legitimately surprised he doesn't walk into more walls.

The Athletic columnist Mark Lazerus wrote a piece last week saying that we may not like Guerin's decisions, but we have to respect them.

The fuck I do. I do not like them, and I shall not respect them. I acknowledge that they were his decisions to make, but that's about as far as I'm willing to go.

I also look forward to reading stories about the Tkachuk brothers being complete idiots during the team's time in the Olympic Village. You know what, better that Adam Fox isn't around to be caught up in whatever nonsense this is going to lead to.

Roberto (21 out of 25)

B. Tkachuk - Matthews - M. Tkachuk 
J. Hughes - Eichel - Guentzel 
Knies - Miller - Boldy
Keller - Larkin - Thompson
Connor - Cooley - Kane

Q. Hughes - McAvoy 
Werenski - Fox
Sanderson - Faber 
Slavin - Hutson

Hellebuyck - Oettinger - Swayman

Someone needs to check Guerin's passport, because putting together the team he did feels like some double-agent-type work. While he made some of the obvious choices, his decision-making leaves many puzzled. Leaving off Adam Fox is hard to justify, but then leaving Lane Hutson off as well feels even worse, especially since players have been replaced, meaning Hutson wasn't even on the short list. Bringing J.T. Miller was a mistake—Guerin clearly hasn't watched many Ranger games or post-game interviews this season if he thinks there's any positive to be gained from that.

Ultimately, Team USA still has too much firepower to go quietly into the night, but among the two North American teams, they are the lesser force, especially with the roster Guerin put together. They'll need their goaltending, which usually should be a clear advantage, to step up. But, Hellebuyck has shown in big moments that he struggles to live up to the hype.

Team USA Preliminary Round Schedule

• Feb. 12, 2026, 3:10 p.m. ET vs. Team Latvia
• Feb. 14, 2026, 3:10 p.m. ET vs. Team Denmark
• Feb. 15, 2026, 3:10 p.m. ET vs. Team Germany

Predictions

Chris: Similar to Canada, Team USA pretty much has a walk in the park through the preliminary round, although, I wouldn't sleep on Team Germany. Could Leon Draisaitl carry them through sixty minutes of hockey and steal a win from the Americans? Maybe. The boring answer here is to say USA is going 3-0 but I'll be bold and say they go 2-1 with an overtime loss to Germany.

Chip: If this is anything other than a cake walk for Team USA then I'll let out a hearty laugh. Bill Guerin really thinks he built the "best team" for this tournament. We all know Bill Guerin is a buffoon and that this team has so many self-inflicted wounds it should be under serious psychological care. They'll probably go 3-0 but I would absolutely love to see Leon Draisaitl and JJ Peterka humiliate the Tkachuk brothers on the world stage. (Side note: If Lukas Reichel looks good in this tournament for Team Germany, it could salvage his career.)

Roberto: Wouldn't it be something if Team USA imploded in the preliminary round? While that would be quite a spectacle to see, especially from the perspective of a scorned Adam Fox, it's highly unlikely. What will probably happen is they'll score the most goals in this round against the three weaker opponents and then struggle when they are truly tested in the knockout rounds.