If there was a Best on Best THIS year...

[CroFlames]

The 2026 Olympic thread is kinda clunky. Who knows what will happen between now and then.

Let's pretend that there is a best-on-best tournament happening this year. What would your team be? I'll start off with USA, because I think they are the best on paper.

Robertson - Matthews - Eichel
Gaudreau - J Hughes - M Tkachuk
B Tkahuck- T Thompson - Tuch
Larkin - Beniers - Connor

Zegras


Slavin - Fox
Q Hughes - McAvoy
Werenski - Hanifin

Trouba

Oettinger
Swayman

I'd be interested to see Russia, but I don't have time right now to put one together.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

The 2026 Olympic thread is kinda clunky. Who knows what will happen between now and then.

Let's pretend that there is a best-on-best tournament happening this year. What would your team be? I'll start off with USA, because I think they are the best on paper.

Robertson - Matthews - Eichel
Gaudreau - J Hughes - M Tkachuk
B Tkahuck- T Thompson - Tuch
Larkin - Beniers - Connor

Zegras


Slavin - Fox
Q Hughes - McAvoy
Werenski - Hanifin

Trouba

Oettinger
Swayman

I'd be interested to see Russia, but I don't have time right now to put one together.

US team is pretty deep when names like Keller, Miller, and Guentzel (all 70+ points last year) aren't cracking the lineup you have posted.

[indes]

I think Canada still takes it. You can build an extremely potent and responsible team. This team puts up points and everyone (aside from McDavid haha) can play a great 2-way game.

When I look at team USA I see a lot of offense, lots of skill and tons scoring but I don't see the two way game from the forwards or defenseman that Canada is putting out. I don't see anyone who is stopping a top line of McDavid-Mackinnon-Marner, it would be a treat to watch those guys, not sure if maybe Barzal on the top line is a better fit with his footspeed.

Canada's D is also unreal right now. We really need Quebec to start putting out some goalies again though

McDavid - Mackinnon - Barzal
Stamkos - Crosby - Marner
Stephenson - Point - Mercer
Marchand - Bergeron - Bedard
Stone - PLD - Cozens

Toews - Makar
Theodore - Pietrangelo
Dunn - Hamilton
Morrissey - Montour

Logan Thompson
Carter Hart
Adin Hill


Edit: Changed the lines around and swapped Benn for Bedard. Like this version better.

[Enoch Root]

Benn? I think not.

[GFG#1]

Originally Posted by indes

I think Canada still takes it. You can build an extremely potent and responsible team. This team puts up points and everyone (aside from McDavid haha) can play a great 2-way game.

When I look at team USA I see a lot of offense, lots of skill and tons scoring but I don't see the two way game from the forwards or defenseman that Canada is putting out. I don't see anyone who is stopping a top line of McDavid-Mackinnon-Marner, it would be a treat to watch those guys, not sure if maybe Barzal on the top line is a better fit with his footspeed.

Canada's D is also unreal right now. We really need Quebec to start putting out some goalies again though

McDavid - Mackinnon - Marner
Benn - Point - Stamkos
Stephenson - Crosby - Stone
Marchand - Bergeron - Mercer
PLD - Barzal - Cozens

Toews - Makar
Theodore - Pietrangelo
Dunn - Hamilton
Morrissey - Montour

Logan Thompson
Carter Hart
Adin Hill

Not too different from mine, but I am pretty sure Bedard would make that squad, after we see how is debut goes. I would drop stone for him, due to Stones injury history. Short tournament, you can't risk it fairing up.
Would consider swapping Benn for Huberdeau. If he has a bounce back.

[midniteowl]

Is there no player better than Benn?

[indes]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Benn? I think not.

He had quite the season this year. I don't think he gets left off the roster with 0.95ppg and +23 year. That being said he might be too slow for the international ice, the rest of the team is fairly quick.

There are a few people left off who would probably have a case;
Giroux
Kyrou
Verhaege
Thomas
Toffoli
McCann
Horvat
Marchessault with those playoffs
Huberdeau

[CroFlames]

If you seriously can't find someone better than Benn, then throw Bedard out there at least.

[dino7c]

Huberdeau!

he was the first line LWer a year ago

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Here's a crazy, crazy idea instead of Benn

Jonathan Huberdeau

If last year didn't happen everyone would be penciling him in Canada's middle six.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent

Here's a crazy, crazy idea instead of Benn

Jonathan Huberdeau

If last year didn't happen everyone would be penciling him in Canada's middle six.

middle, he was the top LWer on all the lists before last year having just set the ALL TIME RECORD for assists by a LW

He outscored every Canadian except McDavid

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Dawson Mercer? Really?

Kyrou absolutely makes that team.

[RedHawk12]

Originally Posted by dino7c

Huberdeau!

he was the first line LWer a year ago

At no time has Huberdeau ever been, or will ever be, the top line LW on Team Canada, no matter what projections have or might have said.

Stop trying to make a point of that.

And I'm a huge fan of Hubs.

[Mean Mr. Mustard]

Canada's goaltending is pretty bad though. I know that Hill won the cup but he was a third string guy a lot of the way. In any best on best tournament the goaltending is the position that can steal games and right now Canada has the worst goaltending of a major nation by far.

[Mathgod]

I think Whitecloud has to make the team after the playoffs he just had. Marchessault too.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by RedHawk12

At no time has Huberdeau ever been, or will ever be, the top line LW on Team Canada, no matter what projections have or might have said.

Stop trying to make a point of that.

And I'm a huge fan of Hubs.

lol wat? only the most assists by a LW of all time...he was penciled into the top line by most. 2nd leading scorer in the NHL at the time too.

he had a bad season, before last year nearly every list had him on the top line for team Canada, not just a couple rando ones. All the big sites and big names...he wasn't a Flame at the time so it obviously wasn't some homer take.

Nearly all 2022 Olympics and 2024 world cup projections before last year had him as the top line LWer. Again, most assists of ALL time for a LWer. Outscored everyone on that list other than McDavid

[btimbit]

I just hope we actually get some sort of best on best tournament before even more of a "changing of the guard" happens and some of the older guys don't make it

We need to see Kane with Gaudreau, Mathews and Tkachuk. Crosby and Bergeron with MacKinnon and McDavid. Landeskog, Nylander and Lindholm with Backstrom, etc etc

[Party Elephant]

Yeah it's super sad that a whole generation of players has missed out on international hockey

[butterfly]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I'd be interested to see Russia, but I don't have time right now to put one together.

I'll take a crack at Russia:

Kaprizov-Malkin-Kucherov
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Svechnikov
Panarin-Namestnikov-Michkov
Kuzmenko-Trenin-Nichushkin

Buchnevich, Tarasenko, Barbashev

Sergachev-Provorov
Gavrikov-Orlov
Zadorov-Kulikov

Zub, Romanov

Shesterkin
Sorokin
Vasilevskiy
Bobrovsky (have fun picking between that group)

They are loaded at goalie and surprisingly weak at center.

[GirlySports]

it saddens me that we are robbed of these because the NHL can't get it's #### together.