This year’s women’s tournament is one of the most highly anticipated events in recent memory. Not only because of the excitement of the United States taking on Canada, but also because of the introduction of the Professional Women’s Hockey League, players from all around the globe are showing their talents nightly.

With NHL players finally returning to the Olympics, Team Canada announced its captain and alternate captains for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic men’s hockey team.

Canada remains the gold-standard when it comes to men’s Olympic hockey, but their stranglehold on the sport isn’t as vice-like as it once was. This year’s roster is rich on talent, but there are some big questions about the team chemistry with the majority of the forward lines playing out of their natural position.

Among the five golds handed out included a successful defense for Switzerland and an Olympic speed skating record

However, when it comes to the total number of medals won by Canada at any past edition of the Winter Games, the country's best performance came at PyeongChang 2018, where Canadian athletes brought home 29 medals — 14 gold, 8 silver and 10 bronze — again, finishing third in the overall standings.

After a 12-year hiatus, NHL players are back for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. Here's how the 12 countries participating stack up.

Canada has won nine Olympic gold medals in men’s ice hockey. Their first Olympic gold medal came in 1920 at the Antwerp Summer Olympics. The team dominated for three decades before the rise of the Soviet Union. Canada’s men’s Olympic hockey gold medals came in the following years:

Since their debut at the Milano Cortina opening ceremony, Team Canada’s Olympic outfits have sparked mixed reactions from Canadians.

As the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics begin, all eyes were on teams from around the globe proudly donning their countries' uniforms for the opening ceremony, including Team USA in outfits designed by Ralph Lauren.