The Lumberyard just keeps stacking wins for the Colorado Avalanche, but will it be enough for the chance to do so on the international stage?
Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood have formed the best goaltending duo in the NHL this season. Either would be a worthy selection for Canada to represent their country in February at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
The roster deadline for all 12 countries is Wednesday, and Canada will announce its team that morning. The U.S. roster will be announced Friday morning on “The Today Show.”
Colorado could have a bunch of players at the 2026 Olympics. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar (Canada), Gabe Landeskog (Sweden) and Martin Necas (Czechia) were already named to rosters when each country announced its first six players in June.
Who is going to join them? Here’s everyone who has a chance.
Canada
Devon Toews: Assuming good health, he’ll be there. Makar and Toews played together at the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, save for a game Makar missed because of illness. Canada won every game they played together. Expect them to be the top pairing in Milan.
Mackenzie Blackwood/Scott Wedgewood: Let’s just lump them together. Have they both played well enough to earn it? Yes.
Will either make it? There’s a chance. Jordan Binnington, despite his 2025-26 struggles with the Blues, is a lock. He helped Canada win the 4 Nations. He’ll be there. Will he actually start? That’s an interesting storyline when they get there.
Logan Thompson is the other consensus choice. He was not at the 4 Nations despite a great season with the Washington Capitals last year. It would be a surprise if he’s not in Milan, but not a total shock either. That he wasn’t an easy choice for 4 Nations, given Canada’s lack of strong options a year ago at this time, should tell you that not everyone at Hockey Canada is sold on Thompson.
That leaves one spot, and there are three obvious choices. It’s either going to be ex-Avalanche goalie Darcy Kuemper, or one half of The Lumberyard.
All three have been great this year — certainly better than Binnington and slightly better than Thompson recently. Kuemper’s advantage, ironically, lies with his success for Colorado during the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Either Blackwood or Wedgewood could be a great addition as the No. 3 goaltender, even if it’s just as one of the vibes guys in the locker room. Kuemper hasn’t played in a couple of weeks after old pal Mikko Rantanen collided with him, so that could be a factor.
United States
Brock Nelson: We’ve covered Nelson’s candidacy. He’s really come on after a slow start this year. There are younger players with better statistics who could deserve a chance, but the American braintrust values goals suppressed as much as goals scored in a short tournament, and Nelson’s been one of the league’s best two-way players this year.
Finland
Artturi Lehkonen: His family can book the flights. He’ll be there. If the teams had to announce a first seven players in June, he could have been the seventh.
Bet against the Finns as the giant killers at your peril.
Joel Kiviranta: He’s an interesting one. If Kiviranta was having the offensive season he had last year, he’d be a shoo-in. He is having a good all-around season, and is Mr. Dependable for the Avs. The Finns have built an international legacy around a few star players and guys like Kiviranta supporting them.
It’s worth noting that Antti Mäkinen, a prominent Finnish hockey broadcaster, put Kiviranta on his projected roster for Daily Faceoff last month.
Czechia
Ivan Ivan: There are only 10 Czech forwards who have played more than six games in the NHL this season. If we include last year, Ivan is 13th among his countrymen with 43 NHL games played. He feels like a long shot. Better offensive numbers in the AHL would certainly help his case, but he’s proven he can compete on the defensive end at the NHL level — that might give him an outside chance.
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