On Wednesday, Jan. 7, the Danish Ishockey Union announced its final roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which will be held in Milan-Cortina in February. Denmark’s first game will be on Thursday, Feb. 12, against Germany at 3:10 pm Eastern. For the upcoming 2016 Olympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina, there are three Danish players to watch, as the team hopes to shock everyone and win a medal next month.
Nikolaj Ehlers
The first player who comes to mind for Denmark to make an impact for the national team is forward Nikolaj Ehlers. In his first season with the Carolina Hurricanes, Ehlers is third on the team in points (39), assists (25), and fifth in goals (14) in 51 games. After spending the first 10 seasons of his career with the Winnipeg Jets, Ehlers signed a six-year, $8.5 million average annual value (AAV) deal this past summer to take his talents to North Carolina. After getting used to the system for the first month or so, Ehlers has been on a tear for Rod Brind’Amour’s side, especially once the calendar flipped to January 2026.
Related: Denmark Announces 2026 Men’s Winter Olympics Roster
Since Jan. 1, Ehlers has six goals and 13 points through the first 12 games of 2026. Three of those goals have come on the power play. He spent the first half of the month with Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho on the top line for the Hurricanes, but over the last few games, he has been with Jordan Staal and Jordan Martinook on the third line. Even with moving down to the line with the Jordan’s, Ehlers has still been electric, especially as a one-man zone entry at 5-on-5 and on the power play.
Hockey 2026 Olympics Milano, Denmark (The Hockey Writers)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.”
Ehlers will definitely be one to watch for Denmark at the Milan-Cortina games next month in Italy. He will more than likely live up to his nickname “Fly” as he will be buzzing all around the ice for the Danes.
Oliver Bjorkstrand
The next player to keep an eye on is forward Oliver Bjorkstrand of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bjorkstrand, in 48 games, has seven goals and 23 points for Jon Cooper’s side. This is his first full season with the team after getting traded from the Seattle Kraken during the 2024-25 season. He finished 2024-25 with 21 goals and 46 points in 79 games. 37 of those points came in 61 games with the Kraken. It’s been a season of learning for Bjorkstrand in a new system, but he is seeing winning hockey as the Lightning are the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, just ahead of Ehlers’ Hurricanes.
Related: Guide to the 2026 Winter Olympics Men’s Hockey Tournament
It’ll be interesting to see where the Denmark coaching staff will play Bjorkstrand, but it’s safe to say it’ll most likely be within the top six. Maybe on the second line if they feel like they want to balance the lines with scoring, especially if Ehlers is on the top line. There is a chance Bjorkstrand could be on the first power-play unit with Ehlers if that’s the avenue Denmark goes down. Either way, the 30-year-old Dane will be one to watch as well when the games begin.
Frederik Andersen
Last but not least is the man who helped backstop Denmark’s qualification for the 2026 Winter Olympics. Frederik Andersen played in all three games of the 2024 Olympic Qualifiers, winning all three in the process. Against Great Britain, Japan, and Norway in their Group F Qualifying Stage, Andersen stopped 60 of 64 shots en route to a trip to Milan-Cortina.
During the 2025-26 season for the Hurricanes, Andersen has a record of 7-10-4, with a 3.23 goals-against average (GAA) and an .869 save percentage (SV%). Despite the losing record in 21 starts, Andersen is 2-1-2 in his last five games, with one of those coming with him stopping 29 of 30 shots for a .967 SV%. There was a time when he did not have a win for a couple of months; however, he has been showing flashes of the Andersen who was lights out in the playoffs in two of the last three seasons.
While Andersen will be joined by Frederik Dichow of HV71 and Mads Søgaard of the Ottawa Senators, there is a good chance “Freddie” will be the number one goalie for Denmark. However, things could change between now and Feb. 12, against Germany.
Denmark will have their work cut out for them, especially being part of Group C, which includes a stacked Team USA, along with Germany and Latvia. However, Denmark could be a team to keep an eye on. If they can continue to improve on what they did in qualifying, they should be able to impress and surprise a lot of people next month in Milan-Cortina.
