Huge snubs and heartbreak by Team Canada have fans talking after Olympics roster reveal

Earlier on Wednesday, Team Canada revealed its mens ice hockey roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina. You can find the full official roster below, but new faces to the team are, at forward: Macklin Celebrini, Nick Suzuki, Bo Horvat and Tom Wilson, replacing 4 Nations forwards Sam Bennett, Travis Konecky and Seth Jarvis (plus extra Olympic roster spot). The roster will however count on the same eight defensemen from 4 Nations tournament, while goalie Jordan Binnington is back and joined by newcomers Logan Thompson and Darcy Kuemper.

While it’s great to see a young player like Macklin Celebrini making the cut, fans and insiders were shocked to see that Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett did not make the roster. I feel the same as Elliotte Friedman who posted:

“Biggest surprise for me is Sam Bennett out. I did not see that coming.”

I mean the guy is only months removed from winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in Florida...

The same could be said of forward Mark Scheifele, who must be happy for teammate and defenseman Josh Morrissey, but heartbroken over yet another snub.

Speaking of defense, some fans quickly noticed the absence of Edmonton Oilers' Evan Bouchard, who was also snubbed. He was apparently in the conversation leading up to the announcement, but the blue line will be the same at the one we saw during the successful 4-nations tournament.

Bouchard, along with Washington Capitals' Jakob Chychrun, earned strong consideration and are likely to be among those who could still earn a last-minute call as an injury replacement between now and the Olympic tournament.

As for Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks, Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong was asked if his shoulder injury was the reason he did not make the team, though the GM seemed to be saying that Bedard was not named on the roster because there are too many other better players that can answer the call.

As for the rookie phenom Matthew Schaefer in New York, GM Armstrong noted how impressive the young defender has been and found himself in the roster discussions:

"I was shocked at how quickly he worked his way into our conversations, and that's a credit to him."

He too could end up on a list of injury replacement.

In between the pipes, there is a strong feeling that Mackenzie Blackwood is the next man up in goal. He has just been phenomenal for the league-leading Colorado Avalanche with a 12-1-1 record, with a .924 save percentage and 13.8 goals saved above expected.