On Wednesday, the Danish Ishockey Union announced its final roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which will be held in Milan-Cortina in February. The men’s tournament begins on Feb. 11 and will run through Feb. 22. Denmark’s first game will be on Thursday, Feb. 12, against Germany at 3:10 pm Eastern. Here’s a look at their 25-man roster.
The Danes Are Coming
Before the announcement, general manager of the national team, Morten Green, stated, “We have selected a squad that combines experience, international top-class, and hunger, and we look forward to seeing them play for the lion on their chest and represent Denmark in the best possible way. We come to the Olympics with great respect for the task, but have a clear ambition to be competitive in all matches.”
Here is the roster that Denmark will bring to Milan-Cortina in February:
Goalies: Frederik Andersen (Carolina Hurricanes, NHL), Frederik Dichow (HV71, SHL), Mads Søgaard (Ottawa Senators, NHL)
Defense: Anders Koch (Graz 99, ICEHL), Jesper Jensen Aabo (Klagenfurt KAC, ICEHL), Markus Lauridsen (Pustertal HC, ICEHL), Matias Lassen (Iserlohn Roosters, DEL), Nicholas B. Jensen (Fischtown Bremerhaven, DEL), Oliver Lauridsen (TPS Turku, Liiga), Phillip Bruggisser (Fischtown Bremerhaven, DEL)
Forwards: Alexander True (JYP Jyväskylä, Liiga), Christian Wejse (Fischtown Bremerhaven, DEL), Frederik Storm (Kölner Haie, DEL), Joachim Blichfeld (Tappara, Liiga), Jonas Røndbjerg (Vegas Golden Knights, NHL), Lars Eller (Ottawa Senators, NHL), Mathias Bau (Herning Blue Fox, Metal Ligaen), Mikkel Aagaard (Skellefteå AIK, SHL), Morten Poulsen (Herning Blue Fox, Metal Ligaen), Nick Olesen (Motor České Budějovice, Extraliga), Nicklas Jensen (Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, NL), Nikolaj Ehlers (Carolina Hurricanes, NHL), Oliver Björkstrand (Tampa Bay Lightning, NHL), Oscar Fisker Mølgaard (Seattle Kraken, NHL), and
Patrick Russell (Kölner Haie, DEL)
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The roster has some solid NHL talent, including Nikolaj Ehlers, who’s been on a tear for the Hurricanes of late after a slow start to the season. There is also his teammate, Frederik Andersen, who is expected to be Denmark’s starting goaltender, and Lars Eller, a Cup champion with the Washington Capitals in 2019.
When asked what it means to him to play for Denmark at the Olympics, Ehlers stated, “The Olympics is the biggest tournament you can participate in, and it’s something I followed myself when I was younger. It was something special with the best players in the world against each other. So now to be allowed to play an Olympics for Denmark is a dream come true.
It will be a fantastic experience with some difficult, but great matches. There will be pressure with many games in a short time, so we have to be ready from the start and not take anything for granted. The results we have made in both the qualification for the Olympics and the World Championships in Herning were fantastic, and the feeling it gave us is something that we must bring to the Olympics. We have to go down and give it our all for the lion on the chest and Denmark.”
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Denmark will have their work cut out for them as part of Group C that includes a stacked Team USA, along with Germany and Latvia, who are also looking to make noise in Milan. However, Denmark could be a team to keep an eye on. If they don’t win their group or finish in second place, they will have to play a single-elimination game to secure one of the four quarterfinal spots. It’ll be an uphill battle, but if they can continue to improve on what they did in qualifying, they should be able to impress.
