The composition of the Latvian men's Olympic ice hockey team has been announced 0 19

The final roster includes 25 players — three goalkeepers, eight defenders, and 14 forwards.

The most experienced players on the team are 37-year-old forward Kaspars Daugavins and defender Oskars Cibuļskis, while the youngest is 18-year-old defender Alberts Šmits.

Back in June, the Latvian Hockey Federation (LHF) announced the names of the first six players who will be included in the national team for the 2026 Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. All six are currently playing in the strongest league in the world — the NHL. The LHF named two goalkeepers — Elvis Merzļikins (Columbus Blue Jackets) and Artūrs Šilovs (Pittsburgh Penguins), a defender Uvis Balinskis (Florida Panthers), as well as three forwards — Zemgus Girgensons (Tampa Bay Lightning), Teodors Bļugers (Vancouver Canucks), and Rodrigo Abols (Philadelphia Flyers).

In the group stage of the Olympics, Latvian hockey players in Group C will play against teams from the USA, Germany, and Denmark. The first match — against the USA — will take place on February 12, Latvia will meet Germany on February 14, and Denmark on February 15.

The final stage of preparation for the national team will begin on February 2 on the ice of the Daugava arena in Riga, and they will depart for the Olympics three days later.

NHL players will join the national team on February 7, and a friendly match against the Swiss national team is scheduled for February 9 at 17:15 in Milan.

The Olympic ice hockey tournament will consist of three groups. Group A will feature Canada, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and France. Group B will include Finland, Sweden, Slovakia, and Italy.

The group winners and the best team among the second-placed teams will advance directly to the quarterfinals, while the other teams will play in the round of 16.

The Olympic men's ice hockey tournament will take place from February 11 to 22.

Latvia's roster for the 2026 Olympic Games

Goalkeepers:

• Elvis Merzļikins (Columbus Blue Jackets, NHL)
• Artūrs Šilovs (Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL)
• Kristers Gudļevskis (Fischtown Penguins, Germany)

Defenders:

• Uvis Jānis Balinskis (Florida Panthers, NHL)
• Oskars Cibuļskis (Blue Fox, Herning, Denmark)
• Alberts Šmits (Jukurit, Mikkeli, Finland)
• Ralfs Freibergs (Ridera, Vitkovice, Czech Republic)
• Roberts Mamčics (Energie, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic)
• Jānis Jaks (Energie, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic)
• Kristaps Zīle (Bili Tigris, Liberec, Czech Republic)
• Kristiāns Rubīns (Škoda, Plzeň, Czech Republic)

Forwards:

• Renārs Krastenbergs (Olomouc, Czech Republic)
• Dan Ločmelis (Providence Bruins, AHL)
• Kaspars Daugavins (Haskis, Kassel, Germany)
• Mārtiņš Dzierkals (Sparta, Prague, Czech Republic)
• Rodrigo Abols (Philadelphia Flyers, NHL)
• Rūdolfs Balcers (Lions, Zurich, Switzerland)
• Zemgus Girgensons (Tampa Bay Lightning, NHL)
• Eduards Tralmaks (Griffins, Grand Rapids, AHL)
• Teodors Bļugers (Vancouver Canucks, NHL)
• Roberts Bukarts (Pioneers Vorarlberg, Feldkirch, Austria)
• Oskars Batņa (Pelicans, Lahti, Finland)
• Haralds Egle (Energie, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic)
• Sandis Vilmanis (Checkers, Charlotte, AHL)
• Eriks Mateiko (Bears, Hershey, AHL)

🇱🇻 Team Latvia men’s roster for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games just dropped!➡️

Athlete participation requires confirmation by their respective NOC.@lhf_lv @olympics @nhl @nhlpa#Olympics #NHL #IIHF pic.twitter.com/EbcW17NxqB

— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) January 6, 2026