Streit wants to see more of his Swiss countrymen thrive in NHL

MILAN -- Mark Streit had a little meeting scheduled in front of section B12 of Santagiulia Arena following the first period of Canada's 5-1 win against Switzerland in the preliminary round of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 on Friday.

True to his country’s reputation, the former defenseman was there right on time.

Streit posed for photos with fans. He talked about hockey. But he also spoke about old memories, like Switzerland’s miraculous 2-0 win against Canada at the 2006 Torino Olympics.

“It was a crazy game,” Streit said. “It was a special moment for me. I was incredibly proud to defeat Canada. In 2006, the Canadians thought it would be easy to beat us. Now they have a lot more respect for Swiss hockey.”

Streit played in that preliminary round game; Paul DiPietro scored twice and Martin Gerber made 49 saves in the historic win.

“For the first time in 12 years we have NHL players in the Olympics,” Streit said. “Switzerland now knows how to compete with the best teams. You see it against Canada. We’re in the game. I find that incredible. I still know several players, particularly Roman (Josi) and Nino (Niederreiter). I love the atmosphere in the arena. Hearing the Swiss fans’ chants makes me smile. It even makes me feel a bit nostalgic. I wish I was still playing. But I’m not expecting another big upset.”

At that point Friday, 20 minutes into the game, Canada led 2-0, and there would be no miracle this time; led by Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Macklin Celebrini, Canada went on to a 5-1 win.

Still, the Swiss (1-0-1-0), who defeated France 4-0 in their Group A opener on Thursday, can finish second in the group with a win against Czechia (1-0-1-0) on Sunday (6:10 a.m. ET; Peacock, CNBC, ICI TOU.TV, CBC Gem, SN, RDS) and advance to the quarterfinals, which begin Tuesday.

“Switzerland is no longer a hockey outsider,” Streit said. “The situation has changed over the past two decades. For me, it goes back to Ralph Krueger’s era. He changed Switzerland’s hockey program and culture.

“Twenty years ago we beat Canada in Turin. But our 2006 team was not as good as our 2026 team. Today we have NHL stars from Switzerland, like Josi, (Timo) Meier, (Nico) Hischier and (Kevin) Fiala. That’s incredible.”

Streit, who had 434 points (96 goals, 338 assists) in 786 NHL games with the Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins from 2005-18 and won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2017, said he has one wish for his country.

“I would love to see more players from Switzerland in the NHL,” the 48-year-old said. “It would be great to have 20 NHL players on the national team, like Sweden and Finland. There are about 10 to 12 Swiss players in the League from one year to the next. It doesn’t vary much. But the quality of our players is more substantial today.”

Switzerland has 10 NHL players on its roster in Milan: forwards Hischier and Meier of the New Jersey Devils, Fiala of the Los Angeles Kings, Niederreiter of the Winnipeg Jets, Philipp Kurashev of the San Joe Sharks and Pius Suter of the St. Louis Blues; defensemen Josi of the Nashville Predators, J.J. Moser of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Jonas Siegenthaler of the Devils; and goalie Akira Schmid of the Vegas Golden Knights.

That number is now down to nine; Fiala sustained an injury to his left leg during the loss to Canada and will miss the rest of the Olympic tournament.

In speaking about his own playing career, Streit was humble.

“When I look back at the path I followed, I’m awfully proud,” he said. “I helped pave the way for other players from Switzerland to compete in the NHL. In my day, we practically only had goalies in the League.”

Since his retirement as a player following the 2017-18 season, Streit has shifted to a career in the business world.

“I founded a new watch brand (Norqain) in 2018 with some friends, and we’re now one of the official partners of the NHL,” he said. “This is really special for me. I left the NHL as a player because I was too old, but now I’m coming back in a different way. It’s been quite a cycle.

Roman Josi and Sidney Crosby are two partners in our venture. Hockey is very much a part of our company’s DNA.”