Canucks Šilovs Named To Latvia's 2026 Winter Olympics Qualification Team, Blueger Set To Miss Tournament

Team Latvia has officially revealed their roster ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics Qualification tournament. The team will feature one Vancouver Canucks player in Artūrs Šilovs, who is the only NHL goaltender on the squad. Šilovs was on the roster in 2021 when Latvia won their group and qualified for the 2022 Winter Olympics, but did not play a game.

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Šilovs is already a hero in the Latvian hockey community after his performance at the 2023 World Championship. Not only did he help Latvia capture a Bronze Medal, but he was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after going 7-3 while posting a .921 save percentage. This past season, Šilovs also made his mark at the NHL level, stepping in for Vancouver and leading them to Game 7 of the second round.

While Team Latvia has a solid squad that should win their group, they will be missing Canucks forward Teddy Blueger. According to the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation, he will miss the tournament "due to personal reasons." Blueger played a key role during the 2021 qualifiers as he captained his country to a tournament victory in Riga.

Related: Current Canucks That Could Feature At The 2026 Winter Olympics

Latvia will kick off their Group E schedule on August 29 with a game against Slovakia. They will then play Ukraine on August 30 and wrap up the tournament with a match against France on September 1. The top team from the group qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which are scheduled to take place in Milan, Italy and feature NHL players for the first time since 2014.

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