As the best hockey players in the world compete in the 2026 Winter Olympics, one team is notably absent from Milan-Cortina.
Due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the International Ice Hockey Federation banned the country from participating in its world hockey tournaments. That ban still holds and applies to the Olympics, which means the Russian men’s and women’s hockey teams are ineligible to compete.
As a result, many of the NHL’s top players are staying home, while Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the United States all field teams full of NHL stars. If Russia were allowed to compete, it would have had a chance to win gold and certainly would have made for a much more competitive tournament.
Russia’s absence also affects individual players, including Alex Ovechkin. The Washington Capitals star last competed in the 2018 Olympics, and missing out on this one likely means he will not be an Olympian again.
Here’s a look at how the Russian Olympic men’s hockey team could have looked if they were eligible to participate in 2026.
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Russia mock hockey roster
| Player | Position | NHL Team |
| Alex Ovechkin | Forward | Washington Capitals |
| Artemi Panarin | Forward | Los Angeles Kings |
| Nikita Kucherov | Forward | Tampa Bay Lightning |
| Kirill Kaprizov | Forward | Minnesota Wild |
| Pavel Buchneivich | Forward | St. Louis Blues |
| Evgeni Malkin | Forward | Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Andrei Svechnikov | Forward | Carolina Hurricanes |
| Kirill Marchenko | Forward | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Ivan Demidov | Forward | Montreal Canadiens |
| Pavel Dorofeyev | Forward | Vegas Golden Knights |
| Dmitri Voronkov | Forward | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Ivan Barbashev | Forward | Vegas Golden Knights |
| Vasili Podkolzin | Forward | Edmonton Oilers |
| Vladislav Namestnikov | Forward | Winnipeg Jets |
| Mikhail Sergachev | Defense | Utah Mammoth |
| Vladislav Gavrikov | Defense | New York Rangers |
| Nikita Zadorov | Defense | Boston Bruins |
| Dmitry Orlov | Defense | San Jose Sharks |
| Artem Zub | Defense | Ottawa Senators |
| Ivan Provorov | Defense | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Alexander Nikishin | Defense | Carolina Hurricanes |
| Yan Kuznetsov | Defense | Calgary Flames |
| Sergei Bobrovsky | Goalie | Florida Panthers |
| Igor Shesterkin | Goalie | New York Rangers |
| Andrei Vasilevsky | Goalie | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Projected Russian lines:
- First line: Alex Ovechkin-Evgeni Malkin-Nikita Kucherov
- Second line: Kirill Kaprizov-Pavel Buchneivich-Artemi Panarin
- Third line: Andrei Svechnikov-Kirill Marchenko-Ivan Barbashev
- Fourth line: Pavel Dorofeyev-Vladislav Namestnikov-Dmitri Voronkov
- 13th forward: Vasili Podkolzin
- First pair: Mikhail Sergachev-Vladislav Gavrikov
- Second pair: Nikita Zadorov-Artem Zub
- Third pair: Dmitry Orlov-Alexander Nikishkin
- 7th defender: Ivan Provorov
- Starting goalie: Igor Shesterkin
- Backup goalie: Andrei Vasilevsky
- Scratches: Ivan Demidov, Yan Kuznetsov, Sergei Bobrovsky
A Russian team would be full of stars, especially in the forward group. Alex Ovechkin, Artemi Panarin, Nikita Kucherov and Kirill Kaprizov are all dynamic scorers who have individually been the best players on their teams in previous years.
Other players like Pavel Buchneivich and Andrei Svechnikov have star power to provide incredible depth to an impressive group.
However, the biggest weakness for the Russian team would be a lack of centers. Evgeni Malking would center the first line, but the team would probably need a winger to temporarily move to center to even out the talent gaps.
On defense, Russia would have a few shut down defenders, like Vladislav Gavrikov and Nikita Zadorov, while Sergachev would lead the offense on the blue line.
Finally, Russia would have the best goalie group of any team in the tournament. Sergei Bobrovsky and Andrei Vasilevsky both have multiple Stanley Cups, while Igor Shesterkin is among the best goalies in the league every year.
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