US hope team chemistry helps men's ice hockey squad snap gold-medal drought at Milano-Cortina

02 Jan 2026, 15:46 · CNA · Join

2022 Beijing Olympics - Ice Hockey - Men's Prelim. Round - Group A - United States v Germany - Wukesong Sports Centre, Beijing, China - February 13, 2022. Brock Faber of the United States in action with Frederik Tiffels of Germany. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse

Dec 29, 2025; Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN; Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) warms up before a game against the Edmonton Oilers at Canada Life Centre. Mandatory Credit: James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images

Dec 30, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (86) skates during the warmup before a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

Jan 1, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (34) pursues the play against the Winnipeg Jets in the first period at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

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Jan 2 : The general ‌manager of the U.S. Olympic men’s ice hockey team is counting on the chemistry his squad showed in reaching the 4 Nations Face-Off final to provide the missing ingredient for ending the team’s decades-long gold medal drought at next month’s Milano-Cortina Olympics.

The 25-player lineup announced on Friday, which includes two sets of brothers and two returnees from the 2022 Beijing Games, boasts a familiar cast of strong goaltending, a solid defensive core and high-powered forwards who are expected to deliver balanced scoring.

General Manager Bill Guerin, speaking on a conference call after the roster announcement, said it was the chemistry displayed by the Americans who competed at the ‌4 Nations Face-Off last February, where the U.S. lost to rival Canada in overtime, that convinced ‌him to keep nearly all of the team together.

"I like the way we played," he said. "Everybody played together, everybody played the right way, adhered to the game plan. But the biggest thing for me was the chemistry, and I think the chemistry allowed the guys to play the way that they did.

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"The willingness to accept their role, the willingness to do things that maybe on their NHL team they are not asked to do - take a little bit less ice time, play a different role. All of those things went into it, but the chemistry, I think, ‍was one of the biggest things."

GOLD MEDAL DROUGHT

With NHL players back in the Olympic mix for the first time since 2014, expectations are sky-high for a U.S. program seeking its first hockey gold since the "Miracle on Ice" at the 1980 Lake Placid Games. Team USA have not made an Olympic podium since the 2010 Vancouver Games where they lost to Canada in the gold-medal game.

Connor Hellebuyck, who has been voted the NHL's best goaltender each of the last two seasons and started in three of ‌four games for Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off, was one of three goalies named to the roster, along with Jeremy Swayman and Jake Oettinger.

Brady and Matthew Tkachuk and Quinn and Jack Hughes make up the two sets of brothers on the team. The Tkachuks and Quinn Hughes were among the six players named to the preliminary roster in June along with forwards Auston Matthews and Jack ⁠Eichel and defenseman Charlie McAvoy.

TWO RETURNING PLAYERS

Defensemen Jake Sanderson and ‌Brock Faber, who both represented the U.S. at the 2022 Beijing Olympics as college players, are the only members of the team with Olympic experience.

The roster features 21 players who wore the stars and stripes at the 4 Nations Face-Off, while four helped Team USA capture gold at the 2025 men's world championship.

“It was incredibly difficult for our management group to get to the ‍final roster, and that’s a credit to so many in our country, including all those at the grassroots level who help make our sport so ⁠strong," said Guerin.

"There’s nothing like the Olympics and I know our players and staff will represent our country well and work hard to achieve our ultimate goal.”

The men's ice hockey tournament at the Milano-Cortina Olympics runs ‌from February 11 to 22. The United States have been placed in Group C alongside Germany, Latvia and Denmark.

(Reporting ‍by Frank Pingue in Toronto, Editing by Louise Heavens and Matthew Lewis)

US hope team chemistry helps men's ice hockey squad snap gold-medal drought at Milano-Cortina

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