Team Canada Olympic Hockey Roster Delivers Some Bombshells
Posted on: December 31, 2025, 12:51h.
Last updated on: December 31, 2025, 12:51h.
- Sharks’ Celebrini named to Canadian Olympic roster, but not Hawks’ Bedard
- Capitals’ Wilson another surprise pick, Blues’ Binnington in goal as well
- Canada remains betting favourite in men’s hockey for Olympics
Canada is the betting favourite for Olympic Men’s Hockey as the calendar turns to 2026, and the Milan Games come more into focus. Today’s announcement of Team Canada’s roster won’t move the betting lines that much.
There were a few surprises, as Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong made the announcement at noon EST. Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals made the team. As did sophomore Macklin Celebrini, tearing it up in San Jose with the Sharks now (even in some conversations for league MVP), Bo Horvat of the New York Islanders, greybeard Drew Doughty of the L.A. Kings, and Jordan Binnington in goal, not exactly lighting it up for the St. Louis Blues this season.
Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks wasn’t named to the squad – a surprise as well, especially considering Armstrong’s comments during today’s news conference that Bedard’s current shoulder injury didn’t impact his decision much at all.
Celebrini In, Bedard Out
“No players played themselves off this team,” Armstrong said. Bedard’s name was there “right to the last second”, but in the end Armstrong added: “We believe this is the best team we could select. We are not building this team to beat any one team. It’s a dangerous slope if you do something just for one opponent then you don’t face them.”
The roster: Binnington, Darcy Kuemper (Los Angeles Kings), Logan Thompson (Washington Capitals) in goal, Cale Makar (Colorado Avalanche), Doughty, Thomas Harley (Dallas Stars), Josh Morrissey (Winnipeg Jets), Colton Parayko (St. Louis Blues), Travis Sanheim (Philadelphia Flyers), Shea Theodore (Vegas Golden Knights) and Devon Toews (Colorado Avalanche) on defence.
At forward are Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers), Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins), Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche), Brayden Point (Tampa Bay Lightning), Sam Reinhart (Florida Panthers), Celebrini, Anthony Cirelli (Tampa Bay Lightning), Brandon Hagel (Tampa Bay Lightning), Horvat, Brad Marchand (Florida Panthers), Mitch Marner (Vegas Golden Knights), Mark Stone (Vegas Golden Knights), Nick Suzuki (Montreal Canadiens), and Wilson.
The Binnington Factor
Armstrong said during today’s presser their minds were made up on Celebrini in early December, that he had shown them enough by that point.
“He’s really taken off,” he said. “He’s gone to the worlds. He fit in very well socially with the top players in the game, and his product on the ice speaks for itself.”
Armstrong said Binnington’s overall resume, including what he did last winter backstopping the Canadian team to the championship in the 4 Nations Face-Off, including in the memorable final game against the U.S., was the determining factor. The Blues aren’t great this year. While Binnington’s stats aren’t great, Armstrong added, those are also a byproduct of how the Blues play most nights.
How Do the Betting Lines Look?
Suzuki was another surprise. The pressure of playing in Montreal is tough enough, and the pressure of being captain of the Canadiens is another level.
“What impresses me with Nick is his ability to compartmentalize all that and still be a top player every night,” said Armstrong. “We love his versatility. We know he can kill penalties and can play the power play. We know he’s a 200-foot player. And what we wanted to do as a management group is provide Jon Cooper [coach] with players with a lot of different tools in their tool toolkit, and Nick is one of those players.”
Hagel’s penalty killing ability is another huge factor, Armstrong added, since there won’t be a lot of penalties, so a power play goal will count even higher.
Avello on Hockey Betting Volume
A quick scan at the some of the sportsbooks this afternoon: DraftKings has Canada at +140, the U.S. at +200, Sweden at +500, Finland at +800. FanDuel has it Canada +135, USA +190, Sweden +550, Finance +1200. At BetMGM odds are Canada +135, USA +190, Sweden +525, and Finland +1000.
Johnny Avello, DraftKings’ Sportsbook Director, said the book last year saw the largest volume ever for betting on hockey, in both the U.S. and Canada, propelled by the 4 Nations Face-Off, and he expects the same level at the Milan Olympics.
“(4 Nations) is a good indicator of what’s going to happen for Olympic hockey,” he said. “I just think it’s going to be a tremendous amount of handle, big interest, and any jurisdiction that will allow all the (market) options that we have, there’ll be plenty out there for the consumer to play. So I’m looking for this to be a big year for hockey, soccer, Olympics, everything.”
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