The countdown until Jets opening night continues, and we’re now Connor Hellebuyck (37) days until Jets hockey returns. Speaking of Hellebuyck, have you seen the recently showcased mask that he will rocking next season? Since the Jets have not made any important announcements (hint Cole Perfetti extension) still, I’ve decided to look ahead to 2026 Olympics, which will include the aforementioned Hellebuyck and several other Jets.

Yesterday, the IIHF wrapped up the 2024 Men’s Final Olympic Ice Hockey Qualifications. The 3 teams that have clinched the final spots for the 2026 games are Latvia, Slovakia, and Denmark. That’s good news for Danish Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers, who helped lead his team to a 4-1 win over Norway to secure 1st place in their qualifying group. Latvia defeated France 5-2 to clinch their spot, while Slovakia held on to a 3-1 win over Kazakhstan to secure their return to the Olympics.

The 2026 Olympic Games will be known as “Milano-Cortina 2026”, being hosted in the cities of Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy. It’s a big year for Olympic hockey, as it will mark the return of NHL players being able to represent their countries at the games, for the 1st time since 2014 in Sochi.

With the results of these qualifiers, the 2026 Winter Olympics Men’s Ice Hockey tournament groups have been finalized, with 1 detail to be determined. The IIHF will make a decision in February 2025 to either allow or ban #3 ranked Russia from this tournament. This decision will fully finalize the groups, as if Russia is not allowed in, France will take their place as the best 2nd place finishers among the 3 groups at the qualifiers. Here are an early look at the 3 groups, and your Winnipeg Jets that should be on each of these teams.

If Russia is allowed in, Group A will include Canada, Sweden, Switzerland and Italy. There could be numerous Jets in this group, including Mark Scheifele and Josh Morrissey for Canada. Team Switzerland will feature Nino Niederreiter, who is currently one of the best Swiss hockey players of all-time. Team Canada will have an absolutely stacked roster at the 2026 Olympics, and should be able to win this group without too much trouble.

Group B will feature Finland, Germany, Czechia and Denmark. The only current Jets player projected to be in this group is of course Nikolaj Ehlers for Denmark. Just like Niederreiter is to Switzerland, Ehlers will be one of the top players for Denmark at this tournament, and will be called upon plenty to try to win Denmark a game in this very difficult group. This group will be close, but Finland should be able to win it with their defensive low scoring style of play that has made them successful in the past.

Group C could be the toughest of them all if Russia is included, as it would be Russia, USA, Slovakia and Latvia. USA will surely have both Kyle Connor and Connor Hellebuyck. Depending on how the upcoming 2025 4 Nations tournament goes for Hellebuyck, he may show enough to win the starting goalie job for the 2026 Olympics. Connor won’t have an as important role as Hellebuyck on team USA, but he should still be able to secure a line 2/3 spot on the wing. I have a tough time deciding if Russia or USA would win this group, but my gut says Russia because of their potentially highly skilled team that they could send to Italy.

As mentioned, if Russia is banned, the groups will look quite different. Group A will include Canada, Switzerland, Czechia and France. Group B will include Finland, Sweden, Slovakia and the hosts Italy. Finally, Group C would have the Americans led by Hellebuyck, Germany, Latvia and the Nikolaj Ehlers led Danes.

All I can say is, I know it’s still 2 years away, but I can’t wait to see NHL players back in the Olympics in 2026. It feels like forever since we’ve seen “best on best” hockey, and it’s true, because we haven’t seen NHL players in the Olympics since 2014, 10 years ago now. The 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off will be a nice preview to “best on best” hockey, and we’ll get to see some Jets star players in that tournament as well.

On a side note, this is officially my 100th published article here on Jets Nation, so here’s to looking forward to hopefully 100 more! Oh ya, and just 3 weeks now until Jets pre-season hockey!