United States having 'good problems' filling Olympic roster, GM Guerin says

TORONTO -- The United States continues to work on its men's hockey roster ahead of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

"The good thing is we have a lot of good players, players that are having good seasons, to choose from," general manager Bill Guerin said Tuesday. "Like we say, they're good problems to have, because they're tough decisions."

The U.S. management group has been meeting often virtually. But with the Hockey Hall of Fame induction Monday and the NHL general managers meeting here Tuesday, Guerin and his colleagues took advantage of the opportunity to meet in person here Monday. They were on the same floor at the same hotel as the Canada management group.

Canada GM Doug Armstrong said he and his colleagues shortened the list of players they are actively considering to the high 30s or low 40s, while allowing for the possibility that others could perform well enough to get on the list. Guerin said the U.S. is taking a different approach.

Each team's roster is due Dec. 31, although how the rosters will be announced has yet to be decided. The tournament is Feb. 11-22.

Explore NHL.com's Coverage of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026

"You try to keep guys in the mix as long as you can," Guerin said. "There are guys who are having good years. There's guys who have bigger bodies of work. A lot of different thoughts go into each individual, so we try to keep guys going as long as we can."

The core of the team will be the same as the one that took Canada to overtime in the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off last season, losing 3-2. But Guerin has said the U.S. needs to find an edge as it tries to win its first best-on-best tournament since the 1996 World Cup of Hockey and its first Olympic gold medal since 1980 in Lake Placid.

Injuries are an issue too. Most notably, forwards Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers and Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators, each of whom made a huge impact at 4 Nations, are out with injuries but expected to return in time for the Olympics.

"I don't want to talk about individuals, but we're watching everybody," Guerin said. "The other thing is the injury part, keeping tabs on that. But I think we owe it to ourselves and to the team to keep an eye on everybody and make sure everybody's doing what they should be doing or playing as well as they can be."

Several players who weren't on the roster for 4 Nations are among the U.S. scoring leaders in the NHL this season, including Anaheim Ducks forwards Cutter Gauthier and Troy Terry, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies, Utah Mammoth center Nick Schmaltz and Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield.

Others to watch who weren't on the roster for 4 Nations include Mammoth forward Clayton Keller, Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson and Detroit Red Wings forward Patrick Kane.

"There are a lot of young players that are really coming, and if it's not this time, it's for sure the next time," Guerin said. "But there are a lot of guys making it hard on me, and that's what we want. That's what I want. That's what our entire group wants, because it's better for USA Hockey. It's better for the U.S. team."

Guerin said he and his colleagues will continue to meet often virtually and will meet in person one more time as they "try to dial in a little bit more." Assistant coach John Tortorella, who isn't working in the NHL this season, has been scouting. The rest of the coaches have been busy with their NHL teams.

"We'll get the coaches more involved now too," Guerin said. "That'll be a big thing, because even though we're picking the team, they have to be involved at some level just because of player deployment and how we're going to use guys and what they feel that we need, so we have to work together on that."