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Connor Bedard, Team Canada (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

Team Canada’s 2026 Olympic B-Team

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Jacob Billington | Last updated Jan 5, 2026 10:58 AM ET

The NHL is getting set to head to the Olympics, and when a nation like Canada has its roster announced, there are so many arguments about which players belong on the team.

Here, we are going to look at what Canada could put together for a second team, using only the players not named to the Olympic team.

Team Canada’s “B-Team” Forwards

Looking at the forwards Canada isn’t bringing, they could make something along the lines of:

Connor Bedard – Mark Scheifele – Carter Verhaeghe

Wyatt Johnston – Sam Bennett – Seth Jarvis

Zach Hyman – John Tavares – Drake Batherson

Dylan Guenther – Mat Barzal – Morgan Geekie

Extras: Travis Konecny, Ryan O’Reilly

There are some pretty fantastic forwards here. We can gloss over Schefiele, Bennett, and Bedard as they have been talked about more than anybody else on this roster. If you want more thoughts, check out The Hockey Writers’ Spencer Lazary’s Team Canada snubs here, which includes some of those players.

Other stars who have also been talked about a lot include Wyatt Johnston and Seth Jarvis. Jarvis was on the 4 Nations Face-Off roster and both were included in many projections for Canada’s team.

A lot of what makes Canada’s Olympic team so effective carries over to this group as well. There’s plenty of speed and scoring, but also a number of players who are simply miserable to play against. Being able to roll out a third line with Tavares centering Batherson and Hyman would allow the team to play heavy hockey while not sacrificing offense.

Having a potential fourth line with Guenther, Barzal, and Geekie would do the team a lot of favours, as they all have great speed and are always a scoring threat, but could work well as a good defensive line.

To nobody’s surprise, yes, Team Canada can put together another 14-man forward group that would contend as one of the best in the tournament.

Team Canada’s “B-Team” Defense

Matthew Schaefer – Mackenzie Weegar

Jakob Chychrun – Evan Bouchard

Vince Dunn – Darren Raddysh

Extras: Mike Matheson, Noah Dobson

Canada has some great options on the back end here, too. Of course, Schaefer is likely the next man up for Team Canada and has been having an unbelievable rookie season, demonstrated by his dominance against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Jan. 3.

Jakob Chychrun is also probably right behind Schaefer and is having another fantastic season with the Washington Capitals. Leaving him off the Olympic team was likely a tough decision.

Evan Bouchard has the potential to be the most polarizing player on the ice, but he hasn’t demonstrated enough consistency to be on the Olympic team, especially if he won’t be in a position to be playing top power play minutes. Here, Bouchard could thrive.

Weegar and Dunn are no shock to be on this list. Both have become very reliable defensemen with high upside, but just fall short of the Olympic tier. The same could be said for both Matheson and Dobson, too. Great defensemen, but fall short of the top tier.

Darren Raddysh being on this list would have sounded crazy at the start of this season, but he has been one of the top defensemen in the league and is leading the way for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Team Canada’s Goaltenders

Jake Allen, Mackenzie Blackwood, Scott Wedgewood

Taking the two goalies from the Colorado Avalanche is a pretty good idea, considering how dominant they have both been in the crease for the league-leading team. Having a great team in front of them helps, but is someone going to argue that this isn’t a great team? Probably not.

The third goalie spot here would go to either Allen or Jet Greaves – both are having good seasons.

There is a good chance that this team from Canada could do very well in this tournament and could even challenge for a medal.