2026 Olympics present great 'opportunity' for Team Canada, GM says

NHL players will participate in the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 this February, the first time since 2014 the best players in the world will be on the Olympic stage. NHL.com will post a story each Monday to count down to the 2026 Olympics. Today, a sit-down with Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong:

Doug Armstrong probably doesn't need a reminder of the pressures best-on-best international hockey brings when representing Canada.

But if he did, the 4 Nations Face-Off last February was a strong reinforcing sample.

"Obviously the tournament itself was fantastic for hockey," Armstrong said. "I learned quickly what it means to play for your country, what the players put into that. It's been a long time since we've done that. The level of competition ... the skill level and pace, that's something you just don't see in the NHL every night.

"It's going to be a great tournament moving forward to the Olympics and putting some of those things in place that we saw there, whether it be synergy with players or observing the other teams on how they're going to compete. It was eye-opening in a lot of ways."

Armstrong led Canada's management group for the 4 Nations, helping assemble a team that eventually bested the United States in overtime of the championship game.

He'll go through it again as general manager for Canada at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the first time NHL players will participate at the Games since Sochi in 2014. The men's tournament will start with preliminary games Feb. 11, with the gold-medal game scheduled for Feb. 22.

His process kicked off June 16, with Canada naming six players to its preliminary roster, including forwards Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins), Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche), Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers), Brayden Point (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Sam Reinhart (Florida Panthers), and defenseman Cale Makar (Avalanche). Each helped Canada win gold at the 4 Nations.

Canada is vying for its first Olympic gold medal in men's hockey since 2014 and its third total in Games featuring NHL participation, after the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics and 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Armstrong was an assistant general manager in both 2010 and 2014 under Steve Yzerman, and also served as GM of Canada's gold-winning entry at the World Cup of Hockey 2016.

"I was fortunate enough to watch Steve Yzerman go through that in 2010 and 2014, and even at the World Cup in 2016. ... As a manager you understand what it means to the country and what it means to the players," Armstrong said. "I don't think anyone looks at it as pressure. It's just an opportunity to represent the NHL and your team and your country.

"I don't think we look at it as pressure. It's an opportunity."

Armstrong, the GM of the St. Louis Blues, recently talked with NHL.com about lessons learned at the 4 Nations Face-Off and what to expect at the Olympics.

For you, did you learn anything you might take to the Olympics that maybe you tweak or do differently in terms of how you go about building the roster that'll represent Canada?

"I think you certainly learn. The way that we tried to put this group together with skill and speed, I don't think we're going to deviate a lot from that. Playing the U.S., they brought a style of play that isn't likely to transfer to the Olympics as far as the fighting, but the overall style of play will transfer ... the physical play and the strong nature. I think we learned a lot about how we want to put our team together, and how the other teams are putting theirs together also."

Does the format change from the 4 Nations to the Olympics change the approach at all?

"Yeah. It allows you to build as you go along. It's a lot more similar to the World Championship would be where you get your roster together and you get some practices in and you build your game up. The 4 Nations was obviously just jumping right in and every game was basically life and death to get enough points to get to the final game. The format's different. It allows you to grow as a team as you're going through it."

How do you balance performances at the 4 Nations, World Championship and Stanley Cup Playoffs with what you'll see through the first portion of next season in deciding on your roster?

"All those things are telling, and what you want to do is take every opportunity when the lights are the brightest to see how players perform. You put that into the equation as we go to pick that team next January. Certainly players that perform well in those events are key because they know how to play when the lights are the brightest."

What are the biggest battles you see for this roster, or the toughest decisions you'll have to make?

"Quite honestly they're all relatively tough, just having the depth that we have in our country of players. It's just making sure we get the best players that are also the best teammates that work well together. That's why the 4 Nations gives us some idea and some synergy. But there's players that didn't play on that 4 Nations team that will certainly make the Olympics, so it's just about putting a team together that is a team in every sense of the word."

How difficult is it to resist the temptation of assembling an All-Star type of roster?

"We want to build a highly skilled team that can play with pace. That's our strength. I think we don't want to deviate from that. But certainly you have to kill penalties and win face-offs and you have to do certain things on the ice to give yourself the best opportunities. You're going to put a team together that can hit all those areas. The best players in the League usually touch every facet of their NHL teams and I think they'll do that at this event also."

For you, how does a best-on-best tournament win differ from an emotional standpoint to winning the Stanley Cup?

"The grind of doing something with someone for six or eight months or three, four or five years. ... Building something to win a Stanley Cup is just different. This is a short-term event and, don't get me wrong, it has a different feel. You want to put your best foot forward and win, but the NHL grind that these guys go through to win the Stanley Cup just has a different feel to it, for me."