The Athletic Hockey Show Building Team USA and Canada Olympic rosters
Oct 30, 2025
Shayna Goldman, an NHL reporter for The Athletic, joins to discuss Olympic roster strategies for Team USA and Canada ahead of the upcoming Milano-Cortina Games. She provides insights on where NHL teams find their best players, highlighting the importance of drafts over free agency. The conversation dives into contentious roster debates, including the inclusion of Dylan Larkin and Tom Wilson for Team USA. They also explore Canada's potential lineup and the impact of injuries on player selections, all while celebrating community efforts in hockey.
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Drafts Drive Top-Tier Talent
- 91 of the top 150 NHL players on Player Tiers came through the draft, showing draft development remains central.
- Teams that neglect drafting risk lacking true franchise cornerstones and must overpay or trade to compensate.
Free Agency Rarely Yields Elite Cores
- Only 13 of the top 150 players were acquired strictly via free agency, underscoring how limited free agency's impact is at the elite level.
- High-end roster building still relies more on drafting, trades, and sign-and-trades than pure July 1 shopping.
Protect First-Round Picks
- Teams outside contender tier should think twice before trading first-round picks because late firsts still produce top players.
- Retain draft capital if you lack an established core rather than gambling it away for short-term upgrades.