Ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Tom Wilson was named to Team Canada’s list of potential members of their Olympic Squad. Hockey Canada announced that 42 NHL players were invited to its National Teams Orientation Camp taking place later in August. Among others, Wilson joins elite players like Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, and Brad Marchand as ones Hockey Canada is keeping an eye on as they chase Olympic success next year. Scott Salmond, the organization’s vice-president of high performance and hockey operations, remarked, “While the next several months will bring intense evaluation and difficult roster decisions, we look forward to kicking off the season in Calgary and giving our athletes and staff a chance to come together and start to become one team as we set our sights on February.”
While it is not guaranteed that Wilson will be named to the Olympic roster, the odds are certainly in his favor. He had a career-best season in 2024-25, ranking second on the team in goals (33) behind only Alex Ovechkin (44). With 65 points (33g, 32a) across 81 games, he set career highs in goals, assists, and points. He has also continued to maintain his notable physicality while playing a more disciplined game, decreasing his penalty minutes from 133 in 2023-24 to 100 in 2024-25. Wilson also performed well in the Capitals’ recent playoff run, tallying seven points (three goals, four assists) in ten games. He is also a leader, veteran, and mentor on and off the ice and has made himself known and well-respected in Washington, DC, by participating in charitable efforts and becoming a valuable member of the community throughout his time there.
Speaking with NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger, Wilson said, “Obviously, it’s a dream your whole life to be mentioned in that type of realm of the guys with that type of pedigree. There’s a lot of really good superstar names, and just to be even in the mix is a huge privilege. I’m just going to try and play as well as I can up until the final team is announced and put my name in the hat.” Just 22 skaters will be chosen for the team’s final roster– six have been announced already. Should Tom Wilson make the Olympic team, he will be joining Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Connor McDavid, Brayden Point, and Sam Reinhart.
Other Capitals Left Off Orientation Camp Roster
With multiple highly talented Canadians on the Capitals squad, it is interesting to note that Wilson was the only player invited to Orientation Camp. Arguments could be made for players such as Dylan Strome and Logan Thompson being invited, as well. Strome has played his best three seasons of hockey with the Capitals and became a point-per-game player last season. He was both a playmaker and a goal-scorer, easily taking the place of Nicklas Backstrom as Alex Ovechkin’s centerman. His career-high 29 goals and 53 assists included a secondary assist on Ovechkin’s record-breaking goal, cementing his name in hockey history forever. The Mississauga native became a household NHL name last season, but Hockey Canada did not look his way.
The bigger snub, however, is that of Capitals’ goaltender Logan Thompson. Hockey Canada chose to invite just three goaltenders to the Orientation Camp– Jordan Binnington, Adin Hill, and Sam Montembeault, who all joined the team during the 4 Nations Faceoff. Similar to Wilson and Strome, Thompson had a breakout season in 2024-25. While he was expected to play backup to Charlie Lindgren, Thompson became Washington’s starter and ranked fourth in Vezina Trophy voting. He was among the top 10 in the league in both save percentage (.910, 10th) and goals against average (2.49, ninth), and finished the season with a 31-6-6 record. Thompson was also notably left off the 4 Nations Faceoff roster, and there is speculation that it had to do with his relationship with Bruce Cassidy and Peter DeBoer, who were both coaches with the Vegas Golden Knights during Thompson’s time with the team. Cassidy and DeBoer are assistant coaches of Team Canada’s Olympic squad.
The 2026 Winter Olympics will run from February 4-22, 2026, with NHL players participating for the first time since 2014. The Capitals already have one player representing his home country–defenseman Martin Fehervary, who Slovakia named as one of its initial six players.
ITR 47: Then There Was Nothing – Inside The Rink
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