One of the best players to don the Red, White & Blue is getting an opportunity to put together a gold medal-caliber team.
On Thursday, USA Hockey announced that Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin will be the GM of Team USA for the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off next year, as well as the 2026 Winter Olympics.
“It’s an honor beyond belief to be asked to do this and I couldn’t say yes quick enough,” Guerin said in a release. “I am so thankful to USA Hockey for this opportunity, and also appreciate the support of Craig (Leipold) and the Wild organization. I’ve been fortunate to have many great days in hockey and this is among the very best.”
The original plans were for Guerin to serve as the GM for the American squad that went to Beijing in 2022, but the NHL pulling out due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic derailed that from happening.
“We’re excited to have Bill leading efforts to build our teams,” Executive director of USA Hockey, Pat Kelleher, stated. “He was obviously an extraordinary player and has gone on to become an accomplished executive in the NHL It’s no secret there’s a lot of excitement around NHL players returning to the Olympics and also for the 4 Nations Face-Off, and we’re thankful to have the passion Bill brings to Team USA.”
The 4 Nations Face-Off was announced by the NHL during All-Star Weekend, and will take place next February. The league also announced, in conjunction with the IIHF, that they will be sending its players to both the 2026 and 2030 Olympics, which are taking place in Milan, Italy and Nice, France, respectively.
Guerin has played for his country on multiple occasions, most notably in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, where Team USA stunned Canada in the finals. He also played for the U.S. in the 1998, 2002 and 2006 Olympic Games, taking home silver in Salt Lake City in ’02.
The U.S. Hockey Hall of Famer was hired by the Wild to take over as GM in August 2019 and was promoted to president of hockey operations this past July.
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