It would be light on centers — after 38-year-old Evgeni Malkin, it’s … Vladislav Namestnikov? — but loaded on the wings.
Kirill Kaprizov, Nikita Kucherov, Alex Ovechkin, Artemi Panarin … newcomers such as Kirill Marchenko, and Ivan Demidov … that’s an incredibly fun group to watch, and more than enough scoring to be a medal threat.
The defense would be nasty if not overly skilled, with a possible top six of Mikhail Sergachev, Ivan Provorov, Vladislav Gavrikov, Nikita Zadorov, Artem Zub, and Dmitry Orlov.
It would not be easy to choose between Igor Shesterkin, Andrei Vasilevskiy, or Sergei Bobrovsky, but that goalie stable is as good as anyone’s.
By name, flag, and state insignia, Russia wasn’t a part of the two previous Winter Olympics. Penalties from a state-sponsored doping program turned them into the Olympic Athletes of Russia in 2018, and the Russian Olympic Committee in 2022. Men’s hockey won gold and silver, respectively.
▪ Among nations outside the Big Five of the United States, Canada, Sweden, Finland, and Czechia, Switzerland might be the most dangerous. Nico Hischier would make anyone’s roster. Roman Josi and J.J. Moser are a solid top defense pair. Netminder Leonardo Genoni, 38, was MVP at the Worlds for the silver medal-winning Swiss, who have been runners-up twice in a row. Excitement is high there: They’ll host the Worlds next spring.
▪ Germany’s hopes rest with Leon Draisaitl and Tim Stützle, two of its five NHL forwards, along with one defenseman (Moritz Seider) and two goalies (Philipp Grubauer and Nico Daws). Germany’s last medal (and first since 1976) was silver in 2018, led by coach Marco Sturm.
Leon Draisaitl will be key for Germany in the Olympics.Maddy Grassy/Associated Press▪ Slovakia is similarly light on NHLers, though defenseman Simon Nemec has had a breakout season for the Devils. The net could go to Samuel Hlavaj, who had a stellar run in the Olympic qualifiers last year.
▪ If netminder Frederik Andersen is on his game, Denmark could be hot in the early rounds. Winger Nikolaj Ehlers is one of the fastest players in the world … Elvis Merzlikins posted a .940 save percentage for Latvia in the 2018 Worlds. It will need more of that to compete here … France was added to replace Russia. French forward Alexandre Texier, now playing in Montreal, led all scorers at the Olympic qualifiers (3-3–6 in three games) … Italy, which received automatic bids as the host of the Games, hasn’t qualified by results since 1998.
Matt Porter can be reached at matthew.porter@globe.com. Follow him @mattyports.